Portrait of Henry Dueck. IMB Photo
Henry Dueck, an International Mission Board missionary emeritus who shared the gospel in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Kenya and South Africa, died March 23, 2026. He was 90.
Henry was born Jan. 17, 1936, in Langham, Saskatchewan, Canada, to the late Henry and Anna Dueck. He graduated from Briercrest Bible College, Caronport, Saskatchewan, and received the Bachelor of Education from University of Alberta, Edmonton, and the Master of Science from University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta.
On June 10, 1960, he married Ila-Mae Beck. They moved to Regina, Saskatchewan, where Henry worked as a government field auditor and studied accounting. In 1966, they moved to Calgary, and Henry began working as an accountant with an oil company and eventually rose to the position of senior accountant and methods analyst, where his duties included writing the accounting manual. During this time, he also served as music director at the Christian and Missionary Alliance Church and worked toward his Bachelor of Education and Master of Science degrees. In 1977, he began teaching at a community college in Olds, Alberta. In 1980, they realized a lifelong dream when Henry was accepted as an overseas staff member of the University of New Brunswick to teach for a two-year term at the Kenya Technical Teachers College in Nairobi.
While seeking missionary appointment, Henry wrote, “We had for many years been looking for just such an overseas opportunity. We felt that if one of us could get employment to finance our way, then perhaps the other could volunteer in missionary service during that time. The Baptist Mission of Kenya gave us this opportunity. … This exposure to missionary work reawakened in us the desire to be in missionary service. … We have never experienced greater fulfillment in service than during our time in Kenya.”
In 1984, the International Mission Board appointed Henry and Ila-Mae missionaries to Zimbabwe. They also served in Botswana, Kenya and South Africa for almost 20 years.
Henry is survived by his wife of 65 years, Ila-Mae Dueck.
No information regarding services is available at this time.
Read an obituary here.