Team in PNG: Pastor Joe

Early last year Pastor Joe Kreng and his family joined Samaritan Aviation as full time staff in Papua New Guinea. Samaritan Aviation helped Joe with his college education and he has been volunteering for the past six years helping to lay the foundation for our current operation.

He and his family are a vital part of the team and he is in charge of Samaritan’s hospital ministry in Wewak.

Joe is going through training as a leader in our Community Health Evangelism program and often goes on medical delivery flights to the jungle. He makes a positive impression on all who come across his path and we are thankful to have Joe and his family on the team. 

Letter from Papua New Guinea, Spring 2011

By Mark Palm

Greetings from Papua New Guinea! It is hard to believe we have been here a year! The transition was hectic to say the least, but overall I think it was probably just about “normal” considering we moved our family halfway across the world.

The first few months went by quickly with the major focus being the transition of the family, developing relationships with local leaders here in Wewak, hiring local staff, putting the plane back together, and beginning our flight operations.

Since the middle of last March, the Spirit of Paradise and I have been busy delivering medicine to remote clinics and performing emergency evacuations.

This truly has been a dream come true for Samaritan Aviation and our family. Kirsten has done a great job of being a wife, mother, teacher, and tracking my flights on the computer.

One of our highlights here was when our whole family was able to deliver medicine to the remote clinic at Hauna. We were able to tour the large high school and clinic there. The kids were able to experience a ride on a fifty-foot canoe and see village life firsthand.

On the flight home, an emergency call came in and we diverted to pick-up a mother who had a breached birth. The whole family was able to experience a medicine delivery and a Life Flight. Both the mother and child are alive today because of that flight! There is something special about doing ministry as a family. It was truly memorable for each of us.

The need here is great and we are excited about the coming year as Samaritan Aviation continues to minister to those in need, both physically and spiritually.  Thanks for all of your prayers and support for our family and Samaritan Aviation! We could not do this without you.

Update: Dwight Douglas

Some of you may have made donations for Dwight Douglas via Samaritan. Here is an update: 

Dwight received his heart transplant on October 14, 2010. The thoughtful and generous gift of a stranger and their family has given Dwight another chance for a healthy life. As a result of this gift, Dwight and his family have enjoyed another Thanksgiving, another Christmas, and another New Year celebration together. They are looking forward to many more celebrations. Additional details about the transplant process and Dwight's current condition can be found at www.caringbridge.org/visit/dwightdouglas
.

Dwight and his family are so thankful for the help and support Dwight has received and continues to be blessed with during this journey. All the prayers, words of encouragement, financial gifts, phone calls, emails, and visits are so greatly appreciated!! A special note of thanks to all who have contributed financial assistance. The funds that have been given are helping cover the out-of-pocket expenses associated with Dwight's transplant and continuing medical care. Dwight and his family will forever be thankful for the generosity of so many friends, family members, and even strangers!

Donations can still be made via Samaritan Aviation in Dwight Douglas' name. To help with Dwight's ongoing medical expenses, please visit: www.samaritanaviation.com. Click the "GIVE" tab. Fill in the donation form and type "Dwight Douglas" in the comments section.

More background information can be found at: www.heartfordwight.com

PNG Life Flights

Take a look: Baby Akai, a preemie, is in good hands! He's headed for the hospital nursery where he'll have a chance to put on some weight.

Samaritan's PNG Life Flight team making things happen. Way to go, guys! Anna is on her way to the hospital for a much needed blood transfusion and more testing. Please keep all of them in your prayers.

Age of Technology

There's been a stretch of time between the last post and this one...but we've dusted off the blog and brought it out with a new look and some exciting NEW news!

In an attempt to save on postage and keep everyone in the know, we'll be posting updates to the blog regularly and keeping current news on your radar!

Stay tuned for updates. Sign up to follow. Let us know what touches your hearts!

Thanks!
The Samaritan Team

Oshkosh 2009

Oshkosh was a great success this year! Many opportunities to fellowship with other mission aviation groups, individual Samaritan supporters, and network with several new people.

Left to right: Mark Palm, Ambassador Evan Paki, Gary Bustin & Tom Hamilton.

Our wonderful host family, Bill & Linda!

An evening of fellowship, group dinner & Samaritan presentation.

The Spirit of Paradise was on static display at the main base this year. We were one of many organizations representing IAMA's "Fly for Life" theme this year, highlighting the humanitarian work we do with our aircraft.

Samaritan's 7th Annual Golf Tournament & Dinner/Auction Fundraiser!

Over 150 poeple attended the dinner and 26 teams showed up to golf! We were blessed to have raised nearly $30,000 from this event which will go towards our first year's operations in Papua New Guinea!!!

Kristi Ward was our guest speaker for the evening. It was really neat to hear part of her & Eric's story. To read more about Eric, visit our homepage.

Co-founders Mark Palm (right) and Gary Bustin (left) gave a presentation in Pidgin, one of the native languages in Papua New Guinea.

Boars head tucked away in the brush representing authentic wild animals in PNG for the evening's theme "Spirit of Paradise".

A hut was built by one of our volunteers to give a more native feel & help represent again the theme of the evening.