November 17 1997

ARTICLE TOOLS

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Robbers shot and killed a Christian Reformed missionary in Quito, Ecuador, on September 18 as his wife and two children watched in horror.

Neal Eldrenkamp, 38, his wife, Ruth, and their two children had been riding in their car on the outskirts of Quito when Eldrenkamp, a videographer, stopped to film a brush fire.

Three armed men approached as Eldrenkamp taped with his four-year-old son, Jonathan, at his side. The attackers grabbed his camera and demanded the vehicle as well. Eldrenkamp gave them the keys, saying, "Take the car, leave my family."

The slayers got in the car and demanded that Ruth Eldrenkamp and 18-month-old daughter Luana move to the back seat.

Neal Eldrenkamp, who then approached the car, was shot three times in the chest as he held Jonathan in his arms. His wife and daughter broke free as the shots rang out.

Eldrenkamp, a Wheaton (Ill.) College graduate, directed the International Community of Evangelical Students Communications in Latin America, a branch of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. The Eldrenkamps were involved in preparing Bible-study materials used in evangelism on Latin American university campuses.