Religious Figure, Author. She was a Christian missionary who became known as "The Rescuer of India's Children." Born the oldest of seven children, in Northern Ireland to an evangelical Christian family of Scottish heritage, she was educated in the Wesleyan Methodist girls boarding school until age eighteen. At age 24, she attended a Bible Conference in 1891 and committed herself to a life of Christian service. After going in 1893 to Japan for missionary work for eighteen months, she returned to England. In 1895, she went to India, and by 1900, she settled in the town of Dohnavur. She soon learned of the Hindu custom whereby young girls were donated by their parents to be "married to the gods" and then offered as prostitutes to men who visited the temples. In 1901, she rescued a temple child, a young girl named Preena, or "Pearl Eyes". From that point, she felt called by God to save as many children as she possibly could from this life of forced prostitution. She soon became known to her Indian neighbors as "child-catching Missy Ammai." Her interference in Hindu custom brought angry opposition from both villagers and authorities, and she faced kidnapping charges on several occasions. News of Carmichael's courageous exploits reached Christian circles back in England, and in 1912 Queen Mary gave her official recognition for her efforts. By 1913 Carmichael's "Dohnavur Fellowship" had 130 girls under its protection. Her staff of both European and Indian women voluntarily forsook marriage in order to focus on the rescue, care, feeding, and education of the children, and in 1916 she formed a new Protestant religious order called the Sisters of the Common Life. The women took no vows and were free to leave if they decided to marry, but most stayed on, devoting much of their energy to developing Christian character in the young girls they nurtured. In 1918 Dohnavur Fellowship expanded to include a home for young boys, many of them infants who had been born to the temple prostitutes. Throughout her ministry, Carmichael used her gift for written expression to share her faith with others, and this became an even greater spiritual outlet for her after a serious fall left her crippled at the age of 64. Confined to her room with arthritis, she wrote 13 books during the 20 years remaining to her and also updated books she had written earlier. Thirty-six books by Amy Carmichael have been published, and many are still in print in the 21st century, including "The Gold Cord" and "Mimosa." She died peacefully in Dohnavur at the age of 83, having spent 55 years in India without a single furlough from mission work. In addition to an enormous body of inspirational writing, this beloved Christian left behind an energetic organization that continues the work she began in 1901. Today, Dohnavur Fellowship is a 400-acre community with 500 residents, a hospital, 16 child nurseries, and other public services. An inspirational biography of her life entitled "A Chance to Die" was written by Elisabeth Elliot, wife of missionary Jim Elliot. She is buried at the Dohnavur Fellowship in India.