Kodiak Dedication at OSHKOSH

It has been a LONG time since I have made time to keep things updated on this blog.  It hasn't been for lack of activity.  We have been SUPER busy traveling for training, speaking at churches, and seeing people. Over the next month of so, I have enough pictures to make a blog post every other day to get caught up on the last few months.  Some posts will be lots of pictures, others will just be a few.  Enjoy...

At the end of July, Becca and I had the privilege to take a week long trip to OSHKOSH; one of the biggest aviation gatherings in the world!  One of the neatest things about going was being able to see THE plane that will be heading to our location in Indonesia, hopefully by years end.  All of the training I have undergone in the last few months is due to this beauty seen flying above.

The day before the festivities at OSHKOSH began, MAF had a special dedication service for our new airplane at a nearby lake.  The objective was to pray over the airplane, and then have a small demonstration of it taking off and landing in front of the crowd.

After the airplane arrived, the pilot (not me yet) brought the airplane to the shore where he beached it and tied it to a tree.  The conditions for the demonstration weren't ideal.  The wind was continually blowing which made maneuverability difficult.  Thankfully the rain stayed away making it a wonderful event.

Shortly after the airplane was tied up, the president of MAF welcomed and thanked the 75+ people that showed up to the Kodiak event and afterwards he passed the microphone off to an MAF development officer that has also worked as a pastor.  He prayed for the airplane, it's pilots, it's passengers, and all of the places that it will journey to.  It was a very moving time, especially for me as I can picture it operating in Indonesia very specifically.

After the prayer of dedication, it was my turn to MC the demonstration.  The MAF pilot taxied the airplane away while I talked about what he was doing, what kind of an impact the airplane will have in Indonesia, and any other type of general question the crowd had.  The crowd really seemed engaged and interested in the wonderful new tool soon to be on it's way to Indonesia.

After the event on the lake shore, the Kodiak was returned to the nearby OSHKOSH airport where it was parked for the week and put on display.  One of the neat things about this new tool will be it's new capabilities.  On top of being able to carry more people, faster, we will also be able to use runways as well as water.  This will open some new doors for us.

Currently, our Kodiak is making some more stops around the US as it visits people that have been part of the acquisition of this wonderful tool.  By mid-September, the touring should be finished, and shortly thereafter she may be on her way to Indonesia!  I can't wait.