New Arrivals & Celebrations

June 7 was a very happy day for Bill and I as our girls arrived home from college to spend the summer months with us. I look forward to this time together all year long!

Briana graduated May 9 with her degree in Graphic Arts. We are of course very proud of her.

On their way to PNG the girls stopped over in Brisbane to spend the weekend with their cousin Katrina.
Things felt a bit lonely around our house after Sheba died so we decided to add this new addition as a surprise for our girls. Mishy was an extremely wild cat that started hanging out in our yard. At first I couldn't get even remotely close to him without him hissing and running away to hide. But after much patience we actually have him coming inside to eat and hanging around us all day - although we still don't dare touch him unless we want to risk some serious wounds!

June 29 was another exciting day as we eagerly awaited the arrival of Roger and Linden who were ferrying our brand new airplane over from New Zealand. We hung a large welcome banner over the hanger doors and decorated with balloons and flowers.

Yes, the new airplane looks like an identical twin to our other PAC 750XL. In fact, shortly after its arrival a group of pastors was flown out in it. Upon landing they asked, "When is the new airplane arriving?" When they were told that they had just flown in it, they started whopping and hollering with delight and amazement.

Staff gathered around Roger for a prayer of thanksgiving for the safe arrival of our new aircraft.

A belated Happy 4th of July to all. Our girls and some of the AAS staff went to Madang for a weekend of fun and sun.

They all arrived back Sunday afternoon and gathered at our home for a good old American 4th of July celebration. Well, it was the best we could do in a foreign country! We had a traditional picnic with potato salad, baked beans, roasted corn on the cob, lemonade, and home made ice cream.

We built a fire and roasted marshmallows. A real treat as they cannot be purchased here but Dalena happened to have a bag stashed away and generously shared with us all!

We even had a brief fireworks show of sorts. The Millists brought over an emergency flare and lit it for a few moments of glory. Hey, you have to be innovative in the mission field. All in all, it was a wonderful evening together with family and friends.

Audits, Volcanoes, Women's Ministries, etc.

The last two weeks have been extremely busy. The first week we got audited by the CAA (Civil Aviation Authorities). Legally they are required to give us a one month notice of the audit, but this being PNG, we only got a one week notice. Our team spent a frantic week cleaning, organizing, and ensuring all paperwork was in order. Carol and I even washed the walls which was almost as good as a new paint job! Our guys did an awesome job and our operating certificates have been renewed for another 2 years. PTL.

The weekend following the audit Bill had a flight to Rabaul and since there was room I decided to go along. Rabaul has a fascinating history. If you will look at a map you will see that the country of PNG is made up of not only the main island, but many outlaying islands as well, such as New Ireland, New Britain, Bougainville, and Manus just to name a few. The town of Rabaul is on the island of New Britain and sits at the base of two active volcanoes which means it is continually threatened by volcanic activity. There was an eruption back in 1878 before there was really a town established. Then, under the Australian administration, Rabaul developed into a regional base. In 1937 a volcanic eruption destroyed the town after the two volcanoes, Tavurvur and Vulcan, exploded killing over 500 people and causing widespread damage.

(The volcanoes today - still smoking!)

You have to ask the question why people have persisted in living in Rabaul due to the obvious danger! The best answer I can come up with is that Rabaul has a large, nearly perfect circular harbor - apparently one of the best in the South Pacific region for shipping.

During World War II Japan had its eye on Rabaul. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor it was apparent that Rabaul would also come under attack. In January 1942, Rabaul was heavily bombed, and on January 23 thousands of Japanese marines landed. It became the main base of Japanese military and naval activity in the South Pacific.

(WWII museum in Kokopo)

Here is a note of interest: On April 18, 1943, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the brains behind the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, was shot down and killed by United States aircraft over South Bougainville after taking off from Rabaul. Instead of capturing Rabaul, the Allied forces bypassed it by establishing a ring of airfields and naval bases on the islands around it. Cut off from re-supply and under continual air attacks the base became useless. The Japanese held Rabaul until they surrendered at the end of the war in August 1945.


In the meantime Rabaul grew in to a thriving town and became the provincial capital until 1994 when again Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted, destroying the airport and covering most of the town with heavy ash fall. Most of the buildings collapsed due to the weight of ash on their roofs. After the eruption the capital was moved to Kokopo, about 12 miles away. Nonetheless, Rabaul is slowly rebuilding in the danger zone. Some people just never learn! Vulcan has remained dormant since the eruption while Tavurvur continues to have occasional small eruptions.

(It was awesome to fly over the volcanoes and look down inside. The benefits of being a pilot's wife!)

(Looking out towards Rabaul from Kokopo)

The mission was hosting a large women’s retreat in Kokopo with women coming from all the surrounding islands for the event. The guest speakers were Heather-Dawn Small (General Conference Women’s Ministries director) Erna Johnson (South Pacific Division Women’s Ministries director), and Judy Ponduk (PNG Union Women’s Ministries director).

