FlightWatch - 2018, Volume 3

SUMMER 2018

from the a publication of Mission Aviation Fellowship

Greetings faithful reader, As I move into my new role at MAF, it is a great privilege for me to introduce this edition of Flightwatch.

Nearly 18 years ago, our young family moved overseas for our MAF assignment in Indonesia. Many things propelled us on our way—among them were a desire to serve the Lord through the call He had placed on our lives, a sense of adventure, and the opportunity to bring hope to others.

The homes we’ve lived in throughout our years in Indonesia were located near some of the airports where MAF bases its operations. On nearly a daily basis, if I wasn’t flying, I would usually see our airplanes departing for a flight to a remote destination. I would wonder where that airplane was heading, and I knew that as it faded into the distance, it soon would be coming into view of the people awaiting its arrival.

What does hope look like for you? For those we serve, it often comes in the form of an MAF airplane bringing needed supplies, a cherished visitor, medical care, or even words of Truth.

Thank you for standing with us as we bring hope to some of the most isolated people in the world. Let’s continue to fix our eyes together on our ultimate hope: “Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith”!

Serving Together,

David Holsten President and CEO

The stories within FlightWatch are highlights of MAF’s ministry. Some days our missionaries get to see and experience the amazing things our Lord is doing. Other days are spent quietly and diligently serving the Lord through routine flights, maintenance work, and simply living among others in foreign countries. We believe that God works through all areas of service and at times blesses us with extraordinary glimpses of His work.

Director of Marketing: Tracey Werre Managing Editor: Chris Burgess Production Manager: Micki Blair Graphic Designer: Clayton Borah Writers/Resourcing: Jennifer Wolf Chris Burgess Every gift you send, every prayer you offer for MAF, helps change lives through aviation and technology. We enjoy hearing from you! Please send comments and questions to MAF-US@maf.org.

MAF PO Box 47 Nampa, ID 83653-0047 208-498-0800 1-800-FLYS-MAF (359-7623) maf.org

MAF maintains the highest standards of financial accountability and public disclosure to donors, the government, and the world at large. MAF is a member of ... Accord™ (formerly AERDO) • CSC Christian Service Charities • ECFA Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability • IAMA International Association of Missionary Aviation • Missio Nexus.

All Scripture references, unless otherwise noted, are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2010 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

On the Cover: MAF pilot Danny Hulls greets a Mosotho man in the village of Kuebunyane, in Lesotho.

Photo by Mark and Kelly Hewes.

Get Connected:

A LASTING LEGACY

by Chris Burgess

I

n college, Mark met Doug who mentored him in their Christian fraternity, Alpha Gamma Omega, at UCLA. Their friendship was one that would stand the test of time. After college, Doug went on to become a pharmacist and Mark pursued acting—today he is a rehearsal actor on the set of CBS’ hit show The Big Bang Theory. Yet Mark and Doug stayed in touch despite their different paths.

Mark and his wife were heartbroken when their good friend and best man at their wedding, Doug, died of pancreatic cancer in July 2017, six months after receiving the diagnosis. Mark was overwhelmed knowing that Doug had named him successor trustee of his living trust.

Doug had been married to his career, never having a wife or children.

“I couldn’t believe it,” said Mark. “What was he thinking?

Sure, I’m his best friend but he knew I didn’t have a financial or legal bone in my body.”

A few years before Doug passed away, he got in touch with Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF). Doug had been a Christian since he was a teenager and remembered an MAF pilot coming to speak at his church. MAF stuck in Doug’s mind through the years because of its mission

to share Christ’s love with isolated people around the world—and since his dad had been a pilot, MAF was an organization he was passionate about.

“I was the one Doug initially reached out to,” said Aaron Bear, director of Major Funding and Planned Giving at MAF. “It was a joy to work with him, and Mark as the successor trustee.”

Aaron, along with Financial Planning Ministry, was able to help Doug put his estate plans in place. Based on his wishes, they provided him with a revocable living trust and all the other documents that made Mark‘s role as Doug’s successor trustee manageable.

“I’m so thankful for their work and for Doug having the foresight to recognize the importance of planning,” said Mark.

Mark was able to collect Doug’s assets, sell his house, make significant distributions to the charities he supported, and wrap up his affairs without the help of attorneys or going through probate.

