Erin Lovelady described her father Victor, of Nederland, Texas, as a laid-back, understanding and loving man.

"I want people to understand how wonderful my dad was, and how great a dad he was, and how much he's going to be missed by me and my mother and my brother," Erin Lovelady told CNN affiliate KFDM, describing herself as "daddy's little girl."

Gwen Eckholm called Rowan -- her former neighbor in Mesa, Arizona, who recently moved to eastern Oregon -- a "very intelligent, super-nice guy" who told her he felt safe working in Algeria.

He said "we're in a compound in the middle of nowhere, and we've got security, and I'll be fine," Eckholm told CNN affiliate KNXV. "I guess you can't really be secure any place."