Brandon and Nellicia with MAF

I think it is safe to say that the wet season has arrived in Balimo! While daily life is more comfortable with the cooler temperatures (Nellicia and Nova decorated cookies together because it just felt that much like winter), it also makes flying less certain. Each morning begins with an assessment of the weather: The first step is listening for rain and taking a peek out of our bedroom window. If that seems satisfactory, I will continue to gather information by checking satellite images. Flying around clouds instead of in straight lines means that I generally take a bit of extra fuel along, and recent rains make airstrips extra slippery and soft. The days are filled with constant decision making, changes of plans, and being highly alert to airstrip conditions and fast changing weather!

...this confirmed to me why I fly here! We thought the road would be okay since it had been dry for the past few days; we thought wrong. After two and a half hours, a "rain shower," many friendly people offering to help, and finally a tractor, we made it back home.

Since the New Year, I have been busy flying all sorts of passengers back to their places of work; teachers and students back to school, doctors back to their posts, as well the regular transportation of pastors, families, medical patients, and others. Christmas is during the summer here in the southern hemisphere, so many people go back to their villages for summer break. School will be starting up in just a few weeks, which means life is getting back into a routine now. Our neighbourhood is filling back up after a quiet six weeks -- children laughing and playing and other signs of life have been refreshing sights and sounds!

Enjoy a few pictures of our life in Balimo! We are starting to settle into a rhythm here; the kids are feeling more adjusted every day, Brandon is enjoying the opportunity to serve many communities in the Western Province, and Nellicia is learning some Gogodala to connect better with the local community in Balimo.

As we enter this holiday season, we would like to share an opportunity to DOUBLE your impact in Papua New Guinea! Our ministry is fully funded by the incredible support of people like you -- and until December 31st, a generous donor will match any donations given through the following link. Be sure to write "Van Saane" in the comment section of the online form to allocate your donation to our ministry; your generosity is what keeps us Flying for Life in PNG!
https://maf.ca/2023christmascampaign

A lot has happened in the last month! We've moved (twice!), and have been settling into life in Balimo for just over a week. Our belongings are mostly unpacked, the kids are starting to feel at home, and Brandon has started flying again to serve the communities in the Western province.

After much anticipation, waiting, and many prayers, Ezra's passport arrived in the mail today with his PNG Visa stamped into it! This means that we now have all of the required paperwork -- so after packing up our suitcases, we hope to head back to PNG next week, God willing. We are very excited for what this next chapter might bring!

We have four passports, which means there is only one step left before we can head back to PNG! We are hoping Ezra's visa will be approved in time to make our flights in three weeks. His paperwork has taken longer than we originally anticipated, which means we had to delay our flights by two weeks. We have just heard that the visa will most likely come through sometime next week, which means that we should be able to leave as a family of four soon!

Our family was blessed with a healthy baby boy this week! Ezra John was born on July 19, and we are all adjusting well to being a family of four.

We are heading back to Canada for a few months this summer because we are expecting an addition to our family, DV! We are excited to have this opportunity to share about our work and experiences in the past year in PNG. Feel free to share the word; we hope to see many of you at this event!

✅ Training courses complete
✅ Exams written
✅ First solo flight in PNG..And today, a complete day of solo flying! ✅

While the training and preparation process felt long at times, it was great to reach this milestone; and even when it seemed like the clouds, rain, and thunderstorms made progress and planning painfully slow and difficult, there was still a rainbow to enjoy!

We had the privilege of spending a week in Sangapi, one of the remote villages served by MAF! This trip really gave us a firsthand experience of village living; we were able to see the joys of this type of life, but also the struggles and hardships.

Sangapi is blessed with a small health station which is operated by several lovely health workers. In addition to this, the village is doubly blessed with an airstrip. Our short stay saw many people coming to the health station for medicine or treatment; some with mild concerns, and others with major health problems that in some cases could not be treated with the available supplies.

