Tuesday At The Shop, New Year Thoughts

Now that the year end/New Year crush of craziness is over...things are settling back into more of an administrative routine in the MMS Aviation Mobilization Office (as if there's EVER an administrative routine in this office!).

Speaking of mobilization, I'm currently the resource person for three families raising the support necessary to begin apprenticeship, am cultivating relationships with six families as part of our long-term candidacy development program, and am maintaining regular communication with eighteen families and individuals in various stages of determining whether or not MMS is part of the Lord's will for their lives.

Today I'm focused on candidate development, answering emails, arranging a hangar visit for a couple interested in learning more about our ministry, and hope to distribute the reference forms for a young couple from PA in application for the apprenticeship program.

In my "Media Supervisor" hat, I look forward to shooting/editing/producing/posting video of the 402's return to service flight, Lord willing, later this week. The guys are waxing the airplane right now in anticipation of the pilot's arrival.

In fact, I was just down in the hangar shooting stills of the guys working on the Cessna 310, the 402, hanging an engine in the test cell, and of one of our staff leading our newest apprentice though our "Basic Training" process. They were talking about aircraft hardware...otherwise known to us non-mechanics as "nuts and bolts." I'll use those photos later on the MMS blog or as part of some other communication project.

As a guy who grew up developing his own film and printing his own photos the old fashioned way...I must admit the digital dark room is much easier to work with, takes up a whole lot less space, and eliminates all the noxious fumes and chemicals. Though I do miss the art aspect of controlling all the variables of time, temperature, solution dilution, exposure, paper texture and speed, and the step-by-step deliberateness of the process as contrasted with the simple click of a mouse today. Thoughts of Kodachrome and Tri-X bring back pleasant memories.

Thanks for following our ministry. We couldn't be here without you there. Yes, we're graced to serve, but YOUR gifts and prayers make it possible. Have a great day.

From the Mobilization Office