Wycliffe Bible Translators mourns the death of 57-year-old missionary and mother of two, Virginia Vinton, who authorities said apparently committed suicide at Chicago O’Hare International Airport earlier this month.
“We are heartbroken by Virginia’s tragic death,” a spokesperson for the Orlando-based interfaith nonprofit said in a statement to The Christian Post.
“Our deepest condolences, thoughts and prayers are with her family during this difficult time. We respectfully ask that you respect the family’s privacy as they grieve.”
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Vinton and her husband, Jim, served in the ministry for 12 years and worked on two Bible translation projects in Mozambique, East Africa. Jim Vinton became a translation consultant in 2011 and is authorized to do the final proofreading of translated Bibles before printing, according to the couple’s biography page.
As of 2020, he was the lead consultant for the translation of the New Testament into the Nyungwe language. He currently works from North Carolina and also travels around the world as the head of translation consulting for the Seed Company. The Seed Company seeks to accelerate Bible translation efforts by connecting local partners on the ground with investors, resources, and training.
The death of Virginia Vinton on August 8 has been ruled a suicide, the Daily Mail reported Thursday, citing a Chicago police incident report.
A Delta Airlines employee discovered Vinton’s body as he began unloading the luggage of a new arrival at baggage carousel 11 in the early hours of the morning. The Chicago Fire Department had previously stated that Vinton had become entangled in the baggage carousel.
According to the police report, the employee was unaware that Vinton was unresponsive when he first noticed her and asked if she needed help. However, as he approached, the employee noticed that she had an electrical cord around her neck and it was unresponsive.
Despite attempts by local firefighters to save Vinton, she was pronounced dead at 7:55 a.m. The police report noted “possible strangulation” and described the incident as a “non-criminal death.”
Vinton, who presumably spent the night at the airport, was seen on camera sitting in Terminal 5. Shortly after 2 a.m., she walked to baggage carousel 11 and entered the slide. Vinton was not seen on camera again until she was spotted by an airport employee.
At around 11:45 a.m. her body was taken to the morgue.
