As the funeral for the murdered missionary Beau Shroyer approaches, who journeyed to Angola to spread the Gospel, his family is struggling through grief. The funeral service for the 44-year-old is scheduled for the end of this month.
Shroyer’s sister, Marina Roering said, “We are just flipping through all of the stages of grief on repeat.” Continuing to illustrate the family’s struggles, she said, “My mom and dad, I think, are probably having the hardest time, understandably, but mostly we’re all OK.”
Roerig explained that the family just wants the truth amid skepticism toward reports coming out of the foreign nation. She continued, “We don’t even know what’s real and reliable out of those stories because, for one, how much gets lost in translation (from Portuguese to English), and for two, I don’t know how trustworthy the press is over there. We’ve been told there is a lot of government corruption. That ties into it as well. We just want accurate information.”
“The first reports that came out mentioned that Beau was a pastor; he was never a pastor,” she said, further disputing claims that have circulated throughout the media. “Even on the U.S. side, we know there are inaccuracies. It seems like there’s a story here and people want to know, but there’s just such little information, so there’s a lot of speculation being printed, and that’s been frustrating.”
Roerig explained the frustration the family faces in trying to find the answers they seek. “We don’t know who to turn to. There’s so many factors — a language barrier, a time difference, and just not knowing how their legal system works. No one has been able to connect us to any resource to help get some clarity of answers.”
The Christian Tribune recently reported on reactions to Beau’s murder from friends and family after his wife, Jackie Shroyer, was arrested in connection to the death. “Not sure I’ve ever met a more selfless human,” said David Dorman, a former real estate partner of Beau’s. “The courage it took to take this leap to begin with was something I’ve admired for years. He loved people and genuinely cared about those less privileged. It’s been a giant shock to the core to see this unfold this way.”
“I can’t see his wife doing that. It’s got to be something else. But, you know, I don’t know if something happened between there and here.” Carl Gessel, a friend of the Shroyer’s who attended Lakes Area Vineyard Church with them, said. “Beau told me that God led him in a different path,” he added. Another friend of the Shroyer’s, Cleone Steward, stated, “Jackie had visions of helping poor children and Beau was right beside her.” Stewart recounted, “He was really good as a field trip leader, really good at describing things.”
Addressing Shroyer’s murder, Lakes Area Vineyard Church Lead pastor Troy Eastman told his congregation, “I love you very much and I am heartbroken and in shock that I need to send this type of update to you today. Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing, I’m going to ask you to sit down, take a deep breath and remember that God is our ever present help in times of trouble.”
Note: The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.