(Heather, Judy, & Erna)

Judy Ponduk is a long time friend of mine from the first time we served in PNG. At that time her husband was the principle of Kabiufa .

When we landed in Kokopo a large delegation of women were waiting to greet our visitors.

We were treated to a special desplay by this group of marching ladies from Bougainville.

The women had made Meri blouses (the traditional dress) which they ceremoniously placed over the heads of the visitors.

The retreat was like a good old fashioned campmeeting with all the ladies staying in tents.

The Sabbath meetings were held in the local highschool gymnasium. It was packed out. I am estimating about 800 women were present.

The overflow sat outside under the trees.

On Sunday we flew the guest speakers back to Lae. We picked up some more passengers and took off for the village of Menyamya. I love this village as it is in the most beautiful valley.

Typical to many airstrips here in PNG, you often feel like you are flying straight into the side of a mountain before the pilot turns in on final approach.

Banking over a picturesque river on base to short final...

...and here we are at Menyamya.

From Menyamya we took off for Kanabea, just down the valley a way. See that little green line? That is the airstrip cut out from the side of the mountain.

Coming in for a landing at Kanabea...

As you can see, it is built right on the very edge of the mountain with a beautiful view looking out over the valley.

We picked up a load of pastors who had been holding some evangelistic meetings in the village.

After dropping them off in Menyamya we to off for Komako to pick up a load of coffee. At 370 meters, Komako is one of the shorter airstrips our guys fly in to. (Can you find it in the picture?)

Ah, there it is! Note the 45 degree dogleg on the right at the end of the strip. The strip was so short the villagers ended extending it a bit, but it is terribly crooked and you actually have to turn a corner!

Five seconds to touchdown...

Coffee waiting for pick-up.

Ready for takeoff....Once again, notice the corner you have to turn (on the left) as you take off. Once airborn you make a sharp turn to the right (to avoid that mountain) and out in to the valley. Who needs amusement parks and roller coasters when you can do this every day?

Tuesday this past week I was invited to give a health lecture at a private school that Dalena Spencer teaches at. I had great fun making all kinds of visual aids to keep the children's attention. Bill thinks I have more fun being creative and making all my props then actually teaching. I'm afraid it's true. It fun to have an excuse to just draw...

On Wednesday our container arrived from Australia. Roger had packed it up while on his year end leave with much needed aviation parts, tools, and equipment.

Bill unloading the new engine for our Cessna 206.

It takes many hands to quickly unload the container and get everything organized and put away before nightfall.

(Sharon and Carol)

(Dalena)

The next big event that we are looking forward to is the arrival of our second PAC-750XL. It just completed flight testing at the factory last week and we are currently waiting for the paper work to be finalized to take delivery of it. Standby for updates....

Music

At the beginning of this school year the Kabiufa church asked Bill if he would be willing to be the music director. Well, I can't say he was overly enthusiastic. As many of you know, music is Bill's passion, and he has a hard time accepting anything less then perfection. First of all, the church piano is in terrible condition! When we first arrived Bill spent hours tuning the piano and trying to fix many broken parts. In spite of his hard work, it is still in very poor condition with many keys not working. 2nd of all, the sound system in the church was a total mess and the church itself has a very high ceiling which contributes to very poor acoustics. 3rd - the congregation had absolutely no concept of music theory. Their sense of rhythm was appalling and made it almost impossible to accompany on the piano.

Approximately 700 high school students attend Kabiufa church. Young people are the same the world over and music speaks to their hearts in different ways then it does us older folks. We had been hearing "rumors" that the students were very dissatisfied with the music program at the church. After a bit of agonizing Bill finally agreed to take on the task of being the music director and hopefully bringing about some positive changes.

The very first thing he did was organize a praise team of 7 students. 3 of them play the guitar and one plays the keyboard along with Bill on his keyboard. We have them over to our home every Friday night for a practice session. Right from the beginning Bill started teaching the team some basic music theory, rhythm, and how to read music. The kids were so enthusiastic and just took off. They were then challenged to teach their classmates. Often, at the beginning, when the congregation was singing a song all wrong, Bill would just make them stop, teach them the correct way, and start over again. It caused a few laughs, but they are quick learners and the change has been amazing.

The second thing Bill did was to improve the sound system with some new equipment and several microphones that Roger Millist helped the church to acquire. Now the congregation can actually hear the praise team instead of totally drowning them out (The people of PNG sing VERY loud and very enthusiastically!) and this allows them to follow the song leaders lead and sing with the proper rhythm. Believe me, it makes a huge difference.

The 3rd change Bill made was incorporating choruses that the students enjoy singing, instead of just hymns. He also changed the order of service so that the music leads up to a very worshipful spirit by the time the pastor is ready to preach.

It has taken some time and patience but the worship service at Kabiufa has been totally revitalized. The kids are loving it and you should hear them sing! We have had staff come and tell us that between Sabbath School and Church they have always had to be outside rounding up the students and herding them inside. Now, the minute the students hear the music starting they come running from all directions because they don't want to miss out on anything. Village students that aren't required to come to Kabiufa church are making sure they are there every Sabbath. The church is usually packed out.

