Chester Wood had never forgotten to share his experience in China as an alumni. The following letter is his report of the return to the United States to Mass Christianity board and Colby College. He was looking forward to joining the Colby reunion in the fall of 1937.
C. F. Wood enjoyed his visit in China and regarded his work as a missionary in middle-western China as a meaningful one. He’s devotion to Colby College is represented in this truthful letter: Encouraging more descendents in Colby to participate the missionary work in China and dive deeper into Far-Eastern cultural and social changes.
After returning back to the United States, C. F. Wood participated in community service related to Colby as an alumni in the 1940s and 1950s. His devotion to Colby was continuous and generous. Back as early as 1920, he donated for the support for the “Centennial Fund” organized by Colby and his name was recorded on the 1914 graduates’ board. In 1941, he attended the funeral of the previous Skowhegan Baptist Community leader and became the successor of that position. He also donated for the funds in 1946, in which his class year (1914)’s graduates contributed to the most donations among the 1910s graduates for $815 in total. In 1950s, his name appeared every year as an important contributors to Colby funding during 1950 to 1954.
Colby Lumnus Vol.42
The attached file is a Colby Alumnus recording Chester Wood’s donation record in 1952, which was released in January, 1953.
Wood eventually passed away in 1962 due to diabetes, but his contribution towards the social service in China and the United States, together with his faith in Christianity, made him a special alumni that connected the two great civilizations together in early 20th Century through social gospel and evangelism.
Chester Wood’s daughter, Elizabeth Wood (5th girl in the front row, left to right), was graduated in the 1940s. Her memorial notes of Chester Wood completed in the 1990s become an important document for us to research the details of Chester Wood.