Virginia Healey Asher
Encyclopedia
Virginia Healey Asher was a gospel singer and evangelist to women.
, then pastored by R. A. Torrey, an associate of evangelist Dwight L. Moody
. Healey was converted to evangelical Christianity at the age of eleven and shortly thereafter became involved in the church’s Sunday School ministry. Healey had a fine contralto voice and apparently received some professional training from George F. Root.
In the service of Moody Church she met her future husband, William Asher, who had been converted at the same evangelistic meeting as Healey, and they were married on December 14, 1887. Their only child died at birth. Virginia Asher attended classes at the precursor of Moody Bible Institute
, although she did not graduate.
In the 1890s, the couple held open-air evangelistic meetings near the original Ferris wheel
, built for the World's Columbian Exposition
in Chicago (1893). Their success there led to William Asher being called as assistant pastor of Jefferson Park Presbyterian Church, where both Ashers worked for five years during the pastorate of J. Frank Talmadge. During this period, professional baseball player and future evangelist Billy Sunday
attended services at the church.
The Ashers moved on to Duluth, Minnesota
where they evangelized in the slums and at Duluth Bethel, a ministry to seamen, miners, and lumberjacks in the frontier port city. The Ashers then became assistants in the evangelistic campaigns of J. Wilbur Chapman
, for whom Billy Sunday eventually became the advance man. The ministry of the Ashers focused on sailors, prisoners, and the working poor, until ill health forced Virginia Asher to return home to Winona Lake, Indiana
, where both Chapman and Sunday also owned cottages.
By the first decade of the twentieth century, the evangelistic ministry of Billy Sunday had grown dramatically in both size and income, and Sunday’s wife, Nell
began to travel with her husband and manage the campaign staff. Nell Sunday first hired two female Bible teachers, Grace Sax and Francis Miller, and then in 1911 invited the Ashers to become part of the organization.
Virginia Asher took charge of the ministry to “businesswomen,” mostly shop girls, hospital employees, and factory operatives—any women who worked outside their homes. Often they had been recently deracinated from rural families and viewed their employment as only a temporary expedient before an anticipated marriage. Asher organized local churchwomen to serve as hostesses at luncheons for these young women. They would be served a simple five- to ten-cent lunch—perhaps a sandwich, a pickle, and coffee—before Asher spoke to them about such sins as promiscuity and drinking. They were also strongly encouraged to attend the Billy Sunday services in the evenings.
At the evangelistic services, Virginia Asher often sang duets with music director Homer Rodeheaver
, and their early recordings popularized such gospel songs as “The Old Rugged Cross
” and “In the Garden". Meanwhile, William Asher began to serve as Sunday’s advance man and fundraiser, and he and his wife were often geographically separated, which they accepted as a necessary part of their ministry.
At the end of a series of Sunday meetings in a city, Virginia Asher organized “businesswomen’s councils” to continue Bible studies and evangelistic work after the Sunday organization had left for another campaign. In 1922, the councils organized a national organization, the Virginia Asher Businesswomen’s Councils, that held annual meetings at Winona Lake Bible Conference. Local associations continued to exist well into the 1950s.
As Billy Sunday campaigns declined in popularity, ill health forced Asher to retire from Sunday’s staff after seventeen years of service. She died at her home in Florida in February 1937.
Biography
Virginia Healey was born in Chicago to Irish Catholic parents, who however, did not seem to mind their daughter attending services at Moody ChurchMoody Church
The Moody Church is a historic Protestant church in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. right|thumb|270px|-Building:...
, then pastored by R. A. Torrey, an associate of evangelist Dwight L. Moody
Dwight L. Moody
Dwight Lyman Moody , also known as D.L. Moody, was an American evangelist and publisher who founded the Moody Church, Northfield School and Mount Hermon School in Massachusetts , the Moody Bible Institute and Moody Publishers.-Early life:Dwight Moody was born in Northfield, Massachusetts to a large...
. Healey was converted to evangelical Christianity at the age of eleven and shortly thereafter became involved in the church’s Sunday School ministry. Healey had a fine contralto voice and apparently received some professional training from George F. Root.
In the service of Moody Church she met her future husband, William Asher, who had been converted at the same evangelistic meeting as Healey, and they were married on December 14, 1887. Their only child died at birth. Virginia Asher attended classes at the precursor of Moody Bible Institute
Moody Bible Institute
Moody Bible Institute is a Christian institution of higher education and related ministries that was founded by evangelist and businessman Dwight Lyman Moody in 1886. Since its founding, MBI's main campus has been located in the Near North Side of Chicago. MBI's primary ministries are education,...
