Basically, e-mail is our only reliable connection to the outside world. So, as you can imagine, it is critical to our communication, jobs, relationships, etc. Here in Vanga, we do have a USAID funded satellite connection, but it is either so slow or not working on a very frequent basis that it is almost worth not having... someday we hope to have a MAF satellite here, but until then, e-mail is our link. Our email comes by HF radio by the way.

So, what do we use it for and why is it important? We use it to communicate with headquarters, and this is especially important with questions regarding aircraft maintenance. We correspond with our team in Kinshasa which is critical to our work. We write to supporters and friends and family who wish to know what is happening in our lives. We dialog with visitors and volunteers who come and help here in Vanga. We also get the Around the World publication which is encouraging to us to read what MAF and many of our friends are up to. Our lives would be vastly different without e-mail... that is for certain.

[Ben and Amy Snyder - West Congo (Dem. Rep.)]