Since there are only four health stations in the area including Sangapi and all of the surrounding mountain ranges, some people hike for 3-4 days to receive medical treatment. This was the case for a teenage boy who fell out of a tree while trying to hunt a tree kangaroo. In the fall, he fractured his femur. His family made a make-shift stretcher out of bush material, leaving for Sangapi on Friday to seek medical treatment. In the late afternoon on Monday, we saw them arrive and were able to hear from the boy's father what had happened. Unfortunately, in cases like this there is nothing the health workers can do except to manage pain and splint the leg. Like so many others, this boy was only able to get the treatment he needed because of the airstrip nearby -- though it took a full week from the time he fell to the time he received proper treatment.

This trip allowed us to learn about the culture of the country we are serving more deeply, but also gave us clear insight into why MAF is so desperately needed. Coming back to Mount Hagen with a renewed sense of calling and purpose, we are eager to continue serving the people of PNG.

After reviewing the flights and stops that are on my schedule for the day, I complete a thorough inspection of our aircraft before taking off to Kiunga, which is very near the border of PNG and Indonesia. After just over an hour flight, we land at our destination. Our passengers exit the plane and we refuel before continuing on to our next stop; Aiambak, a remote village that is a half-hour flight south.

In Aiambak, I pick up a health worker family who work in another village, but who had spent Christmas in their "place." After bringing them to Tari, which is another hour flight, I load up the aircraft with trade store goods as well as passengers to transport to Wanikipa. In this village, I unload the aircraft and not long after it is full with passengers who are scheduled to return to Tari. Among these are passengers who need to go to a hospital, are getting transported for work opportunities, are pastors or teachers, and others who need to travel for a variety of reasons.

We arrive safely in Tari again, but by this time in the afternoon the weather generally becomes less predictable. With rain and thunderstorms in our area, we are unable to take off -- we wait, hoping the weather will improve so we can return to Mount Hagen. After waiting for about two hours with no improvement in weather in Tari or Mount Hagen, we decide to stay safe on the ground. Both myself and my training pilot let our wives know that we won't be back today, and find a place to stay for the night.

Just a day in the life of a MAF pilot in PNG!

If we have been a bit quiet lately, that is because we have been trying to settle into "normal life." My (Brandon's) training process is underway; after successfully writing an exam to begin the process of converting my Canadian pilot's license to a PNG one, I spent two weeks in the air observing various pilots. In these two weeks, I saw a lot of the country -- mountains, coastal areas, and lowlands -- and landed at many different airstrips. From cargo to passengers to medevac patients, I was a part of it all! It was great to experience life as a pilot again, something that I have been missing in the past months.
This past weekend, Nellicia had the opportunity to go on a ladies' retreat with the other expat MAF ladies. This was her opportunity to meet new people and have a few refreshing days of exercise, learning, and fellowship with the other ladies. And as for me, I had some quality time with Nova, which was also great!

With our time in Kompiam now complete, we are coming to the end of our formal orientation. We learned so much during the two weeks spent at Kompiam station; this time not only enhanced our language skills, but also gave a deeper understanding of the culture.

From the daily deliveries of flowers or vegetables to our doorstep by several children (no doubt brought in an attempt to be invited in to play with Nova), to discussions about the local culture and way of life with some of our teachers and other families living nearby, to experiencing what church is like with no benches and a translator who spoke the local language, the time was a rich and culturally immersive experience.

As we learn more and more about the culture and way of life in Papua New Guinea, we are realizing how important it is to have a basic understanding of the culture before beginning our ministry through flying or teaching. Each interaction and relationship is guided, if not dictated, by the culture. To make good connections, build relationships, or hope to impact lives requires this knowledge. We are so thankful for the many opportunities we've had to learn from others; but also realize that even though our knowledge is infinitely more than it was a few months ago, we have only uncovered the tip of the iceberg. As our orientation comes to a conclusion, we are excited to start using the training, skills, and experiences we have gained to serve others.

The first section of our language training is complete! With the help of our teacher Kambowa, we were able to make it through the home-learning portion of learning Tok Pisin. We really enjoyed being able to have real conversations with him and his wife in Tok Pisin by the end of the course; we learned about some of his experiences and were able to share our impressions of Papua New Guinea with him. Each day, we feel more comfortable speaking Tok Pisin in and around town and are better at understanding what others are saying to us as well!

