Sidney John (Jack) Saword was born November 22, 1936. His parents, Sidney and Eleanor, were in Vancouver, BC, on furlough from Venezuela where they had been missionaries since 1925. Jack was the youngest of five children and was known for his rambunctious and independent spirit. He became interested in mechanics at a very young age. His mother told a story from when he was about four or so. The family was going to another town and the bus they were on was stopped for a while. Jack had gone missing for over an hour. She was frantic but then found him inspecting the underside of the bus they had been traveling on.
Venezuela was home until the age of 14, when Jack moved to Vancouver to finish school and get his mechanic training. He accepted the Lord Jesus as his Savior in a series of meetings with Herb Harris the night before his 15th birthday, determining that he did not want to spend one more year unsaved. Soon after, he moved to Marysville, WA, and lived on the Steen farm, where he met his future wife, Ellen Steen. They were married on Christmas Eve 1958. Jack and Ellen had three children: Dawn, Craig, and a baby boy who passed away soon after birth. Later, they lovingly added two girls, Jackie and Rebeca, to their family, both adopted from families in El Salvador.
Jack was an excellent mechanic and worked at several shops until he settled at the Ford dealership in Everett and in Seattle. He was there for seven years. He always thought the Lord would eventually lead him back to Venezuela to help his parents in the gospel, but God had other plans. In January 1969, Jack accompanied Doug Reid, who was seeking the Lord’s will in starting a work, to El Salvador for three months. Within six months of returning, the Arlington Gospel Hall commended Jack and his family to the work in El Salvador. They arrived on Thanksgiving Day 1969, staying in a rented garage for the first few weeks until they were able to find more permanent housing. (The Lord called Doug and his family to Costa Rica.)
God’s timing was perfect. War had just broken out between El Salvador and Honduras, leading to the immediate deportation of Salvadorians living in Honduras. They were forced to leave with only what they could carry. There were Christians walking into El Salvador with nowhere to go, who were sleeping on the streets, in the jungle and in caves. Jack went right to work finding these destitute Christians and tirelessly helping them find housing and essentials as they got back on their feet. This was not an easy job, with his being new to the area, as well as the roads being terrible and having no cell phones or communication. He spent months searching, bringing many of them into his own home and helping them get established. The work of planting assemblies for these Christians was needed immediately, and seven churches were planted in seven years.
At 1a.m. on January 1, 1988, one month before Craig’s wedding, Jack, Ellen, Craig, Jackie and Beca were driving through Mexico near Veracruz and had a terrible accident. The van crossed the road, went down an embankment and hit a tree. Beca was thrown out the windshield and, miraculously, was unhurt. Craig had a broken collarbone. Jack and Ellen were both pinned down by their legs, Jack under the dash and Ellen under the steering wheel. Craig was able to flag down a passing bus, and the passengers helped pry them out using steel pipes. The Lord provided a doctor amongst the passengers on the bus who gave them medical help and made splints for their legs from nearby branches. They both had many fractures. The doctor was a Christian who was on his way to Chicago to perform surgery, but he cancelled his plans in order to stay with the Sawords. He spent the next 24 hours getting them into a hospital and making sure they were getting the care they needed. Thirty-six hours later, Chepe and Dr. Martinez came with a small plane and flew them all back to El Salvador, where they began the many surgeries that would be needed in the months ahead. It was a long road of recovery with lasting effects. Ellen especially dealt with pain and a limp for the rest of her life. Everyone was so grateful for the Lord’s provision in sparing their lives to continue in service for Him.
Like his father, Jack was known for being a passionate evangelist. He had a gift for preaching the gospel in Spanish and English and spoke in gospel meetings throughout the US and many other countries. He was very generous, personable and had quite a sense of humor, with an easy smile and an infectious laugh. Jack was known for sharing the gospel with anyone and everyone with whom he came in contact. There are many in heaven whom the Lord was able to reach and save because he was willing to personally share with them about his Savior.
Jack cared deeply for the saints of El Salvador. He spent much time shepherding them, caring for their families and visiting them in the hospital. He was very good at encouraging people to come and help with the Lord’s work, and many today are missionaries because of his influence. Jack and Ellen’s home was always open, and they had people staying with them most of the time – some from El Salvador needing to be cared for or rehabilitated from health problems, other missionaries needing temporary housing, as well as visitors, friends and family coming from around the world. Their house was a place of laughter and warmth where everyone was well fed and well loved.
In later years, Jack and Ellen moved to Springdale, Arkansas, to help with the work, and he was instrumental in seeing an assembly planted there. At the time, Ellen was struggling with Huntington’s disease and Jack faithfully cared for her until she passed away in August 2015. He soon returned to El Salvador to continue the Lord’s work. He married Lillian in 2017, and she took wonderful care of him in his final years. Jack passed into the presence of his Savior after a month-long illness on September 23, 2024. He leaves four children, 12 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren.
When Jack and Ellen first came to El Salvador there were no assemblies; today there are 21. Jack is proof of what God can do with one man who is willing to answer His call.
