Participants: Narrator:Chet Damron
Series Code: OTG
Program Code: OTG000044A
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00:01 Narrator: The life of a missionary in the remote
00:03 rural jungle is not an easy one. 00:06 The Hanley family have lived in Tranquera in the north-eastern 00:09 part of Nicaragua for 10 years. 00:12 During that time, their ministry has evolved into a multi-faceted 00:17 aviation project, that ministers to the indigenous Miskito people 00:23 Aviation humanitarian aid is the majority of the work, 00:27 that this project does. 00:29 Clint is a pilot and offers med-evac flights to all the 00:33 neighboring villages to transport patients to a higher 00:37 level of medical care. 00:39 There are no safe road systems from the thick jungles from 00:43 Puerto Cabezas, where the closest hospital equipped 00:47 to handle critical injuries is located. 00:50 Currently, this project is the only humanitarian aviation 00:53 support in the entire country. 00:56 There are no other aviation projects to help the people 00:59 in Nicaragua. 01:01 Clint: We devote a lot of our attention and time 01:04 to humanitarian aid. 01:05 The right hand arm of the gospel is being able 01:07 to help people medically. 01:09 And being able to offer them this help, and being able to 01:14 give them the hope, that they can have a better medical care 01:20 by transporting them. 01:21 We have the only ambulance for air travel in all of Nicaragua 01:25 that can carry oxygen and a stretcher. 01:28 And we are the only airplane in all of Nicaragua, 01:30 that is able to do this. 01:33 And we are the only airplane, that is based on the whole 01:37 Atlantic coast. 01:38 To be able to offer them help from a remote runway and get 01:42 them to a place where they can have better medical care 01:45 is a big blessing that they have and it saves a lot of lives. 02:34 Narrator: Clint stays very busy flying med-evac flights. 02:37 Often he will fly 5 or more patients a week. 02:41 In spite the demanding flight schedule, the Hanley's are not 02:46 satisfied with offering only aviation service. 02:50 Their ministry in Tranquera includes more than the work 02:55 they do with aviation. 02:57 The family finds new ways to help the local Miskito people. 03:01 Aviation opens the doors of opportunity to minister 03:05 to the people of this region. 03:08 Though years of service, the Miskito people have come to 03:11 accept the Hanley family as one of their own. 03:16 They see the love of Christ displayed in the service 03:19 the Hanley's provide. 03:21 Everyone on this Adventist World Aviation mission base dedicated 03:26 100% of their time to ministry. 03:30 Each day's work differs significantly from the next, 03:34 but no matter the activity, it is guaranteed to be focused 03:39 on ministering to the local people. 03:43 Jud: You know the airplane flying, and you know 03:45 the med-evacs is the most dramatic part of the work, 03:48 that you do here and are involved with, but that doesn't 03:51 happen all day and constantly and so I'm sure that there are 03:54 other things, that you look for, that are needs 03:58 in the communities that you can help. 04:01 Clint: Flying is probably the most fun thing to do. 04:03 It is the most exciting and that's one of the things that 04:06 most people focus on the most. 04:08 But that happens a few times a week and it's not - it doesn't 04:11 cover all of your life. 04:12 There's a lot of mundane, regular work that needs done. 04:15 Maintaining the airplane, building the hangar. 04:18 Narrator: The goal of each Adventist World Aviation 04:20 project is to provide 04:22 logistical and infrastructural support to the area they serve. 04:28 Primarily this is accomplished by the use of aircraft, 04:32 however, there are instances where this includes 04:35 land transportation as well. 04:38 Not far from the aviation base is another Adventist mission 04:43 whose primary work focuses on operating a medical clinic. 04:48 Clint works in close cooperation with this mission and assists 04:53 them whenever he can help. 04:56 Today Clint receives a call over the radio from the other mission 05:00 Hanna: Hey Clint this is Hanna, right now my poorly is 05:03 not really working and I'm wondering if you can come by 05:06 and help me out with it? 05:07 Narrator: Located in Francia, The other mission project is 05:12 over just one hour's drive away. 05:15 The roads in this part of Nicaragua are very rugged 05:18 and often not passable. 