Renowned British-born Nigerian missionary, Ruth Elton, widely regarded as the oldest serving missionary in Nigeria, has died at the age of 91.
Elton passed away on Saturday at the Sharon compound in Alafia Bamin Quarters, Ilesa, Osun State. Her remains have since been deposited in the mortuary.
Born on September 7, 1933, Ruth Elton was the only daughter of Sydney Granville Elton, popularly known as Pa Elton, a pioneer of Pentecostal Christianity in Nigeria.
She arrived in the country with her parents in 1937 when she was barely 4 years old, and spent her entire life serving in communities across Kogi, Ondo, Oyo, and Osun States.
Following in her parents’ footsteps, Ruth dedicated her life to missionary work, serving in communities across Egbe, Okene, Koton Karfe, and other areas in present-day Kogi, Ondo, Oyo, and Osun states.
In the 1970s, she renounced her British citizenship through a Kaduna court to become a naturalized Nigerian, embracing the nation fully as dual citizenship was not permitted at the time.
Fluent in Ebira and Yoruba, she remained unmarried, viewing her celibate life as a commitment to her divine calling, and authored three Christian books reflecting her faith journey.
Beyond evangelism, Elton made lasting generational impacts, particularly in combating infant mortality in Okene, Kogi State.
She recently shared experiences of how poor hygiene, lack of proper care, and practices like force-feeding contributed to high newborn death rates, crediting her grassroots education efforts with drastically reducing these tragedies during the late colonial and early postcolonial eras.
Her work helped establish indigenous churches, including the Gospel Assemblies Intercontinental, among the Ebira people, where she was affectionately known as “Ometere” – the one who does good.
