A Tribute To The Bancrofts

Eleanor Bailey Bancroft
February 16, 1910 - July 9, 1999

Bernard Nelson Bancroft
July 5, 1915 - January 17, 2000

Eleanor was born to John and Elizabeth Bailey in Wayne, PA. She was saved at the age of 19 at a Christian conference near Philadelphia, being led to the Lord by a high school friend who had been saved just a few months earlier.

Eleanor attended a junior college and then graduated from Philadelphia School of the Bible. Once she became a Christian, Eleanor helped plan Christian education conferences and short-term Bible schools, participated in city missions trips, and worked with the YWCA in Atlantic City, New Jersey. When ABWE's president, Dr. Harold Commons, spoke in Atlantic City Eleanor felt God directing her into missions. She was accepted by ABWE in 1935, arriving in the Philippines a year later. She was stationed in Iloilo.

While on the field, she met fellow missionary Bernard Bancroft. Bernie had been born in Fletcher, OH, to Emery and Clara Bancroft. He was saved at the age of eight during evangelistic meetings in Hallstead, PA, and dedicated his life to God in 1932 at Grace Baptist Church in Binghamton, NY. Bernie graduated from Baptist Bible Seminary in Johnson City, New York, doing supply preaching, hospital visitation, and personal evangelism during his course of study. Bernie's acceptance by ABWE made him the youngest missionary ever appointed. He was assigned to the Philippines at the age of 19.

Bernie went to Palawan, at that time a remote island of the Philippines, serving on the Gospel Ship with Captain Skolfield and gaining missionary experience. In addition to teaching the Bible to middle school students and preaching, Bernie treated medical cases.

After that first term in the Philippines, Bernie and Eleanor married and remained in the United States so Bernie could receive more education. When they returned to the field with their four children in 1946, they worked in Palawan among the islands scattered throughout the Sulu Sea.

The Bancrofts moved to Manila in 1951 to assume responsibilities at First Baptist Church and in the ABWE seminary. Bernie's evangelistic outreach included distributing one million tracts in numerous languages at an international fair, and traveling to remote areas by inter-island freighter to preach.

When the Bancrofts retired from ABWE in 1978, Bernie went on to become president of the Fellowship of Missions (FOM), then served on the faculties of Baptist Bible College (Clarks Summit, PA), Faith Baptist Bible College (Ankeny, IA), and Spurgeon Baptist Bible College (Mulberry, FL), influencing many young people to give their lives to serve the Lord.

Bernie and Eleanor eventually moved to Sebring, Florida. It was there Eleanor died last summer, and Bernie at the beginning of this year.

The Bancrofts' contribution to ABWE and to missions in general was significant. These soldiers of the faith will be deeply missed.