05:21 Thankfully today the roads are dry enough for Clint and his son 05:25 Brendell to make the journey to Francia to help 05:29 the other mission with their transportation issues. 05:32 Clint: We are on our way. We are almost to the Romillia Switch 05:34 We got delayed a little. Sorry. 05:38 Hanna: No problem at all. I'm here waiting. 05:41 Clint: Ok talk to you later. 05:42 Narrator: Years ago Clint helped this mission by installing 05:45 a radio communication system and a solar electric system 05:50 to make them more efficient. 05:52 These systems significantly enhanced their work in Francia. 05:58 It also gave them a way to communicate with Clint, 06:01 should they need to call for a medevac from their remote clinic 06:06 Today, Hanna, a student missionary has called Clint for 06:11 help in repairing her only mode of transportation, a 4-wheeler. 06:18 Hanna: Hi my name is Hanna Garva and I'm currently a student 06:21 missionary here in Francia Sirpi. 06:24 This is our TRAM headquarters. 06:28 Tasba Raya Adventist Ministries and I'm working in the clinic 06:33 with Dr Caldara and at our school as well. 06:36 Narrator: Hanna is a student missionary 06:38 working in the local clinic. 06:40 She works alongside a doctor and ministers to the local people. 06:45 The Clinic is not located in the mission compound and this 06:49 4- wheeler is her only mode of transportation 06:52 to and from the clinic. 06:53 Without this vehicle, she is not able to continue her work. 06:58 It's extremely important, especially right now. 07:01 The doctor is actually in Managua and I'm the only, 07:04 the only type of health person here. 07:07 I'm not even a nurse, so just the other day we had a burn 07:11 victim and our 4-wheeler wasn't working and thankfully, 07:17 thank God that Clint was able to come transport him to Waspam 07:22 because his burns were too severe for us, or for me to do anything 07:27 Narrator: Clint assists this Adventist mission in many ways. 07:31 He keeps close communication with the clinic and transport 07:36 all critical patients to the hospital. 07:39 Since this mission compound is so remote, all severely injured 07:43 or ill patients must be taken to the hospital which is hours away 07:48 There is no ambulance system in this part of the world and Clint 07:52 must transport all patients. 07:55 Hanna: The closest hospital is about two hours away. 08:00 But, if you want a better facility that's another, 08:05 that's about five - five or six hours depending on how bad 08:10 the roads are. 08:12 If it's really raining, If here in rainy season it's even worse. 08:16 The roads can get really bad and sometimes you can't even 08:20 cross them. 08:22 Maybe it will take the whole day so if you have an emergency 08:25 situation and you need to transport them, 08:28 it can get really dangerous. 08:31 We try and keep in contact with them because they really help us 08:35 with transportation, with the airplane and it's just 08:40 nice to know another American family around here. 08:44 Narrator: So Clint works on repairing this vehicle for Hanna 08:47 In order for her to continue her work at the clinic, 08:50 she must be able to reach it safely. 08:54 Without the 4-wheeler, it would not be safe 08:57 for her to walk alone. 09:00 Hanna: So there are no transportation options 09:02 in the village. 09:04 You can walk. A lot of the young men have bicycles. 09:09 There is a big truck that comes in from Port every other day, 09:15 but it holds a lot of cargo on top and it's really dangerous 09:18 to ride, so we don't ride on it. 09:23 Narrator: Clint diagnoses the problem with the 4-wheeler, 09:25 that the starter is the problem. 09:28 For him it will be an easy repair. 09:31 Currently, Hanna is the only medical provider at this mission 09:34 The doctor had to do go the capital for business so it vital 09:38 to get this vehicle running, so she can continue her work. 09:42 Clint also enlists his son to help him fix the 4-wheeler. 