KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE
CONGO – (ANS)- Members
of the Congolese medical community joined church and mission leaders, relief
workers and Congolese government officials in celebrating 50 years of Mission
Aviation Fellowship service in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. (DRC).

Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) is a Christian ministry organization that
uses airplanes and other technologies to serve church and relief organizations
in remote areas of the world.

According to a news release, during a gathering at the International
Protestant Church of Kinshasa last month, Dr. Tony Karemere of the Institut
National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB) commended MAF’s commitment to sharing
the gospel and providing access to medical care. Karemere emphasized MAF’s work
to combat Ebola epidemics in 1995 and 2007, as well as the measles outbreak
that threatened the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) this spring.

“MAF was the only aviation company who accepted this task – to fly
international medical personnel and a mobile laboratory into the hot zone of the
(Ebola) epidemic and to fly personnel out of that area,” said Karemere in
the release.

He added, “In the recent measles outbreak, the areas that were affected
were difficult to reach, and with MAF we were able to get into those areas and
transport the needed vaccines.”

In the DRC, the news release said, MAF operates from bases in Kinshasa,
Bunia, and Lubumbashi. MAF often conducts emergency medical evacuations and
provides support to those working in refugee camps or assisting victims of
militia violence.

Dr. Makuma Booto Baudouin from the DRC Ministry of Health commented on the
vital role MAF plays in DRC.

He said, “Each year MAF transports vaccinations for 39,000 to 40,000
children in the Bandundu region. I thank God for MAF and their partnership now
and into the future.”

According to the news release, MAF began serving in DRC in 1961 at the
request of the Protestant Relief Agency (PRA). Following revolt and tribal
warfare in the country in 1960, the medical situation was dire, with only 200
doctors in the entire country to care for millions of people.

With the assistance of MAF, PRA initiated “Operation Doctor” to
bring healthcare to remote villages. Initially using two planes, MAF flew five
teams of doctors between remote clinics, where hundreds of people would
typically be waiting to see the physicians.

Former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop was part of “Operation
Doctor.” Koop, now 94, recalls flying with MAF pilots in the early 1960s
as they performed airdrops of medical supplies.

“They took off from the airport in Kinshasa, and they headed for
pre-arranged parachute drops,” said Koop in the news release. “It was
said that there wasn’t an aspirin tablet from coast to coast since the
missionaries went home … The MAF pilot took that stuff and dropped it, and
thereafter there was no trouble.”

“Longevity in any area of ministry is difficult to achieve,” said
John Boyd, president and CEO of MAF-US, speaking in the news release.
“Serving in the DRC is a calling that MAF takes seriously and counts as a
privilege.”

The news release said that through the years, MAF’s presence in DRC has been
marked by unique challenges. Political unrest and threatening bush warfare have
caused several evacuations of MAF staff. In 2002, the MAF base at Nyankunde in
eastern DRC was destroyed during fighting by two tribal factions. Fortunately,
no MAF staff were killed, and the ministry still serves east DRC from its Bunia
base.

Mission Aviation Fellowship’s mission is to share the gospel through
aviation and technology so that isolated people may be physically and
spiritually transformed. Serving in 32 countries with a fleet of 142 planes,
MAF supports the efforts of some 1,500 Christian and relief organizations.

For further information go to www.maf.org

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About Jeremy Reynalds

Jeremy Reynalds is Senior Correspondent for the ASSIST News Service, a freelance writer and also the founder and CEO of Joy Junction, New Mexico’s largest emergency homeless shelter, http://www.joyjunction.org

He has a master’s degree in communication from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in intercultural education from Biola University in Los Angeles. His newest book is “Homeless in the City.”

Additional details on “Homeless in the City” are available at http://www.homelessinthecity.com. Reynalds lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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