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AIMU: SEMPLE M CPHERSO N \ OL. 13. 1'0. I. SI' IU NG 1993 See Page /8 Assemblies of God ~-., 1910 Baptism Near Joplin, Missouri SEE INSIDE COVER SPRING 1993 VOl. 13, NO. I I'ACE 5 PACE 10 PAGE 18 5 JOHN PETER KOLENDA ARCHIVES STAFF-WAYNE E. WARNER, EDITOR AND ARCHIVES DIRECTOR: A story of "A man sent from God whose name was John," JOYCE LEE, ASSISTANT ARCHIVIST; who pastored and served in Brazil and Germany. GLENN GOHR, ARCHIVES ASSISTANT AND COPY EDITOR: J ULIE SPEARS. By Lewi s Wil so n SECRETARY . ARCHIVES ADVISORY BOARD-CHAIRMAN JOSEPH R. FLOWER. 9 A MODERN MIRACLE J. CALVIN HOLSINGER. GARY B. r.kGEE, The hea li ng of Pvt. James P. Sturgeon. A reprint from a EVERETT STENHOUSE. 1943 Christ's Ambassadors Herald. Assembbes of God Her/lagl' is published Quarterly by the Assemblies of God ArchiH'~. 10 J., BASHFORD BISHOP 1445 Boonville Ave.. Springfield. Mi ssouri 65802·1894. This magal.ine is free 10 members of A look at " Bash" Bishop's 50-year minist ry. the Assemblies of God Heritage Society. Yearly memberships are available for SIO; lifetime By Glenn Gohr memberships are SIOO. MemberShip fees are WOODROW STOOD ALONE used to publish the magazine and support 17 the Archives. Reflecting on Woodrow Ox ner's 1939 missionary Assemblil's of God Hl'ritage is inde~cd in commitment. Religion Index One: Pl'riodicals. published by th~ American Theological Library Association. By Norma F. Oxner 820 Church Street, Suite 300. E\anston. lL A IMEE SEMPLE MCPHERSON 60201. This ind~x is part of the ATII\ Religion 18 Database. a\ailableon the Wilson Disc CD· ROM After "Sister's" big 1922 Wichila meeting, A/G leaders from H. W. Wilson Co. and online "ia Wilson· Lin~. DRS Information Technologies. and wanted to know if she was compromising her Pentecostal DIALOG Information Ser~ice5. fai th . Microfilm of Herilage is a~aiJab1c from By Edith Blumhorcr Theological Re search Exchange Network (TREN). 5420 N.E. Glisan, Portland, OR 97213. 22 WILLIAM J. MITCHELL Concluding Part Persons wishing to donate historical materials The teenage alcoholic who became a preacher and New to the Archi~es-such as correspondence. photo· graphs, recordings, films. magazines, books. England district leader. minul~S, diaries, etc., are urged to wrile to the By Burton K. Janes above address or call (417) 862·2181. Informa· tion about the Archi~C5 Building Fund is also DEPARTMENTS available on request. 3 Heritage Letter- Locating Ambassador I Copyright 1993 b~'lhe General Council of the Assemblies of God, 1445 Boon~ilJe Ave .. Spring· 14 From Our Readers-More letters on wo rship styles field. Missouri 65802·1894. 16 Time Frame- 1943 Central District Counci l report ISSN 0896·4)94 28 Seen in Print -New book Pentecostal Pioneering POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 35 Archives Activities-Donations to the Archives Htrlluge, 1445 Boonville A~e., Springfield, 1--·10 65802·1894. COVt:H; Hllnnll h \\ il e) being bllptized neMr J oplin . Mi ssouri. Ilboul 1910. She Illler mllrried TlllmlldJ!,r As hle) ... ho "'IIS Il gospel sinJ!,er . Hradtrs ... ho n n idenlif} others in Ihe photo Mre Ilsked to ... rit e 10 Ih e Archhes. !'huto rourles) of Mrs. HIl)t \\ile) Hill son VhOIO of Aim« Semlli t Md'herson is Il Mukhllm Studio phOlO, Oregon lII ~torlCli I Sorirl} , 1{l1)161. HERITAGE LETTER The Ambassador Has Been Found A/G Missionary Plane Destroyed in Hurricane Andrew ----By Wayne Warner I'S prclty hard 10 hide a C-46 Commando cargo plane. I But for 44 ycar~ the old Ambassador I mi",,,,ionary plane had been missing. Until lasl February. Well, leI me explain. After the Assemblies of God traded this plane in 1949 on a B-i7-Ambassador /I-it was exported 10 Bra zil and dropped oul of sight for u). We simply losl track of it and knew nothing of its whereabouts until last February. That'S when we heard that the Drug Enforcemenl AdminiSlralion had seized it Abo.t, Ihr oldlmbruSQllor I (-46 .. a\ par!.ed al T~ml~ml "irporl .. hfn IlIi~ and then, worse than that, it was destroyed by Hurricane pllulo .. a~ I~loifn AUICU,I 23, 1992, Iht dM' brfurt' lIurriunr ,\ndr~ .. hll. Andrew 1asl August. ltflo ... Ihf Ilholol(rli llher Inok Ihl, ,hOllhl' dll) afll" Ihr \10.111. "ndr... IUD!. Iht plant ahuul li milt and dump~d II MI lilt fnd of M.un"II'. l'holU,nUl.lt" It was one of 268 planes uf Oair 'herrlcloi. IIlrporl manllRfr destroyed at Tamiami Airport during Hurricane Andrew, Airport manager Clair Sherrick said, "The airport looked like a war and that we had lost." In its final flight tumbling down the Tamiami runway, it was far less dignified than in its fi rst missionary run 45 years ago as it headed IOward Liberia. The late Gene Callentine, engineer and co-pilot, had liule love for the Charlie 46, as he called i(. " It was a bucket of bolts," he would say while showing partiality IOward Ambassador II. SUI pilot Herman Revis, who is Mi.»iuna,i" and Ihr AmbuJJQdor I ("~ .. " Hr pari of hislOr) on ..... pltmbC'r 3. 