AN UNTOLD STORY: The women behind Billy Graham Road

‘Our hands are also there. We were part of that history’

Morung Express News
Kohima | November 26

Unbeknownst to many, the famous Billy Graham Road was born from the labour, prayers, and grit of the Kohima Baptist Women’s Union (KBWU). What is today one of Kohima’s busiest routes was once a dense forest, cleared not by machines but by the labour and hands of ordinary church members, both men and women.

However, no official records exist on how Billy Graham Road acquired its name. In searching for official records, The Morung Express found that even prominent organisations had none.

Instead, the story survives only in the memories of a few who were there decades ago.

Crusade sparks movement
Speaking to this newspaper, 88-year-old Amongla Toy, in a gentle voice, recalled the story from half a century ago with clarity and nostalgia.

“When the news came that Dr Billy Graham and his team were coming to Kohima for a crusade, everyone was excited,” she recalled. 

Churches across the town sprang into action, organising meetings, forming committees, and preparing to welcome one of the most influential evangelists of the time, she added. 

Among its responsibilities, the KBWU was entrusted with one crucial task: raising the funds needed for the crusade. “I was the secretary then, and, unworthy as I am, I knew everything that was happening,” she said with a humble laugh.

Toy shared that women from local churches came together to organise sales programmes, hold special meetings for free-will offerings, and seek manual labour opportunities to raise funds.

The effort saw a breakthrough when they approached the PWD Chief Engineer, whom she identified as a Khasi gentleman named Rincha.

A ‘funny’ request
“We do not know where the Chief Engineer office was. Then, one member from the organising committee took us there. He asked us to enter and he waited outside,” Toy reflected.

“We went to his office, and when we reached the door he looked shocked. When I said, ‘We want contract,’ he said, ‘What?’ It was very funny,” she stated.

Once their purpose was explained, the Chief Engineer listened patiently and responded sympathetically, the then KBWU Secretary added.

A few days later, the impossible happened when the PWD awarded them a jungle-clearing and earth-cutting contract for a newly proposed route in Kohima. The estimated cost was a staggering Rs 50,000, an enormous sum at the time.

A few days later, the seemingly impossible occurred when the PWD awarded them a contract to clear the jungle and cut the earth for a new route in Kohima, at an estimated cost of Rs 50,000, an enormous sum at the time.

The news was immediately informed to the organising committee who took up the work immediately.

What existed then was a vast, thick forest and the organising committee divided the route among the churches according to their size.

Large churches received bigger portions, smaller ones took smaller areas, Toy narrated.

Real work began
Thereafter, Kohima’s congregation worked on the forested hillside, clearing bushes and trees and shaping the beginnings of what would become one of the town’s busiest roads.

“Hundreds and hundreds of men and women from around 12 churches in Kohima came and worked together,” noted Toy. 

Vineipra Pienyü, a Gaon Bura from Kohima Village, recalled joining the community work at just 19.

“The sound of our tools, voices and community spirit filled the forest,” he narrated, adding that thousands of people came together for the work with people from the communities of Sümi, Lotha, Ao and even Eastern Nagaland.

“At that time, we didn’t have any machinery like today, so we worked with our daos (machete), spade, pick axe etc clearing the thick bushes and cutting trees. We didn’t know each other’s dialect, but we sang, talk and laugh as we worked together,” he warmly remembered.

A name emerged naturally
And somewhere in that bustle, a name was born. “It was not officially named. But automatically, people started calling it Billy Graham Road because we worked to raise money for him. So the name just came out,” Toy explained.

There was neither government notification nor any formal adoption, but a shared understanding that this road carried the imprint of a remarkable moment and a community’s faith.During the KBWU jubilee celebration, Toy said, she shared this story with the women, telling them proudly, “The Billy Graham Road—our hands are also there. We were part of that history.”

Now, as Franklin Graham is set to come to Nagaland after 53 years since his father’s historic crusade in 1972, she said, “I’m excited.”

The stretch of Billy Graham Road, which is under repair, will be inaugurated by Franklin during the upcoming visit.