Martyr Nate Saint’s house set for restoration

The house of a missionary pilot martyred along with four others in Ecuador in 1956 is set to be restored to its former glory.

The house built in Shell Mera by Nate Saint and a missionary team in 1948 will be rebuilt into a new mission facility by non-profit construction ministry Fuel the Mission.

Nate built the 4,000 sq ft structure as a guesthouse, radio centre and the living quarters for his family. The house was used as an airbase for sending out supplies to other missionaries in the area and as a base for Operation Auca, the name given to their efforts to evangelise the Waodani people.

Nate was killed by the remote Huaorani tribe along with teammates Jim Elliot, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming and Roger Youderian on 8 January 1956.

Although the house still stands, the structure has been damaged considerably by termites and the heavy rain that deluges the eastern Andean foothills, while earthquakes, volcanic ash and shifting soil have weakened it further. MAF was forced to cease using the building in 2002 but in spite of its dilapidated state, dozens of visitors still stop at the site every day.

Ecuadorian and North American workers began work on restoring the house on Tuesday.

"MAF holds so dear the history of Nate Saint's work," said MAF President John Boyd.

"This major undertaking to restore the house that Nate built with a team of missionaries is so meaningful to MAF, not just for today, but for the future.

"Young people are taking an interest in Nate Saint and his sacrifice. I know the Lord is going to use this project to inspire the next generation to serve the cause of Christ to the ends of the earth."

News of the death of the missionaries was brought to the world in 1956 by Life magazine, which showed pictures of Nate’s wife, Marj, and the wives of the four other missionaries in the kitchen of the house after receiving word of the killings.

Photos of the house also appeared in Saint’s biography, ‘Junge Pilot’, and Elisabeth Elliot’s book, ‘The Savage, My Kinsman’.

Nevins said: "People come from all over the world to see it because of what God did with ordinary men."

The house’s electricity and plumbing will be redone and the structure wired for the internet. The termite-resistant jungle mahogany used by Saint to build the house will be reused in the making of the new facility and a wall of remembrance will tell visitors about the building’s history.

Around half of the $75,000 needed for the project has been raised so far. The project is due for completion on September 15.