On Sunday morning, a 7.69-magnitude earthquake hit Papua New Guinea. We were far enough away from the epicenter that aside from a few things falling over or off of shelves only minimal damage occurred in our area. However, even though we were a bit more than 150 kilometres away from the epicentre, we still did get a good shake, with the volleyball net swaying and parked cars dancing.

An MAF plane took off on Sunday afternoon to do an aerial survey of the damage, but had to return because of unfavourable weather. We are praying that the surveys will not reveal significant damage, but are thankful that MAF is here to provide disaster relief as necessary.

We have arrived in Papua New Guinea! After a year spent on applications and interviews and eight months of meetings, courses, and preparation, we are here. It seems phenomenal how quickly everything has gone; it really has been clear that we are not in control, and that we only have God to thank for the way everything has fallen into place.
Our first "home" in PNG is in Mount Hagen, the main MAF base in the country. We are living on a compound near the airport, and have been amazed at the variety of plants in our garden! Flowers of all kinds, as well as an avocado tree, guava tree, and a passion fruit vine make the compound come to life.
So far, we have been settling well and are starting to learn our way around town -- we have a driving lesson later today, and then we are free to drive ourselves around.
The focus of our first few weeks is on language learning; we have three classes with a local teacher per week. We've been practicing our skills at the market, and also introduced ourselves in Tok Pisin in church. There is a lot to learn, but we're starting to get comfortable with some of the basics.

📈 Statistics 2021 📈

Through our partnership with MAF Technologies (in PNG previously known as CRMF), our pilots often carry their Bible Box, selling Christian resources at highly subsidised prices. That's one way to carry the Word of God to the ends of the earth!

Since Brandon arrived back in Canada a few weeks ago, our life has been a whirlwind! He arrived to a house that looked much different than it did when he left. Everything was sorted into three rooms, and our living space had no furniture. After only a few days of relaxing and adjusting to time change, we continued packing up to prepare to move out of our house about a week later. This week is the first time that we feel like we have a chance to catch our breath, enjoy the last weeks in BC, ....and write a long overdue post.

Last week Wednesday, we handed our house keys over to its new occupants. It is a weird feeling to move out of your house without having a new one to go to and make your home. Thanks to kind grandparents, we have a beautiful place to live until we leave, but it doesn't really feel like "our home." Living out of our suitcases (which are still all jumbled and we really don't know where many things are), is one thing that reminds us we shouldn't get too comfortable here, because we will need to pack up and move again in only a few weeks. We have no idea when we will really feel settled again, but know that it will definitely be a few months!

Last week was a blur of many different emotions all getting mixed together. We finished our week with the Send Off that our families planned for us; saying goodbye is never something we especially look forward to, but seeing the support of our communities helps to keep us excited about everything that we are facing. If you were able to make it, thanks for coming -- it was great to see and talk to you!

Our family has been separated by the Atlantic Ocean for two and a half weeks; yesterday, we celebrated passing the halfway mark! It really is a long time to be apart, but we are thankful for many things that not only keep us connected but also help the weeks move quickly.

Even though the internet connection in Uganda is not always the best, we've been very grateful that our daily Zoom calls have been working (for the most part). Nova still recognizes her dad on these calls, and if Nellicia asks "Where's dada?" she usually tries to find a cellphone or laptop! The concept of screens is completely novel to Nova -- she tries to poke or pass things to Brandon through the screen, and doesn't quite understand why it's not working.

From the Ugandan end of things, I (Brandon) have been busy with my flight training. This has included ground school sessions where we discuss topics such as flight in proximity to terrain and marginal weather, situational awareness, work load management, and problem solving and decision making. I have also spent a lot of time in the flight simulator, practicing the skills and procedures I have been learning in a more economical way. Of course, the most exciting part has been the time spent in the air -- I love seeing the new scenery, practicing different skills, and learning more about MAF's procedures for flying safely and competently. I am looking forward to joining in on an operational flight tomorrow to see what a day in the life of an MAF pilot in Uganda really feels like!

In Canada, I (Nellicia) have also been busy, which helps to keep the weeks flying. Our flights to Papua New Guinea leave in 8 short weeks, and there is so much to do before then! My biggest job is to sort our whole house into four boxes: keep and take, keep and store, sell, and give away. It's definitely a work in progress, but we're getting there!