“Doug’s story is personal to me as well,” said Aaron.

“The same month Doug was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, my father was as well. I watched these godly men, both of whom I had helped with their estate planning, slip into the Lord’s presence just a few days apart.”

The legacy of both men will live on, and Doug’s generous gift MAF can help you navigate end-of-life planning and, in partnership with will help MAF continue sharing Financial Planning Ministry, can work with you to complete a will or trust Christ’s love with isolated people with no out-of-pocket expenses to you! around the world.

LEAVE YOUR LEGACY Find out more at maf.org/legacy

1-800-FLYS-MAF

3

FROM DEATH TO LIFE

“As I landed and shut down the engine, I thought it was strange no one from the village was there to meet me—usually the whole village comes out to see the airplane! That’s when I heard the crying and wailing,” said John Hook, an MAF pilot.

Back in the late 1970s, John (now an MAF mobilizer) and his wife, Nancy, were based in Kelansam in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. This particular airstrip was one of dozens hand-built by missionaries and the indigenous Dayak people in the first half of that decade. Like other grass airstrips, the villagers cut the grass on this one by hand. John hadn’t landed there in a while and only stopped in to make sure the grass wasn’t getting too long.

He hopped down from the small Cessna 185 and followed a path through the thick jungle, which led to the village.

How G od used an M AF pilot and a small Cessna to save one life and t ran sfor m an entire village.

by Jennifer Wolf

When he came into the clearing he saw a group of people surrounding a dugout log, where a 15-year-old girl was lying. (This Dayak tribe was known to put their dead in these logs.) John asked what had happened.

“She is not dead yet,” replied one of the villagers, “but will die soon.”

The young, newly married girl was pregnant and trying to deliver, but the baby had turned. There was no healthcare at that time, nor access to it, and the people had no hope that she would live. So they turned to the local witchdoctor. He and a few other men had decided to jump up and down on the girl’s belly, thinking this would help. Of course, it only caused further damage.

John checked for a pulse and found one. “Let’s get her in the airplane and I’ll fly her to the mission hospital about an hour away,” he said.

“No,” they replied, “just let her die.”

Ignoring them, John scooped up the girl, carried her down the path to the airplane, and secured her to the floor of the aircraft. Then he took off for the hospital, praying that God would keep her alive.

4

maf.org

The Old Way

“Before there were missionaries in West Kalimantan, everyone was animistic,” explained Yusmanto Luis, who grew up in that area and now pastors a church in Palangkaraya, where the MAF floatplane base is located.

Animism is a belief that inanimate objects contain spirits that can affect human affairs in helpful or harmful ways. It involves witch doctors, superstitions, amulets, and charms—to placate the “good” spirits and protect from the evil ones.

“The Dayaks depended on witch doctors, whose power was strong, when they were sick due to their strong beliefs in the spirits of their ancestors,” said Yusmanto.

“MAF helped many people who were close to death by taking them to [mission hospitals at] Serukam or Sintang,” said Yusmanto. “The roads were not good and taking a boat would take at least a week or maybe even a month. MAF opened many landing strips that served as a connection between the villages and the cities.”

Yusmanto had not personally heard the story of the young girl, believed to be named Lihut, but he does recall when Christianity was spreading in her area with the help of missionaries and MAF. He says villages like Lihut’s were sending out their own “missionaries” to other remote villages. In fact, these indigenous Dayak were trained at a Bible college in West Kalimantan, which MAF also served.

“It’s worth noting that MAF has been a big part of building the church in Kalimantan from years ago until now,” said Yusmanto, “and in many places, MAF is very much still needed.”

A New Thing

Dr. Wendell Geary and the staff at Bethesda Hospital in Serukam were able to save Lihut’s life. Unfortunately, the baby did not make it. Lihut spent a little over a month at the hospital and, while there, she heard the Gospel and became a Christian.

John flew her back to her village, and when the people saw the girl they couldn’t believe it. They thought she was a ghost! They wouldn’t come near until John rubbed her arm to show them she was flesh and blood. Then they came close and welcomed her home.

“That one little girl, with Jesus in her heart, led her family and then her village to the Lord,” said John. “And if you go there today, there is a large church and they even send out their own missionaries! My ministry was flying an airplane, and yet God used that airplane to bring Christ to one girl, saving one village to become a part of the Body of Christ in Indonesia.”