19-18, "' h~n Ih~ ) r~lurn~d from Ahka on Ihe firsl inlH nalional misslon~" retired al Casselberry, Florida, some 200 Ilule'> from flilCh1. II " -as Iht bllClCtsl pl ant fhinlC uUI uf "prlnlCfleld al Iht Ilmr ~ nd where the Ambassador mel its end, called it a great u s u~II )' dre .. a no .. d ..-hent'H illook orr or landtd. plane. It must have been more than a bucket of bolt'> 10 have survived nearly 50 years. And something less than a great plane. For you who knew nothing about the A'isemblie.-., of God and it s international nights (and mis,>ed the earlier Heritage and Springfield! magazine slO rie\), here's a brief look al those three years, 1948-51. Immediately after World War II , the Departmenl of Foreign Missions discussed the possibility of buying a plane big enough to transport missionaries and materials to foreign fields. Word came to DirectOr Noel Perkin that the army had surplus planes in Arkansas that were going for a fraction of their cost. It was decided to buy tWO cargo planes, designated by the army as C-46 and which the Curt iss Wright factory began delivering to the military in July 1942. Powered by two IS-cylinder Pratt & Whitney engines which developed 2,000 horsepower each on takeorr, the plane had a maximum speed or 264 mph and was the biggest .. two-engine land plane in th e world when it was built. - The C-46s gained their greatest rame during the war by nying war materials over the "Hump" rrom India to \\777~~~---d China arter Ihe Japanese dosed the Burma Road. The old C-46 cargo plane is nothing more than a fuselage, engines, instruments, and a cockpit. But for a few missionaries who still remember Oying into Liberia and India and Brazil and other exotic airports, its final fate is sad. To say that we gOt a bargain on the planes is an under ~tatc ll1 ent. The original cost was $233,000 each, and we paid but $5 ,000. Then the Missions Department decided to park one or the planes and use il ro r parts. The other Abo't, pilol John S~'Mjlf ~nd tht Al e Kinjl plane received a $15,000 race lirt, modified ror 40 Air. II \OMS his Idea 10 continur thf starch for AmhunadQr T. RilChl. II t rm~n Me'is piluted passengers and brought to civilian standards. A host or thf Am/:Junadt')r I and 1/ 1948·51. IIf is yo ung people began raising money ror th e plane in one spfmlinlC his rclircmfnll fll r ~ In Honda. or th e first Speed-the-Light projects. Then take-orr day August 12, 1948. What a day! Whil e hundreds cheered and prayed al the Springfield Airport, the Ambassador roared down the runway bound ror Arrica. Crammed inside was a small amphibian plane and other cargo. Seated in th e cabin wcre 14 missionaries headed ror their lands or calling. " It's a dream come true," exclaimed Missions Director Noel Perkin. And George Carmichael agreed, seeing the world becoming smaller: " The heavens have oW ror the mysterious di sa ppearance of NC5925V, become a highway linking the mission fields or the N Ambassador I. world. " In researching for the planes in 1985 , I checked with A year later, rollowing several trips to ports or call the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and was around the world, the C-46 was traded on the rour told that the office had no rurther inrormation on the engine 8-17 modified bomber which was once owned by C-46 after it was exported to Brazil in 194910 be used Ihe president or the Philippines Airlines. This plane on Varig Airlines flight s. Then 10 rurther rrustrate the continued the missionary flight s ror 2 years, but then search in Brazil we were using the wrong serial number the Mi ssions Department decided the service had and never round it. With the new serial number, we are become impractical. That plane wound up in the hands hoping Varig can give information on its use in Brazil. or the French government and is now at the Imperial Enter John Savage, the current A /G pilot. War Mu se um, Duxrord Airfield, England. Now called Last February John lOok a look at the large photo Mary Alice arter a World War II plane, it is said to be graph or the Ambassador /, which is hanging on my the most accurately restored B-17 in existence.