For many of us there are moments in life, incidents that occur which were unplanned and unexpected, and which leave long lasting impressions.  One of such occasions for us was what took place a year ago on June 2nd 2012 when late in the afternoon we received the first of  numerous calls telling us that the Chitokoloki Mission plane had crashed into the Zambezi River approximately 40 kilometers North of the Mission. The events that unfolded from the minute we got that phone call have impacted us immensely and caused us to dig deep into our Faith in God who knows the end from the beginning. We know that nothing happens without His knowledge or consent. If we believe in the Sovereignty of God, as we claim to, we must accept and believe that Jay and Katrina Erickson, our fellow missionaries, did not die in the plane crash in the way they would have chosen or wanted to, but they did die the way God intended them to. It is not how long we live that counts but what we do with the time that God has given us here on earth, Jay and Katrina used their time to serve the Lord. Now they are with Him enjoying what many of us are still awaiting to experience, the wonders of heaven and seeing the Lord and being able to thank Him for His offering of Himself on the Cross for us.

Those next few days were the hardest we have ever had to deal with, especially the phone call at dusk a couple hours after the crash to Jay’s parents, made standing on  the banks of the Zambezi River right near where the plane was submerged in the river although no visual sight could be seen of it. The following day it took several hours before we could actually locate the plane. It was only with the Lord’s help and the prayers of Believers all around the world that enabled us to make it through. We were humbled and amazed at the thousands that have communicated to us and were touched by this incident that occurred here in a remote location in Zambia. Hard as it was for us here and also Jay and Katrina’s family in the USA, we are thankful that God has used this incident for souls being saved. The world would call it a “tragedy” but we know there is no such word can be used where God allows it for His Name to be honoured. This week we erected a billboard at hospital with their picture and the quotation from Proverbs 10:7, “The memory of the righteous is a blessing”. For a picture of the grave site of Jay and Katrina which is overlooking the Zambezi River, refer to Post of April 2nd.

They continued working right up to an hour before their plane was due to take them from Chitokoloki to Lusaka for the flight leaving for Canada the same day. In addition to new installations many improvements were done to existing systems along with all the “extra” challenges that we impose upon them,

As has been often said what Chitokoloki is today, apart from the goodness, grace and provisions of the Lord, is due to those who have gone before and those who are an integral part of the work here even though not full time here. These men and women are as much a part of the work as those of us here for longer periods.In conjunction with the wells drilled by the well drilling team, 2 were drilled at the base of  the water tower and solar panels placed on the top of the tower to pump water from bore hole wells all by solar.

The pre-school at the Mission continues to function very well and Molly Nkanza is doing a very commendable job in running the school. The children get  a good start in their education and also learn from the Bible and songs. We are pleased and grateful to Mrs. Margaret Strahan who has a real interest in the school and visits at times to help and encourage. Plans are in place to provide the school with a dvd and screen so that they can use it for appropriate education and spiritual helps.

It has been placed as a reminder of their service and dedication to the Lord’s work here at Chitokoloki.

It truly was amazing how it was provided and the many hurdles and challenges that were crossed but God had prepared the right plane and in the end it was very much His guidance that brought it all together. The plane was based in Nairobi, Kenya and we were apprised of it and in a very short period of time Don Amborski and Gordon Hanna flew to Nairobi on March 17th. The plane was inspected and met all and much more that our expectations, it had been completely rebuilt in 2009 and was very well maintained by AIM. Over the next two days a flurry of activity occurred including payment, transfer of ownership  permits, licenses, insurance, pilot checks, maintenance checks and the last document was received about midnight on Wednesday and Thursday morning Don and Gordon left the AIM hanger at 8:15 AM and flew without refuelling all the way to Ndola, Zambia.

On March 27th the plane made it’s first trip to Chitokoloki and shortly after landing we had a call for an emergency evacuation for one of the Canadian visitors who was at another station and was involved in a serious accident. The plane was able to bring the patient safely to Chitokoloki and all went well. The plane is a Cessna 206 and very well equipped with a larger engine than the previous one, excellent avionics and in very good condition.

We thank the Lord for making it possible and also the many who have prayed to this end and contributed financially towards the replacement plane. It will be flying to Lusaka with passengers today and there are 4 more flights booked in the next week.

The old kitchen was the last area of the hospital that needed to be upgraded and we are thankful that this project is now completed and is a great improvement over the old stove area.

At present all the residences on the Mission (except one) including staff houses, have access to solar power, plus the hospital and the maintenance area which also now greatly benefit from a larger array of panels, 27 were added to the hospital bank and 24 to the maintenance area.