Never underestimate the power of music. (-:

Man's Best Friend

How can I best describe Sheba? From what I have been told, She was a mixture of Rottweiler, German Shepherd, Doberman Pincher, and Great Dane! She certainly wouldn't win a beauty contest. With those genes you think she would be an incredibly fierce watchdog. On the contrary, she was nothing but a big, gentle, teddy bear. However, because of her size the nationals were terrified of her. The children loved to hear her big, deep, "Woof" and would purposely call out to her trying their best to get her to bark.

When we arrived in PNG we inherited her from some other missionaries that had gone home. She very quickly wormed her way into our hearts and home. At first she wasn't allowed into the house but in only a matter of weeks she had managed to soften our hearts and find her place in a corner of the kitchen on a red blanket. She always expected to be part of the family.

She was my constant shadow and companion. No matter where I went or what I did she was right on my heels. If I was in the laundry room she would come and sit by the washing machine as I loaded it. When hanging up the clothes she would sit under the clothesline. If I was weeding the flowerbeds or garden, she would lay beside me as I worked. She would joyfully welcome us home at the end of the day, desperately trying to wag a tail she didn't have, running around to both doors of the car to make sure that both Bill and I had come home.

She loved food and would have eaten non-stop all day if allowed. If we were sitting at the table eating, she would moan and groan loudly, as if in pain, letting us know that she sure would like to share in the meal with us. She loved to eat mulberry's from our mulberry tree and would guilt us into feeding her some.

Being a typical dog, she loved to dig. We had holes all over the yard and it would vex Bill to no end. As fast as we would cover up the holes, she would dig them again. It was a never-ending battle.

Wednesday evening I was working in the kitchen fixing dinner and Sheba was lying on her blanket by the front door. She had been fine all day. We had worked in the garden together that morning and she had been her usual self running around barking at birds, sniffing out every corner for the yard, rolling in the grass, etc. Bill came home and Sheba stood up to great him. Then as she lay back down, she sort of just flopped and her head hit a kitchen chair with a loud thunk. Bill laughed and said, "Sheba you silly dog!" He thought she was just being lazy and couldn't lay back down quick enough to go back to sleep. But after a few seconds he said, "Hey, something is wrong. She is breathing funny."

I went over to investigate and sure enough, she was in obvious respiratory distress and appeared to be semi-comatose. After about 15 minutes she sort of came to and seemed to want to go outside so I opened the door for her. She walked to the top of the stairs as if she wanted to go down and then promptly collapsed. Bill carried her back inside to her blanket where she promptly lost all bowel control. I cleaned her up and just sat with her for about an hour, stroking her head, telling her I loved her, and crying my eyes out. We finally went to bed fully expecting to find her dead in the morning.

But to our amazement she was still alive the next morning and seemed much improved! When I opened the door she promptly got up, went down the stairs, relieved her self, came back up, ate some food, drank some water and seemed for the most part to be back to her normal self! She appeared a little bit wobbly on the legs still, but not bad.

I needed to go in to work with Bill on Thursday so we left her alone all day presuming she was doing better. However, when we got home that evening we immediately saw that she had relapsed. While her breathing wasn't as distressed as the evening before she still had very rapid respirations and became extremely short of breath with any movement. Other then taking a few bites of food that morning, she had not touched her food. This is a dog that LIVED for food. I tried to offer her some bread, her favorite treat, and she just turned her head away. While alert, she was extremely lethargic and weak, not moving at all except to struggle to her feet occasionally to get a drink of water and then she would collapse back on to her blanket. It was so sad. While I was fixing dinner Bill lay in the hammock next to her singing her little songs and stroking her head so she would feel loved.

Friday morning it was evident she wasn't going to recover. She still hadn't touched her food and she couldn't make it down the stairs to relieve herself. For the most part she just lay limp and unresponsive, her breathing still stressed. There is one thing I can't stand, and that is watch an animal suffer. It is more then my heart can bear. We had no idea how long she would hang on like this, so we arranged for Dr. Boone, an Adventist Doctor in town, to come and put her down. (We have no Vets in Goroka)

Friday afternoon he came, and she just quietly went to "sleep" with Bill and I stroking her and telling her what a good dog she was and how much we loved her. We buried her in her beloved red blanket right in the middle of our flower garden under the mulberry tree -crying our eyes out.

I believe God created animals for us to love and cherish because He knew they fill a special place in our hearts that nothing else can. Sheba died on Easter Weekend. As I spent Sabbath nursing my wounded heart I reflected on the death and resurrection of Jesus. It struck me as never before that this is a time to celebrate the victory Jesus had over death. Our time on this earth is but short and soon we will never ever again have to experience the pain and sorrow of death! Because of Jesus it will be banished forever. And that is something to truly rejoice about.