Mary Ella Kirby Berry

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Mary Ella Berry (née Kirby; March 1916 – August 2, 1957) was an American medical missionary who spent much of her life in Assam, India. She helped develop the Jorhat leprosy colony and the Gauhati Women’s Hospital (also known as Jubilee Hospital, later the Satribari Christian Hospital). She directed Jubilee Hospital from 1945 to 1952 and then led the leprosy program at Jorhat Mission Hospital from 1952 until her death. Her work focused on treating leprosy and improving patient care, and she helped provide radium for cancer treatment in the region.

Early life and education:
Mary Ella Kirby was born in March 1916 in Sadiya, Assam, to Herbert William Kirby and Mary Ella Reeves. The family lived in Assam until 1922, then moved to Granville, Ohio. She returned to Assam with her sister in 1932 to finish high school at Mt. Hermon School in Darjeeling and studied at Judson College in Rangoon. In 1936 she went to Denison University in the United States, graduating in 1938. She earned her medical degree from Temple University, completed a surgical residency at Temple, and trained at Lancaster General Hospital. She spoke at churches and Denison College to raise funds for India, including the Radium Talks to support cancer treatment.

Career:
In 1944–45 she joined the North American Baptist Woman’s Foreign Mission Society and arrived in India in February 1945, quickly learning Assamese. She served as a missionary in Assam from 1945 to 1957. Her sister Frances Isbell later collected her letters and diaries into a memorial book. She and her husband contributed to relief after the 1950 Assam earthquake. Berry’s holistic approach, along with medical care, helped many patients recover. She died in 1957.

Personal life:
She married Earl Harmon Berry in 1948 after meeting in Gauhati in 1945. They had four children, all born in India.

Death:
Berry died on August 2, 1957, at age 41, from sepsis during the 1957–1958 influenza pandemic.