http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.maf.org.nz en-us Sat, 02 May 2026 02:52:58 +1200 Rocketspark http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163910/with-maf-what-would-normally-be-difficult-becomes-possible/ An aircraft from Mission Aviation Fellowship flies over the dry landscape of northern Kenya. On the ground, Maasai huts known as manyatta dot the earth. Their rudimentary construction shows just how far these communities are from basic services.Normally, the journey here would have taken something like 20 long hours by road, much of it far from tarmac.Today, by air, the journey is reduced to just two hours.Here in Loyangalani, CURE International is conducting a ‘medical safari’, an initiativ... Wed, 29 Apr 2026 08:52:42 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163910 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163909/less-than-five-years-old-and-already-carrying-the-weight-of-facial-malformation/ “Yaya was born with a cleft palate and a problem with his lower jaw, which needs to be readjusted,” says Diallo Mariama Bobo, a telecommunications engineer.Chaikou Yaya Diallo has had this issue for two and a half years. But today, he is boarding an MAF flight with his mother.“We are here today for the trip to the N’Zao hospital, for the surgery of my child,” says Mariama. “We were recommended by the Sacré Coeur team who have been monitoring the health of my child since birth.“Whe... Wed, 29 Apr 2026 08:21:42 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163909 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163717/forty-years-of-waiting/ The recovery after surgery is slow and painful, and I am aware of this as I walk over to Ayor’s bed in the hospital in Juba. My translator, Garang, asks if she is willing to share her story. Ayor replies with a quiet yes.Her white hair tells me she is long past the age when women bear children, but her eyes tell a story few other people have heard.“The fistula followed the birth of my fourth child, over forty years ago,” Ayor says.“I have been suffering from this condition ever since. My... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:40:27 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163717 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163716/premature-death-for-babies-averted--motorcycle-ambulances-bring-new-hope-to-liberian-families/ Francis Forndia, Executive Director of Foya-Borma Hospital, described what could happen on the way to care: “Before they could get to the clinic, the pregnant woman would have lost her foetus. The pregnant mother sitting on the bike would press the baby to its early grave.”With the only large referral hospital from Foya being a one-day drive away, it causes lots of pregnant women or patients to lose their lives. But the arrival of the first two motorcycle ambulances in the region is changing... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:36:28 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163716 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163714/im-really-grateful-to-maf--burns-survivor-daniel-owes-his-life-to-a-medevac/ Today, there are hardly any scars from the scalding water and white-hot charcoal, when toddler Daniel fell into a fire and knocked over his mother’s cooking pot. But Centina will never forget her son’s screams on 18 June 2005.‘Daniel got burnt. In our village, we don’t have those modern kitchens. We cook on the floor with firewood,’ explains Centina.‘He had just started walking and fell into the cooking pot. Unfortunately, his right side got burnt from his hand to his shoulder. All h... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:28:51 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163714 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163712/guns-to-bibles-how-maf-supports-life-transforming-teaching/ “I am a man who carried a gun and held up boats on the river.”These were the words of a man attending a Scripture Application and Leadership Training (SALT) course who admitted he once carried a pistol and an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and had been involved in many crimes.“Some people gave me a SALT book and shared a little bit of the teaching with me,” he said. “It wasn’t long before the Holy Spirit gripped my heart. I told my brother, ‘I am going to hike all the way up to Dundrom... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:20:47 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163712 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163710/one-maf-flight-almost-1000-patients-treated-by-specialists/ “The sheer number of people who turned up from across the region shows how great the need is in the community,” said Becki Dillingham. She was the MAF pilot who flew  the medical team from the Pamoja Specialised Polyclinic to Malambo in  just 35 minutes – a journey that would have taken  eight hours by road.Over the two days of the mobile clinic, the nine-member team treated almost a thousand  patients, the majority of whom were  suffering from ophthalmologic cond... Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:03:24 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163710 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163598/rescued-survivors-arrive-safely-in-buka/ The eight men of the rescue team had been sent by sea to extract two fishermen who had been stranded for five days on Ausarara Island in Siwai. With roads cut off and the Ramazon ridge damaged by flooding, the team navigated through the eastern side of Bougainville using two speed boats.Tragically, one of the speed boats encountered heavy waves and sank just next to the island, where the two fishermen were stranded. The four crew members were left stranded at sea before reaching Tuluve Island. T... Mon, 20 Apr 2026 15:14:11 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163598 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163218/from-burundi-to-south-sudan-an-adventure-in-mission/ Jean Thierry and Moise caught a bus in Burundi to make the 2-day, 782-mile journey overland, from Bujumbura to Nairobi. From there, transport options narrowed.Boarding an MAF plane, they flew 2.5 hours to Torit in South Sudan – and began their one-year ‘Inbound’ orientation with Africa Inland Mission.Before Jean Thierry arrived, South Sudan was already on his heart.“When I was in the school of mission, I prayed for South Sudan without knowing why,” he said.“Moise and I were praying i... Wed, 08 Apr 2026 14:32:04 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163218 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/post/163216/thank-you-maf-for-rescuing-us--88-year-old-nun-flown-to-care/ For years, MAF has flown Sister Bianca during her life of service, back and forth between South Sudan and Uganda.But this flight for the 88-year-old carried urgency: it was a medevac.MAF pilot Andrew Parker made the almost three-hour-flight from Yambio in South Sudan to Entebbe International Airport in Uganda’s capital, Kampala. The alternative form of travel to Uganda is by road, which would take over two days.“It is good to be able to bring Sister Bianca down here to Kampala where she will... Wed, 08 Apr 2026 14:21:38 +1200 http://www.maf.org.nz/blog/#post163216