Too Much of a Good Thing!?!?

In 1968, when I was 8 years old, my family lived in San Antonio, Texas. My elementary school was a short 15-minute walk from our back door. Or if one or several things captured my attention along the way, that walk could take near an hour. But on my Schwinn Stingray, with banana seat and high-rise handlebars, I could cover that distance in an instant. One day a school chum …

A Funny Thing Happened…..

Santiago is just fourteen nautical miles, as the crow fly’s, from Quetzaltenango and Serving God by Serving His People (SGSP) Aviation Ministries mission base. It is one of several municipalities that dot the shore of Lago Atitlan, I’m told each is named after an Apostle from the Bible, (Santiago is James in English). Robin and I took to the sky’s climbing up to 10,500 ft., to clear the ridge between …

ELT Battery Pack Replaced

The emergency location transmitter (ELT) is usually mounted in the aft section of an aircraft. In an emergency it can be activated manually by flight crew or automatically when subjected G-Forces from an off field landing. In either case, its ability to transmit your location is directly dependent on the condition of the battery. With few exceptions, aircraft worldwide are required to have an ELT.  This device pinpoints your location …

The ladder of Success

It was early. The sun had just broken over the 10,000 ft mountain range on the east side of our valley. The city of Quetzaltenango, in the western highlands of Guatemala, was awake and moving, even in darkness before the dawn. Curious about a noise outside of our home early that morning, I opened the creaky metal door and found this ladder against the wall. A young man was preparing …

It’s a Good Thing…Really!

After a 18 months of service, the tire on the left is worn to the limits of safe operation, and has been replaced with a new one. Aircraft tires are exposed to punishing rough surfaces, and hard braking with every landing on rural strips.  Here at SGSP Aviation in the western highlands of Guatemala, its business as usual with one exception. There is a glaring empty spot on the shelf …

Let None Be Forgotten

In the aftermath of tropical storm Eta, the rural people in the northeastern regions of Guatemala begin to take stock of what is left of their lives and livelihoods. These are the fortunate ones. For others, land and mud slides have completely wiped away meager and fragile family dwellings. Their reality is grim. Just hours after the rains subsided, Christian relief organizations began to mobilize, preparing 30 lb. bags of …

Small Step or Giant Leap?

“If the Great Commission is true, our plans are not too big, they are too small.” –Pat Morley Rummaging through the filing cabinet of our missionary commitments, postings, outreaches and sacrifices, Pat Morley’s words could not be more fitting. At one time, it seemed as if our plans were too big, but looking back, we know see them as not big enough. We, Chuck and Robin Martinez (or C & …

Make the Time!

  Here at SGSP Aviation Ministries, at our base in the western highlands of Guatemala, we wear a variety of hats daily. Wearing my aircraft mechanic hat, I may be facing a single task or several separate tasks. Actually doing the work is the easy part, it’s the preparation and the finalization phases that demands discipline and time. Reviewing a work order, gathering equipment, prepares you for the actual work. …

Leave Nothing to Chance

In July, SGSP Aviation Ministries completed annual inspections on mission aircraft in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. Now it’s time to take a hard look at every piece of GSE. The goal is to clean, overhaul, service, and test every piece of gear. While it is true, you will not need GSE every day, it is also true that when that day comes, it will be on short notice and mission critical.  Robin …

Try Not to Breath

The best helper in the world, Robin is happy to do her bit assisting during a recent annual inspection. A clean freak by nature, her attention to detail can make an engine compartment shine. I explained that industrial chemicals can really make short work of otherwise difficult cleanup tasks. On this day I introduced her to one such miracle chemical, Methyl Ethel Ketone (MEK), and mentioned in passing, that the …