Steve Merritt (left) accepts donation of Beech Baron from Dr. Quinn (right)
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Bahamas Habitat recently announced the donation of a Beechcraft Baron to
the organization by Dr. John Quinn of Charleston SC for use by the
organization in its Bahamas mission work.
Dr. Quinn is a native of Shreveport LA and is a practicing
pediatrician in the Charleston SC area that has made numerous trips to
the Bahamas over the years. He became aware of the mission work of the
Bahamas Habitat through notices delivered through the AOPA (www.aopa.org)
website. Dr.
Quinn is aware of the needs in the Bahamas and the value of the mission
and decided that his Baron would be best used to support the work of
Bahamas Habitat.
“I had considered donating my aircraft to God’s work and realized
that the best fit for my Baron would be in a region of the world where
a twin would be valued and where access to avgas would not be an issue”
stated Dr. Quinn. “Bahamas Habitat was the ideal choice where it will
bring significant value to the ministry work there.”
Dr. Quinn comes from a family of long time flyers and he began learning
to fly when he was only ten years old in Shreveport LA. He reports
that his mother and grandmother are both pilots. Dr. Quinn’s aircraft
before the Baron was a J3 Cub on floats and he said he might go back to
a similar grass roots aircraft for awhile.
The aircraft is a six place twin engine 1969 Beechcraft B55 Baron
Colemill 600 conversion with upgraded engine horsepower and Garmin 430
GPS Nav/Comm, 330 transponder with traffic, Garmin GDL69 XM weather and
WX500 Stormscope. Performance is 200 knots which will make transport
missions to and among the islands very efficient.
”The work of our mission will be dramatically benefited by this
generous donation”, stated John Armstrong, President of Bahamas
Habitat. “Dr. Quinn’s aircraft is the ideal tool for the needs of
Bahamas Habitat and it will help to achieve and elevate the vision we
have for the mission. We are extremely grateful to Dr. Quinn and look
forward to his continued involvement in the work of the ministry and
what God has in store.”
Steve Merritt, the Treasurer and Chief Pilot for Bahamas Habitat
stated, “We often say the inaccessibility of some of the Bahamian
Islands is their blessing and their curse. It can take all day to go 50
miles between islands via commercial plane or boat. This can be a real
challenge in managing the mission’s multiple camps. We needed an
aircraft that could make the trip quickly back and forth to the islands
and then provide the lift and support needed between our camps there.
The Baron is the perfect tool for the mission. We are extremely
grateful to have this blessing and look forward to putting the plane in
service immediately.”
The Baron will make its maiden flight for the organization for the
upcoming Fly-In and Help Out Event being held October 29th, 2009 where
aviators will fly from the US to the mission’s base camp on Eleuthera
in the Bahamas.
Pilots and aviation organizations interested in the mission and
learning how to fly to the Bahamas with us should sign up for updates
at: www.bahamashabitat.org and select Fly-In and Help Out Event to
receive further info. Online event registration is also available on
the website.
Bahamas Habitat has established a support fund for the ongoing
maintenance of the aircraft and are requesting donations via their
website at www.bahamashabitat.org.
About Bahamas Habitat
Bahamas Habitat is a US-based Christian nonprofit organization
supporting housing & disaster relief work in the Bahamas. Through
our partner Bahamas Methodist Habitat (BMH), operating out of James
Cistern Eleuthera, we are involved in hosting over 600 adults and
youths each season for impactful week long and weekend Christian
missions. The organization hosts the Fly-In & Help Out Event and
promotes mission opportunities to pilots, aircraft owners and aviation
organizations in the US and Canada. For more information visit: http://www.bahamashabitat.org
or email to info@bahamashabitat.org.
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