09:46 Although Brendell is young, he also does his share 09:49 of mission work. 09:51 Today, he can help his dad fix this motor vehicle 09:55 for the neighboring mission. 09:56 Soon the repair is made and they crank up the 4-wheeler. 10:01 The starter issue is resolved, however it seems the battery 10:05 is not holding the charge very well. 10:08 Clint: You should probably charge the battery 10:09 up inside in your system. 10:13 It wouldn't be bad to take it off and we could put it 10:16 in there to charge now. 10:18 Because he said it takes about a minute of cranking to be able to 10:21 get it to start the first time. 10:23 When you first start it. So that's going to take 10:24 quite a bit of cranking. 10:26 But now that it's been running, at least today, 10:28 it'll start a little easier. 10:31 Let's see if it starts right up. 10:39 Narrator: Since he is the one who installed it, Clint is very 10:42 familiar with the solar charging system at the mission. 10:46 He takes the battery from the vehicle and shows Hanna 10:49 how to set it up to charge. 10:52 The solar panels captures the energy from the 10:55 intense Nicaraguan sun. 10:58 The power is converted and stored in car batteries, 11:01 that the mission uses to power all its electronics. 11:05 This solar system keeps the mission up and running. 11:08 Clint: Now the battery is hooked into your power system. 11:12 Narrator: Clint is happy to help other ministries accomplish 11:14 their work. 11:16 This work falls perfectly in line with Adventist World 11:19 Aviation's mission of establishing infrastructural 11:24 and logistical support in remote locations around the world. 11:47 Narrator: Now that his work at the Adventist mission 11:49 is complete, Clint starts his journey back to his own mission 11:53 base, where more mission work awaits him. 11:56 Midway on his journey home, as he drives through the pine 12:00 savannah, he sees a motorcyclists stranded 12:04 on the side of the road. 12:06 It seems that his mechanic duties are not yet finished 12:09 for today. 12:11 So Clint pulls over to see if he can help this stranded motorist. 12:16 Almost everyone in this region knows Clint 12:19 and the AWA mission base. 12:22 He cannot pass by someone in need. 12:25 At first glance it's apparent the motorist has a flat tire. 12:30 Clint retrieves his pump and tools in effort to fix the leak. 12:35 However, despite their efforts to inflate the tire, 12:39 it continues to remain flat. 12:43 There must be a large gash in the tire he thinks. 12:48 Out here in the remote jungle, there're no mechanic shops, 12:52 or tire stores to quickly remedy the situation. 12:56 A flat tire would leave this man stranded with no option, but to 12:59 push his bike for days, until he reached a larger town. 13:05 Clint's base is only an hour's drive away. 13:09 He resolves to load the bike into the truck and fix the 13:12 motorcycle at the mission base. 13:16 The bike just barely fits into the back on the mission truck. 13:20 Thankfully, the men can angle the bike just right 13:24 to get the tailgate closed. 13:27 So with the bike loaded, they resume their trip back 13:30 to the AWA mission base. 13:33 Clint has the supplies they need to fix the bike in his garage. 13:39 The men reach the mission base and quickly begin fixing 13:42 the tire on the stranded motorist's bike. 13:46 Again Brendell is by his dad's side offering to help 13:50 anyway he can. 13:52 They pump up the tire to see if they can locate 13:55 where the air is escaping. 13:57 After a few spins, they find a puncture mark on the tire. 14:02 The roads in this area are in terrible condition, 14:05 so a punctured tire is not an uncommon occurrence. 14:09 In Tranquera, there is no way to buy a new tire 14:13 to replace this one. 14:14 They must patch the hole. 14:17 Clint keeps a tire patch kit in his garage. 14:20 He begins his work repairing this man's tire, 14:23 which is a labor of love for Clint. 14:26 He does not know this man, nor did he have to stop 14:30 and help him. 14:32 Clint expects nothing from him in return. 14:35 Clint and his family always seek to find every opportunity 14:39 they can to help the Miskito people. 