Flight Briefing Vol. 3 - Missionary Flights International

February 2015
Fall 2015
Flightbriefing
3170 Airmans Dr., Ft. Pierce, FL 34946
772.462.2395
www.missionaryflights.org
mfi@missionaryflights.org
“And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap...”
Ezekiel 22:30a
Preparing to Serve in Cuba
photo: Rooftop Missions
Cuba. We often have wondered what
it would be like to serve missionaries
and the Church there. But Cuba has
been closed to traditional missionary
service for 50 years, and we would
need a third DC-3 to expand while
supporting our present commitments.
Service to Cuba seemed well beyond
our reach.
In 1965, when the Communist Party
began ruling in Cuba, the Church
experienced persecution. Pastors
were falsely accused and severely
beaten, and church property often
was confiscated. Today, laws are not
always enforced, but Christians know
the laws could be, so they remain
vigilant.
Now the U.S. - Cuba relationship
is thawing. Cuban and American
embassies re-opened this summer.
Some financial and travel restrictions
have been lifted. And we have been
receiving requests from missions and
churches who want our support in
Cuba. Can you believe it?
Concurrently, God has been providing
us the tools we need to reach out
to Cuba. First, we are strategically
located, less than a two-hour flight
from Cuba. In 2011, we got a great
price on a second hangar that could
accommodate the refurbishment of a
third DC-3. God blessed us with an
incredible deal for a turbine DC-3
fuselage in South Africa that will
save us close to $1 million (including
upgrades and flying it back here).
In 2014 and 2015 God sent us the
additional mechanics, pilots, and
administrative staff to support this
expansion. Already God has brought
in close to half of the funds to get this
plane into service.
When God is in a plan, when it’s His
plan, we labor faithfully and trust
Him. God assures the outcome.
“Man devises his way but God will
direct our steps.” (Prov. 16:9)
Cuban pastors praying. (photo: Edutech)
A Work in Progress - Third Turbine DC-3
The need for a third airplane became readily apparent
during Hurricane Joaquin relief to the lower Bahamas.
An unexpected maintenance issue grounded one plane
and thus disrupted service to Haiti and the Dominican
Republic as well as relief efforts. The sooner this new
airplane is in active service, the sooner these types of
delays will be a thing of the past.
In the previous Flight Briefing, MFI announced the
donation of a turbine DC-3 plane, currently located in
South Africa. MFI’s Director of Maintenance, Ian Hengst,
visited South Africa to inspect the plane and confirm its
condition. A generous gift from Samaritan’s Purse allowed
MFI to pay off the lien on the plane.
This airplane is pictured below in its current condition no engines and with the wings on the floor. Experienced
DC-3 mechanics in South Africa are making the minor
repairs now. The engines and other needed parts have
been shipped and will be installed by the end of this year.
The current timeline has the airplane in MFI’s hangar in
Fort Pierce by March of 2016.
To meet this timeline, MFI needs your help. We need
$350,000 to bring this plane home. That money would pay
2
Turbine engines prior to shipping to South Africa.
for the labor and parts to make the plane airworthy. Also
included is money for radios, navigation equipment, and
$40,000 for the fuel needed to fly the plane to Florida from
South Africa.
A third DC-3 will allow us to serve new countries. It has been
a long-term process: finding the plane, obtaining the funds,
purchasing parts, and connecting with the new partners
whom we will serve. There still is a lot of work ahead. We
hope you will stand with us for the long-haul.
Photo: Arnold Balledux at HLA/FALA Jan 07, 2010
www.abcdlist.nl/photo/dc3/5yrds.html
Standing in the Gap for Missions in the Caribbean
Hurricane Joaquin Relief for the Bahamas
Hurricane Joaquin struck the southern Bahamas with the force of a strong Category 4 on October 1 - with the most
damage occuring on Long Island, Crooked Island, and San Salvador. Some estimates have 90% of the homes on those
islands being flooded, in addition to wind damage. MFI’s mission is to partner with Bible-centered missions by providing
reliable transportation and logistical services - specifically to those located in the Caribbean.
