Rev. Merrill Dale Skinner, age 95, a resident of Winfield, IL, for several years, passed away on Monday, February 27, 2023 in West Chicago, IL. He was born July 27, 1927 in Corona, California to Joseph Aubrey Skinner & Hildur Olivia Ruth Selander.

From a young age, Merrill seemed to never know a stranger. He went to church with his mother and sister and sang in the choir. He gave his life to Jesus at age 10 and from that time forward he was on a mission. He was always ready to share a story or the gospel because he had the attitude reflected in the words of Paul, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes." (Romans 1:16)

After graduating from high school, Merrill enlisted in the Navy, not knowing that just a few months later WWII would officially end. He later attended Riverside Junior College for two years and ran with their cross-country team. One day he met Gil Dodds who had held the world record for the indoor mile and was the track coach at Wheaton College in Illinois. Gil encouraged Merrill to apply to Wheaton and join the track team, which he did. While there he met Helen Tacy Atkinson. Merrill and Helen fell in love, graduated in 1951, and were married that September. They moved to Colorado where Merrill attended Denver Seminary and graduated with a Master of Divinity degree. They were appointed by the Conservative Baptist Foreign Mission Society (CBFMS, now World Venture) in 1954 to be missionaries in Ivory Coast, West Africa, where they served for 41 years.

Merrill loved the Senoufo people in Ivory Coast and sharing the gospel with them became his lifelong mission. His unhurried, easy-going manner and his mastery of Cebaara, a dialect of the Senari language, earned him the nick-name "white Senoufo" among his African friends. He helped translate the Bible into Cebaara and was instrumental in starting some 19 churches in northern Ivory Coast. Training church leaders became a complicated task because few could afford to leave their livelihoods to attend a Bible school. So Merrill developed a program of theological education by extension in Cebaara – known as PEDEBE – by which laymen could study at home and meet periodically in local groups to get instruction and guidance from trained leaders.

After retirement from CBFMS, Merrill and Helen settled in Aurora, Colorado, where they became active members of Galilee Baptist Church who had helped support them financially throughout their missionary career. Later years brought them closer to family in Florida and finally in Illinois.

Merrill is survived by his beloved wife of 71 years, Helen; his children Judy (Karl) Stewart, Janet (Duane) Abuhl, Dale (Kathy) Skinner & Donna (Brian) Phillips; his grandchildren Brian (Amy) Stewart, Laura Stewart, Julie (Mark) Myers, David (Sarah) Abuhl, Maegan (Ben) Johnson, Nathan (Christina) Phillips, Andrea Phillips & Hannah Phillips; his 14 great-grandchildren: Paxton, Raphael, Elowyn, Roger, Hayley, Westen, Jaida, Ashton, Lucia, Rhea, Alexa, Corban, Maeven and one more on the way; and his sister Suzanne Carnahan.

He was preceded in death by his three brothers: Bill, Don & Dave.

A visitation will be held Monday, March 13, 2023 from 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. at Highpoint Church Wheaton Campus, 1310 N. Main St., Wheaton, IL 60187 , where a memorial service will be held at 3:00 p.m. (The memorial service was recorded and is available to be viewed below.) Interment & military honors will be held Tuesday, March 14, 2023, at 2:30 p.m. at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, 20953 W. Hoff Rd., Elwood, IL 60421 .

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be directed to the theological training program that Merrill spearheaded:
WorldVenture
20 Inverness Pl. E
Englewood, CO 80112
720-283-2000
http://www.worldventure.com
Reference the following project: 6462-910-BEE MANUAL PRODUCTION