14:43 They want the people to see the love of Christ 14:46 shining through them. 14:48 Clint knows that by devoting a few hours to help this man 14:52 repair his tire he is ultimately leaving a meaningful impact 14:56 on this man's life. 14:59 As they work together, Clint talks with him and builds 15:02 a relationship with a new friend. 15:20 While Clint works in the garage, Marilyn spends her day 15:23 helping others. 15:25 This mission base has an open-door policy 15:28 to assist whoever comes seeking help. 15:32 Marilyn is a registered nurse and has a constant stream 15:35 of patients coming to the clinic they've built on the base. 15:41 These patients will walk four or five hours to reach 15:44 the Adventist World Aviation mission base. 15:49 Marilyn examines each patient, gives them supplemental 15:52 medications from the pharmacy. 15:56 Often the patients will bring produce from their plantations 16:00 in appreciation. 16:02 They are so thankful to have Marilyn treat them. 16:05 Marilyn doesn't just treat her patients ailments. 16:09 She also educates each patient she sees. 16:14 She gives each person basic information about nutrition, 16:17 drinking clean water and healthful living. 16:24 Sadly, Marilyn has noticed a trend in many of the patients 16:27 she sees. 16:28 A vast majority of the women come in with respiratory issues. 16:33 This stems from Miskito women cooking in their small 16:37 unventilated huts with charcoal. 16:40 Each day, the native women spend hours cooking in a confined 16:45 space with smoke pouring in their faces. 16:49 Day after day, the women breathe in this harmful smoke, 16:52 which makes them sick. 16:55 This problem is not isolated to just the women of the village. 16:59 The Miskito people are very poor and look for any opportunity 17:02 to make money. 17:04 And one of the ways some villagers have found to make 17:07 their livelihood is to burn wood and make carbon charcoal. 17:15 These people don't understand just how harmful this line 17:19 of work is on their bodies. 17:21 Men and women and even children will spend days making charcoal 17:25 to sell. 17:26 During this time, they inhale the smoke, thus damaging 17:30 their bodies. 17:33 To make the charcoal, they must continually harvest 17:36 trees from the forests. 17:38 They strip acres of land of pine trees and put them 17:41 in a burn pile. 17:44 They control the burn rate by piling dirt on top of the logs 17:48 so the wood smolders for days. 17:51 Then they dig out portions of the pile and pour water 17:56 on the carbon. 17:58 Afterwards they gather the charcoal into bags 18:01 and sell them to others. 18:03 This line of work has many health consequences. 18:08 Marilyn: The people, who are doing carbon right now, maybe 18:11 three, four, five years they're all going to be getting 18:14 really serious lung ailments from the dust, from the carbon. 18:18 And the people in the village, who are making carbon, 18:23 making charcoal, are maybe in three, four, five years 18:27 they're going to be getting sick 18:29 They have children there. They have pregnant women there 18:31 and everyone is going to start getting lung ailments. 18:34 Because of the amount of time they're spending breathing 18:37 the carbon dust from the charcoal camps. 18:40 Narrator: Another consequence of this industry is the erosion 18:43 of land in the village. 18:44 When people cut down whole forests at once, the ground is 18:49 easily washed away by the strong Nicaraguan rain storms. 18:53 The root system of the trees is no longer able to keep 18:57 the ground in place. 19:00 The land is especially ruined. 19:02 Unfortunately this is an issue, that directly impacts 19:06 the mission base here. 19:07 Erosion is threatening the runway that Adventist World 19:11 Aviation uses for their aviation service. 19:15 The Hanley's do what they can to educate the people on how 19:19 harmful this industry is for themselves, and their village. 19:24 Marilyn visits homes and talks to the ladies about alternative 19:27 ways for cooking, that wouldn't be so detrimental 19:31 to their community. 19:33 As she does this, she develops relationships with them and 19:37 reminds them just how much she cares for their wellbeing. 19:46 Every member of the Hanley family helps the Miskito people 19:49 with their ministry. 