View source for Pershadi, Guru Panchayat (ca. 1885-1978)

Guru Panchayat Pershadi was born to a family of the oil-crusher caste. He was received by [[Page, Alice Thut (1872-1951) and William B. (1871-1945)|W. B. Page]] into the [[Mennonite Church in India|American Mennonite Mission]] orphanage in 1899 during the great famine and received his education in the mission schools in [[Dhamtari (Chhattisgarh State, India)|Dhamtari]], completing the 7th class of the Vernacular Middle School. He also took a normal course and later was sent to the Mission Bible School in [[Ghatula (Madhya Pradesh, India)|Ghatula]]. Until the late 1920s he served as teacher, headmaster, and evangelist at the Mission Primary School in Maradev.

"Pastor Pershadi" served as secretary of the conference in 1912. In 1913 he was ordained a deacon for the Maradev congregation and in 1938 was ordained as a minister. He served as pastor for 4 years at [[Sankra (Zion) Mennonite Church (Madhya Pradesh, India)|Sankra]], 4 years at Shantipur, and ca. 20 years at Maradev. He was highly respected for his deep commitment, shrewd judgment, and farming acumen.

Pershadi was married twice. He had five sons and a daughter from his first wife Sewanti Bai and one son and two daughters from his second wife Ramsir, a widow with three children from her first marriage.

Guru Panchayat Pershadi died 18 December 1978.
= Bibliography =
American Mennonite Mission. <em>Annual Report</em> (1914):  8.

Biographical data supplied by E. P. Bachan and Ruth Pershadi.
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