Randy Crowe, the Director of Island Outreach, Inc.,
contacted MFI about relief supplies collected by the
people of the greater Abaco, Bahamas area, asking if
MFI could help transport those supplies. The pilots and
staff of MFI did all they could to assist in moving the
needed supplies from Abaco to the affected areas.
Randy organized the distribution of the collected
supplies by partnering with local pastors of the
communities hit the hardest. The best way to coordinate
the distribution of relief supplies is to use a local church
or mission. This ensures the supplies make it to the
affected people.
While there is still much to do, according to Randy,
“MFI has made a big difference in getting the process
started.” In all, MFI flew ten flights to the southern
Bahamas with over 60,000 pounds of relief supplies.
Florida Women Sew for Haitian Families
The ladies of Spanish Lakes Country Club Village Quilters took a break from
quilts to sew beautiful dresses for a mission in Haiti. Parkview Baptist Church
of Fort Pierce joined in by
donating fabric and a special
sewing machine to help with the
making of shorts, diapers, and
baby blankets.
Over 100 garments were lovingly
sewn and flown to Haiti on the
MFI plane to the Haiti Home of
Hope mission in Pignon, Haiti.
The mission gave some of the
clothes to the children in their
orphanage. The majority of the
clothes were passed out to the
community through a special
weekly ministry to families of
children without mothers. These
families are given food, milk, and
this time - hand-sewn clothes
from Florida. The little girls
clearly were thrilled to receive
their brand new dresses.
www.missionaryflights.org
3
Is the door opening for MFI to serve in Cuba?
FROM THE PRESIDENT
Missionary Flights International (MFI) has had several
milestones in its history, and you have been there to
witness many of them.
it appears that the Lord has been guiding our steps the
last several years to respond to this once-in-a-generation
opportunity to come alongside the Cuban Church.
I believe we are on the threshold of another significant
milestone for MFI. The normalizing of diplomatic
relations with Cuba could open the door for ministry
partnership with the Cuban Church. Believers in Cuba
are requesting that MFI fly through this door that God
appears to be opening.
We still thank God for the privilege of being one of the
first on-the-ground responders to the Haiti earthquake
in 2010. We trust Him to allow us to respond to Cuba’s
opening door. In God’s providence MFI will be a
strong thread running through the cord He is weaving
to link the U.S. Church with the Church in Cuba.
Blessed be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love.
We hope to send an “advance team” to Cuba in the
coming months to meet with Church and Mission leaders
to assess the best way we can come alongside the Cuban
Church.
Please partner with us financially as we begin to walk
through this opening door. Let’s reach this next major
milestone together!
Our service to evangelical missions has more
than doubled in the past six years, and we are
stretched to meet the need with only two turbine
DC-3s. So to respond to requests from Cuba, not
to mention inquiries from Belize, Guatemala, and
Honduras, we desperately need a third DC-3.
God is generously providing for this project to add a
third plane which is one way we know He has blessed
this initiative. To me, and to the staff and board of MFI,
Medical Flight
Thank You
I would like to thank
you
for
perhaps
saving my life. I
was diagnosed with
multiple
melanoma
cancer the very night I got to Melbourne,
FL. My calcium level was high enough that
my time was limited. How can I thank you
not only for bringing me out, but for jumping
through all the hoops AND PLEASANTLY,
too, to get me to the States. I pray God
will bless you, and I will do my best to
pass the blessings forwards. THANK YOU.
- Norma Alexander, missionary to Haiti for 32 years
Upcoming Events
You can find more details about the below events
at www.missionaryflights.org/events. Reservations are
required for the Feed My Starving Children event.
You can reserve your spot starting December 1 at
www.missionaryflights.org.
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Feed My Starving Children Mobile Pack Event
When: January 9, 2016 , 9am - 4pm
Where: MFI Hangar in Ft. Pierce, FL
MFI Family Day
When: March 5, 2016, 10am - 4pm
Where: MFI Hangar in Ft. Pierce, FL
West Palm Beach Banquet
When: March 18, 2016, 6pm - 9pm
Where: Airport Hilton, West Palm Beach, FL