19:50 The mission is a constant buzz of activity as people walk 19:54 hours for help. 19:56 Even the young Hanley children take a break from their 19:59 home schooling to help. 20:01 This afternoon 2 young boys ride on to the base carrying a bag. 20:08 Marilyn: He's brought some phones, that we're going to 20:11 charge on our solar system. 20:14 Because they don't have standard power in their village. 20:18 Narrator: Brendell offers to be in charge of the cell phones. 20:21 In this part of the world, there's no electricity running 20:25 to the small villages. 20:26 To keep their phones active they ask the mission to charge them. 20:32 Even though they are isolated from the rest of the world, 20:35 it's important for these people to have a cell phone 20:38 in the village. 20:39 Should they need to call for help, or a med-evac, 20:42 it's important to have a way to communicate. 20:46 It's a bright sunny day, so these phones should charge 20:50 pretty quickly. 20:52 Brenedell keeps an eye on each one and makes sure 20:55 they are fully charged before they are returned. 20:59 For the rest of the day, the mission remains a constant 21:02 buzz of activity. 21:04 Marilyn sees another patient, while more men come 21:07 to the Clinic with repairs. 21:09 The missionary children take the opportunity to play 21:12 with other children, while they wait for their parents. 21:16 Narrator: Another way the AWA air base in Nicaragua helps 21:19 spread the gospel, is by supplying transportation 21:22 for local pastors to visit their congregations, 21:26 that are spread out throughout the jungle. 21:29 It is the goal of each Adventist World Aviation airbase 21:33 to establish logistical and transportation support 21:36 in each of the areas they work. 21:39 In Nicaragua, pastors are extremely limited in number, 21:43 yet they cover large areas. 21:45 Adventist World Aviation helps transport pastors by plane 21:50 to help them reach their congregations, which are 21:53 spread out through the jungle. 21:56 Hello, my name is Pastor Manyano Arera. 22:01 For now, I live in Managua the university of, 22:05 Adventist University in Managua. 22:07 Clint don't work only when he was flying. 22:12 Sometime the people say "oh how many hours you have to flying?" 22:16 No. They work very hard even when they work on land 22:21 with the people, with all the community. 22:26 Narrator: The Hanley's have also found another effective way 22:29 to help supply transportation for their local pastor. 22:34 Pastor Samuel is a friend of Clint and Marilyn 22:37 for many years now. 22:39 He is a lay pastor assigned to minister to this area. 22:43 He uses a bicycle to travel between villages. 22:46 Often he rides for 4-5 hours one way just to reach a congregation 22:52 Clint: ok, this is Mr. Samuel. He is our lay pastor, 22:55 who comes from Tasba Pine. 22:57 And let me ask how long it takes him to get here. 23:03 This time, I rode on the bike two hours to get here. 23:06 And that's normal. Two hours is a normal time that it takes him 23:12 to get here on his bike. 23:15 So he comes here to go to church 23:17 And he is, teaches, helps teach Sabbath School and helps 23:22 preach at our little church. 23:24 And that's his bicycle that he takes to church, and I have 23:29 some parts for him, that I just flew in the airplane. 23:35 Narrator: Clint wants to make sure, that the gospel reaches 23:38 as many villages among the Miskito people as possible. 23:42 He made an arrangement with Pastor Samuel to make sure 23:45 he always has transportation. 23:48 Bicycles and parts are not available in this village. 23:56 Clint: His bicycle he rides that at least you know about 4 hours. 24:01 But he also goes other places on his bicycle to other churches 24:04 and stuff, so we keep him supplied with bicycle parts 24:08 for his bicycle all the time as part of his help to us. 24:13 Narrator: Clint flies in the bike parts 24:15 that the pastor needs from Port. 24:17 The poor roads and conditions takes an enormous toll 24:21 on the pastor's bicycle. 24:23 Without the logistical support from this mission, the Pastor's 24:27 bike would breakdown within a short time and there would be no 24:30 way to reach his congregations. 24:32 Not only does the mission fly in the parts he needs, but these 24:36 parts are given as a gift to the pastor to enhance his ministry. 