, although she did not graduate.
In the 1890s, the couple held open-air evangelistic meetings near the original Ferris wheel
Ferris wheel
A Ferris wheel is a nonbuilding structure consisting of a rotating upright wheel with passenger cars attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, the cars are kept upright, usually by gravity.Some of the largest and most modern Ferris wheels have cars mounted on...
, built for the World's Columbian Exposition
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
in Chicago (1893). Their success there led to William Asher being called as assistant pastor of Jefferson Park Presbyterian Church, where both Ashers worked for five years during the pastorate of J. Frank Talmadge. During this period, professional baseball player and future evangelist Billy Sunday
Billy Sunday
William Ashley "Billy" Sunday was an American athlete who, after being a popular outfielder in baseball's National League during the 1880s, became the most celebrated and influential American evangelist during the first two decades of the 20th century.Born into poverty in Iowa, Sunday spent some...
attended services at the church.
The Ashers moved on to Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
where they evangelized in the slums and at Duluth Bethel, a ministry to seamen, miners, and lumberjacks in the frontier port city. The Ashers then became assistants in the evangelistic campaigns of J. Wilbur Chapman
John Wilbur Chapman
John Wilbur Chapman was a Presbyterian evangelist in the late 19th Century, generally traveling with gospel singer Charles Alexander. His parents were Alexander H. and Lorinda Chapman.-Faith & Education:Chapman grew up attending Quaker Day School and Methodist Sunday School...
, for whom Billy Sunday eventually became the advance man. The ministry of the Ashers focused on sailors, prisoners, and the working poor, until ill health forced Virginia Asher to return home to Winona Lake, Indiana
Winona Lake, Indiana
Winona Lake is a town in Wayne Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States. The population was 4,908 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Winona Lake is located at...
, where both Chapman and Sunday also owned cottages.
By the first decade of the twentieth century, the evangelistic ministry of Billy Sunday had grown dramatically in both size and income, and Sunday’s wife, Nell
Helen Thompson Sunday
Helen Amelia Thompson Sunday was the wife of Billy Sunday, an indefatigable organizer of his huge evangelistic campaigns during the first decades of the twentieth century, and eventually an evangelistic speaker in her own right.- Early life and marriage :Helen Sunday, often called “Nell” or “Ma”...
began to travel with her husband and manage the campaign staff. Nell Sunday first hired two female Bible teachers, Grace Sax and Francis Miller, and then in 1911 invited the Ashers to become part of the organization.
Virginia Asher took charge of the ministry to “businesswomen,” mostly shop girls, hospital employees, and factory operatives—any women who worked outside their homes. Often they had been recently deracinated from rural families and viewed their employment as only a temporary expedient before an anticipated marriage. Asher organized local churchwomen to serve as hostesses at luncheons for these young women. They would be served a simple five- to ten-cent lunch—perhaps a sandwich, a pickle, and coffee—before Asher spoke to them about such sins as promiscuity and drinking. They were also strongly encouraged to attend the Billy Sunday services in the evenings.
At the evangelistic services, Virginia Asher often sang duets with music director Homer Rodeheaver
Homer Rodeheaver
Homer Alvan Rodeheaver was an American evangelist, music director, music publisher, composer of gospel songs, and pioneer in the recording of sacred music.- Early career :...
, and their early recordings popularized such gospel songs as “The Old Rugged Cross
The Old Rugged Cross
"The Old Rugged Cross" is a popular Christian song written in 1912 by evangelist and song-leader George Bennard .George Bennard, was a native of Youngstown, Ohio but was reared in Iowa. After his conversion in a Salvation Army meeting, he and his wife became brigade leaders before leaving the...
” and “In the Garden". Meanwhile, William Asher began to serve as Sunday’s advance man and fundraiser, and he and his wife were often geographically separated, which they accepted as a necessary part of their ministry.
At the end of a series of Sunday meetings in a city, Virginia Asher organized “businesswomen’s councils” to continue Bible studies and evangelistic work after the Sunday organization had left for another campaign. In 1922, the councils organized a national organization, the Virginia Asher Businesswomen’s Councils, that held annual meetings at Winona Lake Bible Conference. Local associations continued to exist well into the 1950s.
As Billy Sunday campaigns declined in popularity, ill health forced Asher to retire from Sunday’s staff after seventeen years of service. She died at her home in Florida in February 1937.