Zentses observe 65th anniversary at celebrations

XBOARDMAN -- The Rev. and Mrs. Raymond Zents Sr. of Boardman were honored at various gatherings of family and friends recently in celebration of their 65th wedding anniversary. The couple's family includes their children and their spouses, the Rev. Raymond Jr. and Diane Zents of Brussels, Belgium, and June and Bob Palfrey of Cortland; three grandchildren and one great-grandson.
The Rev. Zents and the former Katherine Litwin of North Jackson were married Sept. 3, 1938, at Highway Tabernacle in Youngstown. They attended Central Bible College in Springfield, Mo. and are ordained ministers. They pastored churches in Ohio prior to their appointment as missionaries to the Republic of Upper Volta, now known as Burkina Faso, in West Africa. They served there for 36 years, developing a written language of the native's dialect of Moore using French phonetics, the country's official language. They translated the entire Bible into the Moore dialect and shared in the construction of 60 churches as well as building a school to improve the literacy program. Rev. Zents served on translation and language committees for many years, and his wife introduced an extensive program for equality and increased rights of women.
The couple are members of Highway Tabernacle (now in Austintown) where Mrs. Zents is a charter member.