24:41 Joy gleams from the pastor's face as he receives new rims 24:46 and a tire pump. 24:48 The bike items will keep his ministry moving 24:52 into new territories. 24:54 Clint: Because we requested that he does that, and we give him a 24:56 a little stipend every month to come here and with his help 24:59 for his bike too. 25:00 So between both of those that's his motivation for riding 25:04 that far. 25:05 And we don't have other Seventh Day Adventist's, who are able to 25:09 teach and preach at our church that are any closer than that. 25:13 So if we help him out a little bit with his bike and give him 25:18 a little bit every month, he's happy to come help us. 25:19 What we're giving him a month is fifteen dollars. 25:22 So it's not enough to really do much to help him, 25:25 but it's a little bit. 25:27 So he mostly does it because he want to help the church. 25:33 He says he's happy that he has God's work to do. 25:35 And it's nice to be able to help 25:46 He says he's happy to be able to come here and share God's word 25:49 with the people in this area too 25:55 That's the reason that he's happy and wants to thank us. 25:59 Narrator: The Pastor and Clint spend the rest of the day 26:01 together visiting and discussing future plans. 26:04 Developing relationships here among the local people is vital 26:09 to the success of this mission. 26:11 Cultivating this friendship deepens the trust 26:14 of the Miskito people. 26:17 As the day ends, the pastor again thanks Clint 26:20 for helping his ministry. 26:22 He gathers his new bike materials and happily begins 26:25 the 2 hour bike ride to his home 26:28 Ministry isn't an easy task here in the rural jungles 26:32 of Nicaragua, but simple joys like a new bike rim encourages 26:38 Pastor Samuel to keep the faith and continue 26:42 with the great commission. 26:44 Having new bike parts will allow him to reach many more people 26:48 for the kingdom of God. Hallelujah. 26:54 No matter the activity, each member of the family is equally 26:58 showing the love of Christ to those around them. 27:01 Although there was no med-evac flights today, this mission 27:05 stayed busy ministering to the Miskito people. 27:08 Sometimes that love is shown by simple actions of kindness. 27:13 sometimes that love is shown in preforming a medical exam. 27:18 Sometimes it's displayed by playing tag. 27:21 But no matter the activity, the Hanley's dedicate all 27:25 they do to this ministry. 27:29 They feel blessed to be able to do this work for the Lord! 27:32 They know, that they do not do this work alone. 27:41 Clint: In this line of work, when I walk down the street 27:44 in our local little village, people come to me and they say 27:48 "thank you for saving my life, thank you for helping me." 27:51 and we appreciate the fact, that you know they will come up and 27:55 say "you've helped my brother, you flew my brother to town, 27:57 or my sister or me and we want to thank you for that." 28:01 And there is very few lines of work, that you can walk down 28:04 the street and you can look at the people in your local little 28:07 town and know that several of them that you see right then 28:10 are alive because of the work you did. 28:12 So it is very fulfilling. 28:13 But at the same time, the credit all goes to the tools 28:15 that the Lord has given me. 28:17 I don't have any extra expertise or anything that anybody else 28:21 doesn't have. 28:22 All I do is use the tools, that the Lord has given me. 28:24 And I am thankful that He has blessed me with those and that 28:26 I am able to pass on as a channel to help the local people 28:31 What He has given me and what you guys send from the States 28:33 to be able to help them. 28:35 And I am that one who get the benefit of seeing the smiles 28:36 on their faces and hears the thank you from them. 28:38 Each person, who gives to be able to help other people, 28:42 that will someday be a star in their crown. 28:47 They will be able to see what that help did. 28:49 Whether it bought a Bible, or whether it purchased gasoline 28:52 to take an emergency transport that enabled someone to live. 28:55 Someday you will know the complete story behind 28:57 what you gave to help out. |
Revised 2017-05-16