Special thanks to Rebecca Hopkins for interviewing Pastor Yusmanto, and for all of the Indonesian staff who tried to track down Lihut.

... in many places MAF is very much still needed 1-800-FLYS-MAF

5

Generous donors responded to our March plane maintenance appeal, which had a two-fold purpose: To help fund our overall maintenance budget for the year.

To raise enough funds for glass cockpits with avionics upgrades for two Cessna Caravans in Papua, Indonesia.

We are so grateful for those who gave.

To date we’ve reached over

Our goal is to complete the work on both Caravans this coming fall.

WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT SO MANY PEOPLE? H ow yo u sp rea d th e love of Ch ris t , an d h o p e, th ro u gh M A F in th e wake of v i o le n ce

by Chris Burgess photos by Ashley Petersen

I

n the aftermath of tragedy, Jesus went up to a remote place to be with His Father. Soon He was surrounded by people in need.

He went over to them and healed them. As the day turned into night, His disciples wondered how they were going to feed the thousands of people who had gathered—not unlike a crisis that unfolded near one of our MAF bases.

C R I S I S I N C ONG O Earlier this year, horrific violence broke out near the eastern border of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda. The Congolese city of Bunia swelled as an influx of people sought refuge from the nearby conflict. Soon tens

of thousands of internally displaced few families’ heads to block out the people (IDP)—some estimates put rain.” that number near 100,000— found themselves in a “This experience forever makeshift camp with little to altered my perspective on the no shelter, food, or water.

world.”

Ashley Petersen, an MAF missionary, remembers the first time she came over a hill in Bunia and saw the masses of hungry, sick, and wounded people.

“This experience forever altered my perspective on the world,” wrote Ashley in a blog post. “There was much pain and suffering but we were able to bring some joy and smiles with our visit, feed a few who hadn’t eaten in days, and put a tarp over a

The city of Bunia is about an hour and a half drive over dirt roads—or an eight minute flight on an MAF airplane—from the MAF base in the town of Nyankunde. (MAF has offices at the airport in Bunia as well.) This region is no stranger to violence, and the MAF hangar in Nyankunde still bears the physical—and, for many, emotional—scars of tribal fighting in recent decades.

1-800-FLYS-MAF

7

8

Nyankunde was once a bustling community filled with workers from many different Western mission and non-profit organizations. But that changed as violence escalated throughout the ‘90s and early ‘00s.

MAF played a key role in evacuating people as rebels overtook the area.

Jon shares a conversation he had with a Congolese MAF staff member who had visited the camp with him.

“I asked Anecho about what he had seen,” said Jon, “and he replied ‘Compassion, I have compassion on these people. But what can I do about so many people?’ ”

So when the recent round of fighting erupted, MAF was in a unique position to provide help to those affected.

Jon recalls Jesus’ words to the disciples with the 5,000: “You feed them.”

“I have compassion on these

ONE AT A T I M E people. But what can I do When MAF staff first about so many people?” came to the camp, the situation was extremely dire—hungry and scared children, G OD MU LT I P L I E S desperate mothers, people with The needs in the camp are still great gruesome machete wounds— and the situation is far from resolved. everyone struggling to find relief in One of the MAF staff members the volatile Congolese weather. To estimates that MAF and local compound matters, there was initially Congolese Christians are managing only a few bags of rice to feed the the only feeding program for the roughly 100,000 people. people of the Bunia camp—and MAF is donating the bulk of the food.

“We met a woman who had just come to the camp that morning,” “We do what we can do and let said Jon Cadd, a long-time MAF God sort out the rest,” said Jon. mission pilot in Africa. “She was “Because people gave money [to carrying her child who had the MAF] we can now do things we extended belly and reddish hair of the could not do before. We have malnourished. They had been hiding been shocked at the way God has in the bush for a month, running provided. More than 5,000 people from people who were trying to kill are being fed more than just one them. She had seen others killed and, meal. I always wondered how Jesus in fact, lost her husband. She finally could say the works I do, you will felt she must get out of the area and do and greater works because I am walked for four days to Bunia and had going to my Father (John 14:12). I am just come to the camp before we got not saying that we are doing greater there. We were able to help her with things than Jesus, but that He is food right then.” doing things here and allowing us to be part of it.

