NEOSHO, Mo. – Christians across Missouri and around the nation continue to pray for Missouri Rep. Ben Baker and his family after his missionary daughter and son-in-law, Natalie and Davy Lloyd, were killed by gang violence in Haiti, May 23.
The bodies of the young missionary couple were transported from Haiti to the Kansas City airport and, on May 31, driven to Neosho. As they arrived in Neosho, hundreds of men, women and children stood along the roadside to honor the missionaries. They often held “their hands over their heart in love,” Rep. Baker, of Neosho, said in a Facebook post. It was a “true hero’s reception,” he added.
Rep. Ben Baker
“This community is amazing,” he wrote. “The outpouring of love and support is just overwhelming.”
On Monday, June 3, nearly 2,000 people expressed their condolences during visitation services. Then family members and friends gathered for a memorial service the following morning. (Watch the memorial service, which took place at Bible Holiness Assembly of God Church in Neosho, here.
The missionary couple was laid to rest on Tuesday afternoon, June 4, during a private graveside service.
“We laid Davy & Natalie to rest yesterday,” Baker wrote on Facebook, June 5. “Thank you Lord for the time that we had with them. Heaven is getting sweeter by the moment.”
Baker’s post included a video, where he led family members and friends to sing the Gospel song, “That Sounds Like Home to Me.” (Watch the video here.)
Natalie, 21, was born on March 2, 2003, in Joplin, and she was a life-long resident of Neosho. Davy, 23, was born on July 3, 2000, in Tulsa, Okla. The couple were married at the Bible Holiness Assembly of God Church in Neosho on June 18, 2022. Then, in January of 2023, they became full-time missionaries, serving under Missions in Haiti, Inc.
Missions in Haiti, Inc., was started in 2000 by Davy’s parents, David and Alicia Lloyd. “The organization operated a school, church, bakery, and shelters for children on a compound in the Bon Repos neighborhood on the side of Port-au-Prince,” according to a WORLD News Group report.
Natalie and Davy were shot to death alongside their colleague Jude Montis, 47, who was the director of the mission. Their deaths, according to Associated Press, “occurred as the capital (of Haiti) crumbles under the relentless assault of violent gangs that control 80 percent of Port-au-Prince.”
Rep. Baker first shared news of this tragedy in a Facebook post, late in the night on May 23: “My heart is broken in a thousand pieces,” he wrote. “I’ve never felt this kind of pain. Most of you know my daughter and son-in-law Davy and Natalie Lloyd are full time missionaries in Haiti. They were attacked by gangs this evening and were both killed. They went to Heaven together. Please pray for my family we desperately need strength. And please pray for the Lloyd family as well. I have no other words for now.”
On May 24, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson joined thousands on social media expressing their sorrow and promises of prayer. “Absolutely heartbreaking news,” he said. “First Lady Teresa Parson and I extend our deepest condolences to Representative Ben Baker and Naomi, their family, and the Lloyd family. Natalie and Davy were two young people sharing peace, comfort, and God’s word. In light of this unimaginable, senseless tragedy, we remember the good they offered the world. Our prayers for all who loved them.”