UIMA January 2018 Update

“Biting” into Relationships
Written by Sean D. Huntting, missionary kid in Mexico, age 18

Take the rotted root of a tooth, the missing molar, and the darkening gum, and you have evidence enough for missionaries to take action and opportunity. In the Nahuatl village of Las Moras in Central Mexico, missionaries serving there did just that. Why not take advantage to spread the Gospel through reinforcing friendships by fixing the people’s teeth? It is what these missionaries did by asking for a dentist who came all the way from the United States to help. But with a personal team member away, the missionaries appealed to my mom, Kari Huntting, to aid in the dental clinics for four days. She obliged, flying out to the village by way of a UIM Aviation airplane.

So, for the next four work days the clinic would proceed inside a small concrete building in the village built by the Mexican government. This structure was a considerable upgrade from the humble adobe huts they would have been working in. From nine o’ clock to late afternoon, the missionaries plugged away on the people’s mouths.

Everyone had a part to play, a specific job to do. While some cooked the meals, the dentists took the patients in and examined teeth and gums. They would take note of the people who had cared for their teeth over the years after past clinic experiences, and also note the ones for whom it was a first time visit. Others, like my mom, cleaned the dental tools and equipment as person after person moved on through. Around 120 patients were served in this undertaking and educated on the correct way to clean their teeth while receiving proper treatment at the same time. Cavities were removed, fillings put in, and for the worst off—teeth pulled. Such an upstanding endeavor understandably took much work, long hours, consistency, patience, experience, and a love for God and the work to which He called them. Without these traits, missionaries would never be able to accomplish what they normally do on a daily basis.

During the week of the clinic, God seemed to bless the work and everything “went without a hitch,” as my mom would say. For roughly the past ten years, the missionaries in Las Moras have been committed to achieving better relationships through the dental clinics. In recent years it has been the UIMA pilots who have made this possible by bringing the dentists and their equipment across the mountains in a matter of minutes compared to several days on dangerous roads.

It's these acts by a missionary in the tribe and the missionary pilot in the air that resonate with the people they serve. Who else would have helped the Nahuatl people without promise of profit or recognition? These missionaries “go” to the people with an eternal profit in mind, building trust and friendship with the Nahuatl to open a sometimes not-so-wide-door to declare the Word as Truth. They have taken the chance—both the missionaries teaching in the tribe, the dentists on the frontlines, and the pilots in the air transporting missionaries where they need to go. God has called all of them to the mission field and they have answered, taking the chance and “biting” into the opportunity laid before them.

A Work-Team from Liberty University
Written by Callene Ross, Office Administrator

In the beginning of January, a team of four students and an instructor from Liberty University paid their way to Tucson, Arizona to provide maintenance help on "52Q," the Cessna 206 we are rebuilding.

"52Q" is the tail number of the aircraft that had a hard landing in the mountains of Mexico a few years ago. Since then, it was disassembled and sent to MMS Aviation, a hands-on training facility located in Coshocton, OH dedicated to prepare individuals for missionary maintenance. The aircraft was there being worked on for several months before being disassembled once again and transported back to Tucson by Phil Hansen, a supporter of ours. 

January was a big month for 52Q, as the Liberty team made great strides by attaching the wings, rigging the ailerons and flaps, attaching the horizontal stabilizer, and installing the main landing gear--all in a single work week. 

We were also able to develop relationships with each student and invite them to our homes for dinner every night. We were so incredibly blessed by these guys, both in their love for the Lord and the work they accomplished by being here. Please be in prayer with us for their families and for receiving guidance from God in the direction they take after graduating from Liberty's maintenance program.