Monthly Archives: December 2020

Current News, PNG Updates

Three Days to Go…

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Warmest greetings to you from Tarangau 2 (our house) in Mt. Hagen!  I was telling Connie, “Wow…this quarantine time has just ‘flown by’ hasn’t it!!  Seems like just yesterday we arrived and started the fourteen days, now only three days left to go!”  From the look on her face, I immediately understood that our perceptions of quarantine have been a bit different 🙂 .    We do both agree that we are very ready to get out and about with our team and to have guests in for coffee and fellowship.  We’re definitely counting the days!

Thanks to modern technology, I have been able to be pretty much fully connected from the confines of quarantine. Within an hour of arrival I had my desk and computer screens set up and was able to be engaged with the activity on the ground.

Todd participating in a video conference with several staff members.

Due to the pending arrival of new families with various housing needs, Connie and I shifted to a different home. The missionaries who were living in the home before, left quite abruptly due to the concerns related to Covid and our lack of supportive healthcare here in the highlands. This meant that they had no time to pack up their belongings in preparation for their departure. So Connie has been very busy connecting with the couple (who live in New Zealand) getting instructions on what gets packed and how, and then working through the process of making it happen.

Connie Packing Boxes

I (Todd) have been very busy with end-of-the-year tasks. Writing funding proposals, preparing for leadership team meetings, annual review to come, and catching up on things we’ve missed while being out of the country. On the weekends I’ve been helping Connie with the heavier lifting and house maintenance that needed to be done. We’re slowly getting things whipped into shape!

We should be out of quarantine on the 16th and will hit the ground running with a flight to the north coast town of Lae on the 17th for a survey trip to look at options for re-opening work into the Morobe Province.

Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement! So greatly appreciated!

Many Blessings,

Todd & Connie Lou

Current News, PNG Updates, Praises

Mid-Day in Mount Hagen – We have Arrived!

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The Lord’s blessings never cease to amaze us! Literally traveling almost around the world under Covid-19 conditions has proven to be an experience we won’t soon forget. And neither will we forget how the Lord was with us each step. From transfers, baggage checks, paperwork clearances, Covid test results (in 6 hours versus the advised 24-48 hours) and right up to arrival in PNG. The gate agent in Kuala Lumpur asked us if we would like to move forward in the plane a bit. Sure – why not – this would allow us to process quicker on arrival in PNG…it did…and we were so grateful!!

The weather in the highlands usually deteriorates rapidly each afternoon around 3pm. Due to quarantine restrictions, Connie and I along with another family from World Gospel Mission, were to be traveling from Port Moresby to Mt. Hagen on a MAF airplane, a 2-hour trip. We needed to be airborne by 1pm. Arriving to Port Moresby after 11:00am on the flight from Kuala Lumpur, we would definitely be racing against the clock to clear the health controls, immigration, collect bags, go through customs, and get to the MAF Hangar, the aircraft loaded, and be on our way!

Again, the Lord cleared the way. The first bags off the conveyor belt were ours! As we approached the health desk to work through all of the paperwork to confirm our approvals and quarantine requirements, the lady looked at our passports and MAF shirt and said, “Oh, I’ve been expecting you. I received an email just a little while ago – you’re all cleared!!” (Thank you Sonali – our HR Manager – she was really putting in the overtime). The other family was shortly behind us.

We arrived at the MAF Hangar in Port Moresby and MAF Senior Pilot Mathias Glass had just landed in our C208 Caravan. We were also met by our Port Moresby office team, Leah and Sandra, and by our MAF Administrative Officer, Eric Eribiang, who also happened to be in POM. Together we all were able to get the plane packed and ready to go. As we taxied out I looked down at my watch, 12:45pm, we were well on our way and on time. Thanks team for your TREMENDOUS efforts.

Loading P2-MAL at Port Moresby – racing against the clock and weather!

And so, as I write this we are at 10,000 feet, flying northwest, paralleling the southern coast of Papua New Guinea. We will very shortly turn to the North and head across the lush rain forest and high mountains to our Mt. Hagen base. Looking down, I am beginning to see the winding rivers, muddy but bright, reflecting the broken clouds in the sky, as they make their way through the rainforest, remote villages nestled along their shores. There are no roads down there, only rainforest, foot trails, villages of people, and the rivers. Dengue Fever, Malaria, Typhoid, Tuberculosis, and deadly snakes make their home down there as well.

And that is why we are once again here in Papua New Guinea. To be the wings of hope, the “life line” to the millions of people who make their home in the jungles. Bringing not just medical relief, but the message of God’s love to some of the most remote peoples of the world. Thank you for being part of the team that makes up this vital link!

A final note: Upon landing, we were greeted by our incredible team. We are so very humbled to be loved in this way and in many other ways (groceries in our home, furniture set up, a hot meal delivered in the evening, so many welcoming messages, and much more). It makes us want to serve and love our team even more! May the Lord continue to grant us the grace, wisdom, and perseverance to continue in the task that He has called us to.

Current News, PNG Updates, Praises

It’s Midnight in Malaysia

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And the journey continues. We are now at gate 33 along with probably 50+ other people from several different missions, all waiting to board the World Food Programme, special Malaysia Air Charter Flight 8796. This flight has been arranged so that there is a reliable way of reaching Papua New Guinea.

We arrived shortly after 8am local time here in Kuala Lumpur, some 35 hours after departing Boise. We have been so blessed as the flights have been smooth and we have had minimal issues at the transfers. So very thankful to Jan Bell (Journey’s by Jan), Sonali Ghosh (MAF PNG HR Manager) and Rachel Green (MAF Ashford Admin) who have been working tickets and paperwork all along the way. We are also so thankful for the many others who have been praying and paying the price for this return trip to PNG.

In about five minutes, we will be boarding for the final day (Lord Willing) of the trip. This will take us from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Kuching, Malaysia, to Port Moresby where we will be arriving sometime around 11 in the morning, Port Moresby time. We will then board a MAF plane (if the weather holds) for the flight from Port Moresby to our main base in the Highlands, Mount Hagen.

There are still some unknowns: 1) The weather has been very marginal in the highlands lately. If it is bad, we will need to quarantine for one night in Port Moresby before continuing to Mt. Hagen. 2) A new order has been issued by the Government of PNG, requiring GPS tracking devices to be worn by all persons arriving internationally for the duration of the required 14 day quarantine. This is something totally new and it is unknown if it will allow us to quarantine at our base in the Highlands as was the original plan. The alternative is to quarantine at a hotel in Port Moresby for the 14 days at a significant cost. Please continue to pray.

The weather today over Port Moresby – as posted by one of our pilots. He has wisely chosen to keep the plane on the ground!

And for those who love aviation – here are some pictures taken from the flight cameras on the plane as we arrived to Kuala Lumpur.