MAF began raising funds to provide food, cooking utensils, and tarps for “I would love to thank everyone shelter for these people. People like who has helped us to make a you made it possible for MAF staff significant difference in the lives of to purchase and deliver food and these people who have suffered so supplies to the camp on multiple much. As physical scars heal we occasions. Your donations allowed pray that the traumatic events, so MAF—one of the few organizations fresh in people’s minds, will also be responding to the crisis—to begin healed.” meeting the needs there.

But in the face of such great need, any amount of help can feel like a drop in a bucket.

1-800-FLYS-MAF

9

K

arlene Stehling’s days as a young MAF wife in Shell, Ecuador, were busy—flight-following for the MAF pilots, keeping an eye on her toddler son, bookkeeping, and hosting visiting missionaries. After 12 years in Ecuador, she and her late husband, Joe, were assigned to serve at MAF headquarters.

Today Karlene’s ministry looks quite different. She assesses all staff prior to departure for the field, and recommends the best placement for each. Many veteran MAF missionaries who serve at headquarters or around the U.S. have seen similar transformations in their own ministries over the years.

This article focuses on a select few of a group of individuals who have served with MAF for close to four decades or more—altogether 592 collective years!

At times the impact of their service is only seen years later. Often these missionaries were impacted by the very people they came to serve!

In 1987, MAF pilot Dan Rogers was held captive by rebels during

10

maf.org

Suriname’s civil war. “I went back to the interior villages about 10 years after that,” said Dan, “and found out that people who had suffered more in the war than I did had been praying for me!”

Today Dan works in the Fabrication Shop at MAF headquarters and occasionally travels to the field programs to help with special maintenance projects.

Joy Blomberg, manager of MAF’s Campus Expansion Project, fondly looks back on her years in Papua, Indonesia. She recalls a local group with whom she played tennis.

“Few of them knew Jesus in a personal way. I know with certainty that God used me to impact their lives, but I won’t know exactly how until I meet some of them in heaven.”

The Longevity Factor While their roles have changed over the years, these veteran missionaries still play a key role in MAF’s ability to bring the Gospel to isolated people around the world.

Steve Marx is making a difference

in the Purchasing Department at headquarters. “Finding and ordering aviation parts for our fleet enables our overseas teams to maintain their aircraft well and on the flight line.”

MAF Mobilizer Perry Pust counsels young people seeking to follow the Lord’s calling. “Many still thank me today,” said Perry, “for encouraging them along their training track until they joined MAF.” “We want to be involved in encouraging new recruits and members,” said Sylvia Rogers, who cares for the children of MAF missionaries who come through headquarters for training.

Every person in this group wants to finish well. By giving to the Finishing Well Initiative you can help these missionaries continue making an impact as they conclude their time with MAF.

Give today at maf.org/FinishingWell

Introducing David Holsten MAF’s new president steps into the next chapter of God’s story.

by Chris Burgess “Who am I to be asked to step into this role?”

That question ran through David Holsten’s mind when the MAF Board of Directors formally asked him to consider becoming MAF’s next president and CEO. Thoughts of the incredible legacy of this 73-yearold organization and the countless transformed lives washed over David in that moment.

“That was very, very humbling,” said David. “To see how God has used MAF in modern missions and then to be asked to step into that history and feel the mantle of leadership is a very weighty thing.”

David and his wife, Natalie, along with their four children, have served with MAF in Indonesia for the past 18 years. David has held a variety of roles, including pilot, program manager, and regional director of MAF’s largest region. However, one role David has particularly relished is story-teller.

David and Natalie both come from families of storytellers.

David’s father was a pastor and rancher in Colorado and his brothers are pastors, authors, and communicators. David’s late mother is the one he credits as being the family’s best storyteller. His mother’s childhood was a difficult one—yet she constantly told her children how God had brought her through it.

“She would tell that story to us all

the time, and God’s faithfulness and His goodness and His salvation were illustrated to us through stories,” said David.

“It just became this natural thing and, without even realizing it, I found myself doing the same thing with MAF. If you just open your eyes, the goodness of God—His faithfulness, His salvation, and the Gospel—are woven through everything MAF does.”

