The live animal freight that MFI transports is often interesting and amusing. We have flown dogs, cats, horses and prairie dogs. The most recent interesting cargo was a load of goats. Occasionally the mission community tries to upgrade the goat population in Haiti by bringing in fresh stock. After a few years the local goat population is pretty much run down and they look like skinny little dogs rather than goats. Our passenger goats seemed to enjoy their DC-3 ride to Port-au-Prince. The USDA approved each goat to go on this international flight even though they did not have passports.
We enjoyed seeing both familiar and new faces at our annual Family Day! Our guests were treated to smoked chicken and hotdog lunches, tours of our facilites, bounce house and children's activities, and of course, airplane rides. Thank you to everyone who came out on this beautiful, warm day to learn about MFI and missions.
Hobe Sound Bible College recently held their Welcome Week. The event is a special time for the college to host prospective students for a few days. MFI was asked to help with the event by sharing mission aviation with the young people. About 60 students visited MFI and enjoyed a short flight over the college to view the beautiful campus located in the village of Hobe Sound, Florida. MFI enjoys sharing missions with anyone who is interested in serving the Lord with their lives. Pray that these students will be the spiritual leaders of the future.
MFI hosted the Fort Pierce Banquet on Veteran's Day in November. We enjoyed a delicious meal, special music, pictures & videos, and a special time of honoring our veterans. We shared what God has been doing at MFI, all the provisions He has given to us, and ways we are making an impact in the islands of the West Indies. During the banquet, board member Dr. Ron Giddens offered a special prayer of dedication for our latest turbine DC-3, N500MF. He asked the Lord to use it for His glory and allow it to be a blessing to the missionaries and those they serve in Haiti and the other islands of the Caribbean. If you weren't able to be there, but would like to contribute to the work MFI is doing, please click here to donate. A special thanks to all who came and shared in the vision of MFI.
On Tuesday September 13, 2011 the newest MFI turbine DC-3 completed its maiden voyage to Haiti. The airplane flew flawlessly thanks to all of the professional efforts of everyone involved in the updating and overhauling of nearly every system on the airplane. This airplane carries more weight than any of our other aircraft and it does it in style. Going to Haiti, we cruised at 17,000 feet at an average of 240 mph. On the flight home to Fort Pierce, we averaged 235 mph. Today, with fuel cost so high, efficiency is very important for MFI. We moved nearly 7,000 pounds of mission cargo to Haiti yesterday and brought 7 passengers home including a badly injured motorcycle accident victim. A special thanks to everyone who has prayed and given to this aircraft project. As MFI reaches our corner of the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ N500MF will be a blessing to many hurting people in Haiti and other countries throughout the Caribbean.
