All day long, Esther Dii has been walking around with clammy hands. She can’t eat a thing. Her mind is racing. For days, one question has been on repeat: What am I going to say to the man who saved my life? Nervously, Esther sits down behind her laptop. With trembling hands and a radiant smile, she presses the button. It’s going to happen. Today, she’s finally meeting the man who saved her life 36 years ago. And, Esther has surprising news to share with him.
It is 1989. Deep in the remote highlands of Papua New Guinea, a young woman is utterly distressed. She and her husband work as health workers in this region. The health centre relies on MAF for medical supplies, flights, and especially medical evacuations. This time, things are badly wrong with one of the patients. An eight-month-old baby girl is critically ill. She has stopped eating and drinking and is not responding to any treatment. Desperate and full of fear, the young health worker can only think of one thing: getting in touch with MAF. Her hands are shaking as the phone starts ringing. ‘Could you please send a plane as soon as possible? This little girl is gravely ill. Please help…’ She swallows the lump in her throat. ‘… this is my little girl.’
You helped save my little girl
It is 2025. ‘Wow, this is so surreal!’ says Esther emotionally when pilot Marcus Grey answers her call. ‘I was praying all of this week thinking, What do I say? There are no right words to say. Except… Thank you to the Lord and thank you to you and MAF. I’m just so grateful. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you, and again for MAF and for the Lord. I am very, very blessed and very grateful for everything.’ ‘…
All the young mother can do is wait and pray.
Back to 1989, Papua New Guinea. All the young mother can do is wait and pray. Minutes feel like hours. And then…the sound of a roaring engine breaks through the silence above the mountain peaks. They’re here! They’ve come. But will it be in time?
Pilot Marcus Grey is behind the controls. He has already been serving in Papua New Guinea for more than 40 years, but this flight will become one of his most memorable. With great precision, he navigates through the mountain ranges towards the grass airstrip. Upon arrival, he immediately sees how serious the situation is. As quickly as possible, he flies the mother and tiny, fragile baby Esther safely to Goroka. And he doesn’t stop there. Personally, in his own car, he drives them both to the hospital to make sure Esther receives the care she needs.
Fast forward 36 years. ‘My mother never forgot the way you went above and beyond that day. Through you, God answered my mom’s prayers. I am alive today because of it.’ That one experience had a greater impact on Esther’s life than Marcus could ever have imagined. Esther has something remarkable to share with him. ‘That was when I first got introduced to aviation. And it is there where my love of flying took off… As far as I can remember, I have always wanted to fly and dreamed that one day I would be behind the controls,’ said Esther. ‘And now, today, I am a medevac pilot myself!’
Esther is flying with an aviation company in the United States, where they serve rural communities, often Native American reservations, bringing critically ill patients to larger hospitals. ‘Every time I fly a sick child, I think of the grace of God. And I think of the day you helped save my life. Your example and kindness planted a seed in me that has grown into a life of service.’
Marcus just about falls off his chair when he hears this news. ‘It does my heart good to hear that you have gone on with the Lord into sacrificial service using aviation,’ he says. Esther replies with a big smile: ‘I’m sharing my story in the hope of inspiring the future generation in Papua New Guinea. As well as giving glory to the Lord for what He has done and continues to do. I am a byproduct of the services that MAF has done and continues to do in Papua New Guinea and all over the world.’
'I am a byproduct of MAF'
That tiny, vulnerable girl he once carried in his medevac plane is now a strong woman and a pilot herself. Nowadays she is the one flying sick children to the hospital. How wonderfully things can turn out. Who knows what will become of the children Esther brings to safety? Maybe among them are future teachers who will be role models for the children they teach. Maybe there are future fathers and mothers who will pass on the blessing they have received from God to their own children. And who knows, maybe there are future pilots among them.
Who knows...
STORY / LIESBETH PLAIZIER PHOTOS SUPPLIED
This story was originally published in "Flying for Life - Summer." To view the full issue, click here.