Read the latest Samaritan News on this page. We keep this page updated with the major events and periodic news about our organization. To keep up with the daily happenings our team, check out our blog .
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Twenty Gallons of Avgas For Two Lives |
 On Good Friday Samaritan Aviation’s crew in Papua New Guinea received a desperate call from a remote village to help a pregnant mother who was bleeding to death. She was having complications during birth, had lost a lot of blood, and would never live to make the two day trip by canoe and over land to the only hospital in the province.
Samaritan’s pilots took off in the organization’s amphibious Cessna 206, called the Spirit of Paradise, and headed for Timbunke. Timbunke is a remote health station close to the mother’s village and is where the desperate pleas for help were being transmitted by radio.
Because infant mortality rates are so high in this province, babies are often not named until they are two years old. The area is home to marsh lands, hundreds of lakes, and a very large river called the Sepik River. There are few roads so access to the hospital during emergencies has been virtually impossible up until the arrival of the Spirit of Paradise barely over a month ago. There are 500,000 people who live in this area. The one hospital is in a costal town called Wewak and only a few minutes away from the airport where Samaritan’s plane is based.
Once in the air pilots Bruce Johnson and Mark Palm retracted the wheels and prepared the plane for landing in the Sepik River. Because of the rough terrain and lack of roads about ten minutes in the air equals one day of travel over the ground. After a short twenty-five minute flight the plane was overhead at Timbunke where a large crowd of people had gathered on the river bank and were motioning for the plane to land. In a matter of minutes the patient, named Antonia, was loaded in the stretcher. Antonia, a mother of four, was close to death and virtually unresponsive as a local health worker held a drip line in the cabin of the plane for her.
The Spirit of Paradise took off of the river and headed for Wewak as fast as it could go. Inside was not only a young mother clinging to life but also the realization of a dream for many people who generously support Samaritan Aviation.
When the plane landed in Wewak an ambulance took Antonia to the hospital where she received emergency surgery. Doctors estimate that she would have lived another thirty minutes without care. Today Antonia and her new baby boy are doing fine at Wewak’s Boram Hospital.
A village that would be mourning the death of one of their members will soon celebrate the life of a new baby boy. It is with humble gratitude we present the first two lives saved by the Spirit of Paradise. They were literally snatched from the brink of death and news of this one mission will impact a village with God’s love. We offer our most sincere thanks to everyone whose prayer and support made this flight possible.
People Are Forever!!! |
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 The Spirit of Paradise has been shipped to PNG! On December 24, 2009, the plane sailed for its new home. It was dismantled and put into a 40 ft shipping container and is scheduled to arrive February 1st. When reassembled in Papua New Guinea, it will be the ONLY float plane in the island nation. The plane is scheduled to begin service in an area where there are 500,000 people and one hospital shortly after arriving in Port Moresby. It will be flying three primary missions:1. Emergency Evacuation/Air Ambulance2. Remote Aid Post Support3. Community Health Evangelism Stay tuned for pictures and stories as the plane begins its life saving missions in one of the most remote jungles on earth! |
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The Palms move to Wewak, PNG |
 On January 12th, 2010, the Palm family left their home in Southern California, and made the move to Papua New Guinea. A move planned for some time, the family is excited to begin their new life in PNG. Samarian is excited to be sending its first full-time missionaries to PNG! Also while there, the Palm’s will be working on logistics for Samaritan Aviation operations and Mark will be piloting the Cessna 206. Kirsten, who has a masters degree in Cross-Cultural Education and teaching certificate, will be homeschooling their three children, Sierra-7, Drake-5, and Nolan-4. This is a huge transition for the Palm family, as well as Samaritan Aviation. There will be a lot of adjusting to a new culture and many opportunities for learning. Please keep them in your prayers as they start a life in PNG, and a heartfelt THANK YOU to everyone who has been involved in this dream becoming a reality!
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 We are in the process of purchasing a vehicle for our operations in Wewak and here is what you need to know: 1. Wewak is isolated from the rest of the country by road so all vehicles in the area arrived by ship. 2. The roads in Papua New Guinea are usually rough and vehicles are often poorly maintained. 3. We need a van for several reasons; one of them being that many of our supporters are planning on a short term mission trips to Wewak and we need something to transport them.
The van is nice; has air conditioning; the price is good considering the high import fees in PNG; we know the current owners; and it is in the part of PNG that has the best roads. Sold!!! Now all we have to do is raise the money.
How you can help: The total cost of the van and shipping to Wewak is $18,000. If you want to give towards this vehicle you can send a check to Samaritan with “van” in the memo or click here to give online: http://www.samaritanaviation.com/index.php/Give.html and write "van" in the comment section. This is a perfect project for your school, church group, business, or family.
Here is what we’ll do: Whoever gives the largest sum towards the van gets naming rights…make it interesting! If your group decides to underwrite this project we will come do a presentation on Samaritan and thank you in person.
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PNG Trip Report - October 2009 |
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