Johnston County pilot spreads Christmas cheer in Bahamas

By Randy Capps | Photos courtesy of Bob and Shannon Hugel

SMITHFIELD — There were probably only three people on earth doing what Selma residents Bob, Shannon and Samantha Hugel were doing the week before Christmas.

The family flew a plane packed with Christmas gifts, donations and plenty of other items from Johnston County Airport to Florida to Long Island in the Bahamas — finally touching down at Deadman’s Cay Airport on their way to Mangrove Bush to spread a little holiday cheer.

“It’s our first time,” he said, of spending Christmas in the Bahamas. “We figured we would do something different this year.”

The family has made several trips to the island, severely affected by Hurricane Dorian in September.

Hugel told the story of a woman named Kelly he met on a recent trip to the islands. The woman and her two teenage sons were living on Great Abaco, which is an island in the northern part of the Bahamas. They lost everything after the storm and were forced to move to Long Island, which is in the southeastern part of the islands.

“I happened to be at Walmart the other day, and I saw shoes for $11,” he said, thinking of Kelly’s sons. “I thought, ‘This would be great.’ We made a connection with them, and we know them, because we met them last time. ... We’re just trying to help out anyone and everyone down there as often as we can.”

The plane’s cargo included those shoes and other clothes for that family and others. There were a few other things crammed in there as well.

“Whenever we go there, we try to meet new people,” he said. “We try to do whatever we can for people. Hear their stories and help them. There are some people we do regular help for. There’s a couple that needed water filters, so we’re having them delivered to the house. They’re buying them; we’re just carrying them down for them. Another gentleman has three vehicles, and all three of them are inoperable. So, I’m bringing a bunch of car parts down with me and tools. So, we’re going to work on his vehicles. He’s got a Tahoe, an Escalade and a Pathfinder.”

Hugel, a volunteer for Adventist World Aviation (AWA), is focused on helping the outlying islands in the Bahamas. Most of the relief coming into the country is helping the citizens in the capital city of Nassau.

“You talk to people on Long Island, 160 miles away, and they aren’t seeing anything,” he said.

While he’s happy helping a few families at a time, he has bigger goals in mind.

“I’d like to take it to the next step,” Hugel said. “I’d like to see if I could run a drive and take a couple of pallets down to West Palm Beach. There’s a ship that leaves there every couple of weeks that goes directly to this island. All I need to do is cover the cost of fuel of getting to West Palm in my truck, which isn’t that much, and cover the cost of getting on the boat and whatever they would charge me from a duty perspective.”

These pallets would carry things like toys, clothes, shoes, hats, bug spray and other items that are in short supply on Long Island.

“If you can imagine a flood 25 feet high, and you survive that, everything’s gone,” Hugel said. “Your house is gone, everything’s gone.”

AWA is a humanitarian aid organization that’s based in Smithfield. It supports mission flights locally, regionally and all over the world — including medical evacuations, dental outreach, Christian ministries and much more.

In fact, during an October trip to the islands, Hugel conducted an angel flight for a local woman who needed to get to Florida to see an ailing relative. “Bob’s done a lot of volunteer work with us,” said Pastor Ric Swaningson, president and CEO of Adventist World Aviation. “If people want to help, they can call us up and we’ll try to find a way to make it happen.”

To learn more about AWA, call 919-938-2920.