|
ADDRESS 1: P.O.
Box 301 Goroka EHP Papua New Guinea
ADDRESS 2: 630
Freemans Drive COORANBONG 2265 NSW AUSTRALIA
PERSONAL MISSION STATEMENT: To USE and develop my professional skills and personal being to be of service to my Lord, my church and
my fellow men and to assist others to achieve their full potential spiritually, personally and professionally particularly the
isolated people in remote communities of PNG.
CHILDHOOD: Born in
Lower Hutt NZ to Pastor and Mrs. Rex and Lois Robinson with one older brother and one younger sister. My parents were
moved regularly and my education took place in NZ, Fiji, QLD, TAS and Victoria. In 1972 my H.S.C. was achieved at
Lilydale academy in Victoria while my parents were serving in the Pacific as missionaries. My education was conducted in
Christian schools, where ever they were available.
PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION: In 1973 I attended Avondale College and successfully completed the first year of the B.A. Theology
course. While at Avondale became involved with the Adventist Aviation Association and began to see the enormous potential of
using aeroplanes for bringing the community services my church provides, to people in isolated areas.
In 1974 I went to NZ and trained to be a Commercial Pilot with
Rex Manukau flying school at Ardmore aerodrome in Auckland with the strong desire to use these skills for the benefit of
humanity as a missionary pilot.
In 1975 there being no opportunities for me in this line of work,
I moved back to Australia and did the nursing course at the Sydney Adventist Hospital.
In 1978 I graduated with distinction as a registered nursing
sister. While at the Sydney Adventist Hospital, I kept my dream of mission flying alive by flying out to the outback town of
West Wyalong and other places with friends at our own expense to do community help work and visit the town’s people with
Christian literature.
In August 1978 I began working at Waldock Nursing Home in Sydney
to support my young family.
In November 1978 we then moved to my wife’s home state of Western
Australia and I spent 4 happy years working at the Warren District Hospital in Manjimup. While there, I was asked to
carry ever increasing responsibility for the supervision of junior staff. In time I was put in charge of the emergency
department and the operating theatre on a relief basis. When I felt the call of God to move back to the East again, I
was offered permanent charge of Theatre and Casualty wards as an inducement to stay on. This would have gotten me out of
shift work and was quite tempting.
I felt however that my life was not getting anywhere there and I
began to feel restless, knowing that my life was not achieving its full potential in the service of my Savior, my church and
my fellow men.
In 1983 I went back to Avondale College and continued my study
for the gospel ministry. While there I once again became involved with the Adventist Aviation Association and found
fulfillment in evangelism and community help work in the outback of Australia using aircraft to provide the necessary link to
these people.
In Mid 1985 with only 4 subjects left to do over 3 months I had
to pull out of the course due to ill health..
I continued to work in the outback and soon afterward became the
chief pilot and president of the Adventist Aviation Association. I was also asked by the college to work on their behalf
as a flying instructor and soon afterwards became the chief flying instructor of Avondale College where I served until
November 1994.
During this period I saw both the Adventist Aviation Association
and Avondale College Flying School burgeon in growth and capacity. It has been a great pleasure for me to see other
pilots catch a vision of what can be done for other people by the use of aircraft. When I left we had a professional IFR
charter service and a flying school which taught all subjects up to Command Instrument Rating and Instructor rating and
Airline Transport Pilot License and offered an Associate Diploma in Applied Science (Aviation)
During My work with the Adventist Aviation Association I have had
the privilege of leading out in:
- Health assessments at outback Shows
- Distribution of clothes and blankets to Aboriginal
families
- Visiting Isolated sick people
- Preaching and teaching in small outback churches
- Transporting ministers to distant preaching
appointments
- Fund raising for churches and drought relief in the
outback
- Transporting of sick people in isolated areas
- Visiting distant communities to encourage and share my faith
with the lonely and disheartened
- Transporting professional personnel to conduct community
programs on stress, the family etc.
- Very valuable remote area flying experience
- Running a successful aircraft maintenance
business
- A group of people who unashamedly depend on faith for the
continuation and success of their work.
- Successfully fostering a good working relationship between
this supporting ministry and the church administrators of the local conference.
My work with Avondale College School of Aviation as Chief Flying
Instructor has developed my career in the following ways:
- Upgraded me to a grade 1 flying instructor
- Maintained my command instrument rating
- Upgraded my instructor rating to include multi engined
aeroplanes
- Upgraded my pilot license from a Commercial pilot license to
an Airline Transport Pilot License
- Involved me in management of personnel and the business
activities of the flying school
- Involved me in the selection and purchase of a number of
aircraft for the organization and for others
- Involved me in programming a busy flying school encompassing
theory training and programming students and instructors and aeroplanes
- Tutoring students with difficulties and seeing them
achieve
- Developed the courage as chief pilot to counsel pilots under
my direction and discipline them when this was necessary
- To appreciate the value of team work
- To seek the counsel and direction of God and trust in Divine
Power.
In January 1995 I was sent to Papua New Guinea to be the chief
pilot for our missionary flying program in PNG. Soon after wards I took on the additional role of program director.
My work with Adventist Aviation in PNG has:
- Shown me how to program aircraft for local mission field
assistance flights for the 10 local missions in the Papua New Guinea Union Mission.
- Opened my eyes to the crying need of isolated people in
remote areas of PNG
- Given me the chance to meet many Godly missionaries who have
changed my life for the better.
- Shown me how to run a program that is self supporting
financially but mission focused in its efforts.
- Helped me develop the ability to trust in God to help me
through difficult situations. E.g. being threatened with death by angry villagers in the bush whom I was trying to
help.
- Helped me develop a burning compassion for deprived people
and for the desperateness of their needs.
- Helped me find creative ways of bringing help to people that
need it. For example the forming of the Laity Mobile Health Service, which has reduced the child mortality rate in many
villages from 60% down to 5% by Christian medical ministry.
- Taught me how to program aircraft to give maximum benefit to
missionaries needing to travel or needing to transport supplies, at minimal cost.
- Taught me to love Papua New Guinean people as precious
brothers
- Taught me that I have a lot to learn from my Papua New
Guinean brothers, particularly in the area of spiritual development
- Given me the opportunity to become a missionary pilot at
last which has been my dream since early childhood.
- Given me the chance to see God work miracles right in front
of me to facilitate the ministry of missionary aviation.
Personal Interests
- Hiking and Bush walking
- Badminton
- Electronics
- Mechanics
- Gardening
- Care of native animals
|