Publication: Books

Full Circle

March 2020

From Goshen to Goshen

by Anna H. Byler

This is the story of Anna Melinda (Hallman) Byler, daughter of Eli S. and Melinda Hallman. She married B. Frank Byler, and together they joined the great missionary expansion of Mennonites in the 20th Century, which took them to Argentina and Uruguay. There they raised their family of five children: Stanley, Marjory, Dennis, Carol, and Mark.A habitual diary and letter writer, she honed in them her gift and skills as a storyteller, describing—often humorously—her experiences raising a family in cross-cultural settings. She wrote up her memories, including many excerpts from her letters, and distributed copies among her children and a few chosen friends.She describes her life as one of "Full Circle: from Goshen to Goshen." Born in Goshen, Indiana, she and Frank retired there, where she passed away in 2004. The "circle" of her life included childhood in Saskatchewan and teen years in Texas; then college in Kansas and Indiana, and early married life in Ohio; several cities in Argentina, and also Montevideo, Uruguay.​