While David, Natalie, and their children are excited about the next chapter of their lives, they are mourning leaving behind their life in Indonesia, their home, their friends, and even their dog who won’t be able to make the transition with them. David will also miss the opportunity of having a front row seat to MAF’s operations, as a pilot, but his seat at MAF’s headquarters will give him a whole new view.

“Loving the story of MAF, to be able to see that playing out on a global level is such an incredible blessing,” said David. “It just turns up the volume of what I appreciate about MAF already.

“MAF has such a rich heritage,” said David. “It’s very humbling and a privilege to be able to lead this organization into its next chapter.”

Please pray for David, Natalie, and their family as they make this transition.

Working for one organization your entire adult life is almost unheard of, yet there’s a group of individuals who’ve stuck with MAF for around four decades!

Each one remains committed to God’s calling to MAF and no one plans on slowing down—which is good, because their years of experience, knowledge, and wisdom are needed to train new MAF missionaries and keep the organization running smoothly.

As this group approaches retirement, they have seen the number of their supporters shrink. That’s why MAF has created a special fund, so you can come alongside these faithful servants and help them finish their ministry with MAF well.

The Finishing Well Initiative makes it possible for you to show your appreciation for these dedicated missionaries and the many lives they’ve impacted—and continue to impact. By giving to the Finishing Well Initiative, you are furthering the legacy they are leaving.

Please give today so that these servants of the Lord can finish strong.

To give, visit

maf.org/FinishingWell 1-800-FLYS-MAF

Please lift up the people of Papua New Guinea who face a long road to recovery from the 7.5 magnitude earthquake that struck in February.

Pray for students and teachers starting classes in remote village schools served by MAF.

Bring the MAF executive leadership team before the Lord and ask for a smooth adjustment, and unity.

Lift up a new initiative by Congolese Anglican pastors to restart nine Bible schools that were destroyed during wars, in isolated areas of eastern DRC.

Photo by Crissie Rask

FAA HONORS JOHN MILLER John Miller of MAF was honored by the FAA with the prestigious Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award, which recognizes those with 50 or more years as an aviation maintenance technician.

John and his wife, Cora Lou, have been with MAF since 1973.

Dave Wunsch, vice president of Operations, said, “John is respected throughout the aviation community, not only in the U.S. but also in Indonesia, where we worked together for 17 years. His commitment to high standards in maintenance is evidenced in both practice and management. Since returning to the United States, John has consistently worked to improve the safety and efficiency of MAF’s maintenance operations around the world.”

Photo by Rebecca Hopkins

“Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.”

— Ephesians 6:18 (The Message)

DISMANTLING CHARLIE BROWN A team of American, Canadian, and Indonesian MAF staff dismantled Palangkaraya’s two recently retired Cessna 185s, which both served for almost 50 years in Indonesia, so they could be shipped to the States. Due to the long history of these airplanes and the make-up of the teams, the

week-long project took on a feeling of both a meaningful farewell and a reunion.

Several pastors heard about the project and erroneously thought MAF was pulling entirely out of Central Kalimantan. (Operations will continue once the new amphibious Kodiak arrives.) They came to our hangar to offer support and help so that we’d stay. A couple of them shared stories from their own childhood when these airplanes served their villages, saving some of their relatives’ lives. They also prayed a prayer of gratitude for the airplanes and helped hoist Charlie Brown’s fuselage into the container—a great picture of the special partnership we enjoy with local pastors in serving Kalimantan’s indigenous communities. —Story by Rebecca Hopkins

ASHLEY PETERSEN’S MINISTRY When a local hospital closed its malnutrition out-patient program, MAF missionary Ashley Petersen saw an opportunity to blend her passions for gardening and animal husbandry to create the EDRC Community Development Project. It began as one sweet potato mailed to her by an aunt—serving as a starter for many other plants, multiplying a more nutritious variety to families in Nyankunde, an orphanage in Bunia, and to other expat missionaries in remote villages. Ashley’s goal is to provide resources for the Congolese to grow their own nutritious food and raise animals—chickens, goats, and pigs—so they can break the cycle of hunger. She’s looking to expand her efforts, starting with fencing a newly acquired parcel of land adjacent to her own. If you’d like to help Ashley and her husband, Dave (an MAF pilot), make a difference through this project, visit maf.org/edrc-communitydevelopment.