PCM News: Happy Anniversary

22 August 2009

Happy Anniversary

Today is sort of special for us.

Not just because of it being a very pleasant sunny Saturday with a calm breeze, birds twirping in the trees and the local troop of monkeys entertaining us by playing chase across our roof.

No, today, 22nd August 1994 was the day we drove to Manchester Airport to start our journey to southern Africa courtesy of a big fat KLM 747.

FIFTEEN YEARS - and we only originally came for three!

We would venture to say that it feels like a lot less – less than ten perhaps, but if we do think back we can't believe how much we've crammed into the last 15 years. Four years with the Durham LINK in Lesotho, then the years at flight school and now over six years with Mercy Air in South Africa.

There have been many ups and downs (mostly ups as we remember them) but we must give God the credit for sticking by us and leading us through the maze of life in Africa and blessing us beyond belief. After arriving in Lesotho in the middle of a military curfew in 94 we didn't for one moment ever envisage ourselves sitting here in White River doing what we're doing now.

We must also, of course, say thank you to those of you who have prayed for us and given so generously to make it possible for us to continue here.

So how are we celebrating this event? Not with any pomp and ceremony I'm afraid. This last week Paul has been busy in the office getting a lot of paperwork sorted. Cathy has been working at the rural clinic and teaching at Africa School of Missions’ School of Health. Matthew, probably blissfully unaware of the significance of the date (we will write later and remind him though), is still in Durban taking photographs.

He has done very well. He completed almost all of his formative education in Africa. From a skinny eight year old in primary school, all the way through high school to now having surpassed his parent’s academic achievements and trawled his way through university, emerging with a Degree.

The early Africa years:

Somewhere in-between:

More recently:

Unfortunately we haven't been able to scan any pics of when we first arrived but just so you can know the effect that all this has had on us:

Thank you again.

Paul, Cathy and Matthew

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A short history of us

Not long after we were married we felt that God had some full time work for us overseas. This initially began with a move to Sheffield in 1992 to work for a Christian management training company. Three years later we felt the Lord's prompting that another change was imminent and this led to a move to Africa where we helped set up a youth program with the Lesotho-Durham link in the capital Maseru. An initial three year commitment turned into four after which the youth work was handed over to the nationals.

Then, after feeling God was moving us into mission flying Paul enrolled at a flying school and completed his South African commercial license with an instrument rating in December 1999.

We moved from Lesotho to White River in South Africa in June of 2003 where we now work with Mercy Air. Mercy Air was borne out of Youth with a Mission (YWAM) and is a sister, although smaller organisation to the more well known Mercy Ships. We are situated near Nelspruit and provide a service to missions and the development/aid community in the southern African region but mainly serve Mozambique.

We operate four aircraft at present - a Quest Kodiak, a Cessna 310 and two Airbus 350 helicopters which are often used for the relief flights.

When not flying Paul is responsible for flight operations and is Mercy Air's Safety Officer.

Cathy, who is a registered Nurse and Midwife works part time at Africa School of Missions which is a bible college preparing missionaries for overseas service. She teaches in their School of Health and is part of a team which visits a number of rural clinics during the week. She is also helps with the hospitality ministry that Mercy Air runs.

Matthew spent four years at Rhodes University in Grahamstown where he studied photo journalism. He has now flown the nest and is living with his wife in Durban. They have a young daughter named Isabella.