Beechcraft Baron Donated for Bahamas Mission Support
October 25th, 2009 — Bahamas Habitat announced today 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. He and his family have 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 a good cause 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. His grandfather began teaching him to fly when he was only ten years old in Shreveport LA in a T34 military training aircraft. He reports that his mother and grandmother are both pilots too. Dr. Quinn’s most recent aircraft before the Baron was a J3 Cub on floats that he put over 500 hours on. He said he might go back to a similar grass roots aircraft for awhile and looks forward to being a volunteer pilot for Bahamas Habitat so he can participate in missions in his beloved Baron.
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 will put the plane in service immediately and look forward to Dr. Quinn’s on-going involvement in the mission’s work.”
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 is 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 hi impact 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.