When we meet people that know we are planning to move to PNG, one of their first few questions is, "You're still here?" or "...not gone yet?" Even though those particular questions are answered by our presence, the actual question that they are asking is: "When are you leaving?" And that is a great question.

Initially, we were aiming for a departure in July, soon after Brandon returned from his 5 weeks of training in Uganda; but as we have learned many times through the journey up until this point, we need to remain flexible, openminded, and ready for a change of plans.

Papua New Guinea will be having a national election this summer, which poses a security risk, especially in the cities. The election was delayed from June to July, so we were warned that if we came on the initial timeline, we would need to stay in our houses all day for a week or two while the election took place. No getting groceries, acclimatizing, or meeting other families, because elections mean unrest. Even though the level of unrest and violence is unpredictable, we agreed with MAF that it is better to err on the side of caution. Because of this, as well as the timeline for our visas to be approved, our departure has been delayed.

Our new timeline will see us leaving mid-August if all goes well, which is still coming up very quickly! Flight itineraries are being looked into and discussed; "This itinerary would only have 19 hours of flying! But a bag limit of one per person?" "Okay, on this itinerary we could take 3 bags per person. 34 hours of flying?! This flight actually goes the other way around the world!" Finding the compromise between those two initial options is the goal; though no matter how you look at it, it will be a long trip with a just-turned-one year old!

P.S. If you missed our newsletter, you can read the update that we just sent out here: https://mailchi.mp/172ba4394820/the-van-saanes-newsletter-edition-3

P.P.S. Our presentation is TOMORROW! Join us at 7:30pm in the MCCS Gymnasium if you are interested in hearing our story (and having dessert) :)

Some things that we don't think about here in Canada can compromise life in other areas of the world. Seeing a snake tan on a rock by the Fraser River isn't frightening; seeing a snake in the grass in Papua New Guinea could mean a life-threatening snake bite. Stepping outside and being greeted by a swarm of mosquitoes in Canada is bothersome; a single mosquito bite in Papua New Guinea can cause serious illness.

As one small part of the quest to eradicate malaria worldwide, MAF has partnered with Rotarians Against Malaria (RAM) in Papua New Guinea for over ten years. Together, RAM and MAF are working to increase the availability of malaria prevention measures in rural communities, particularly by providing LLINs, or "long-lasting insecticidal nets." This year, MAF delivered 34,250 mosquito nets to 26 airstrips, helping to preventing thousands of deaths!

Date change! Since the 26th of May is Ascension Day, we have changed the date of our presentation to May 31st, DV. We hope to see you there! :)

Our second newsletter is out and about! For those of you who haven't signed up to receive a copy in your mailbox (or inbox), we thought we'd share some of our latest updates. Here is the link to read what we've been up to and are looking ahead to: https://mailchi.mp/de53f00e2158/the-van-saanes-newsletter-edition-2

We have two days of learning left in our two week culture training course! The course has been very helpful, with an overload of information as well as practical tips and advice. From sessions on worldviews like animism and Islam to learning about culture stress, cultural engagement skills, raising "Third Culture Kids," and the realities of suffering and risk, our minds are definitely buzzing with many different thoughts.

The Van Saanes Newsletter: Edition 2

We'd love for you to join us in exactly 2 weeks in Ontario!

Once again, we appreciate any shares to spread the word about this event (note the date change as well).

We're headed to Ontario, and would love for you and your family to join us on April 8th! To get the word out about this event, we'd appreciate a share if you have family or friends in the Norwich area. If you would like to help out on the day, feel free to send us a private message, email, or text. 😊

Last night, we had a Skype call with our "link family" in Papua New Guinea! MAF connects each family with another family who is currently on the field so we have an opportunity to ask any questions we have about life in the country or things to consider while moving. Some of the things that we discovered in this meeting were that mosquitoes seem to get bored with the taste of your blood after awhile (the hypothesis was that your smell changes), it took approximately 2 years before Papua New Guinea felt like our link family's home, and taking along musical instruments is a great idea if you enjoy playing. We've also been busy reading an information package that we received about things we need to know for the next 6 months of our life, and I thought I'd share a little snippet that we found amusing!