Christmas 2022

Aloha Menehunes and friends,

Mary gets top billing for 2022 for her courage and determination to volunteer for knee surgery and then put up with the pain and uncertainty of a three-month recovery. As Christmas approaches, she’s finally at the point where she can walk and swim without terrible pain and we’re hoping that she continues down the path of exercise and recovery. Vic had the same surgery 8 years ago and is still recovering with a strong possibility of a surgery re-run soon. Knees are a tricky business …….

We have been blessed with frequent visits from Nathan and Sarah with their families. Last Christmas, Sarah and Jacques brought Jon, Joseph and Pete while Nathan and Sundi brought Valor to see if we could actually jam 10 people into our home …… and it turns out that we could. We had to invent some innovative room arrangements, but all 10 of us jammed into La Casa Bonfiglio and had a great time wandering around O’ahu including MANY trips to the beaches. Sarah and Jacques and the boys visited AGAIN in July to celebrate Vic’s 76th birthday with more beach time. In addition to our kids and grandkids, Mary’s brothers, Dan and Peter honored us with a visit and we explored Waikiki. Peter was the medical coach for Mary’s determination to get knee surgery and we’re grateful for his advice.

Vic continues to fly and soloed Student #53 on 6 September on Flight Lesson 8. Miss Kylie Sisson soloed at age 17 and passed her Private Pilot Certificate checkride shortly after her 18th birthday. She’s now at the University of North Dakota learning how to be an instrument pilot.

Vic now has three more flight students, all in high school and all flying at the Pacific Flight Academy, a new flight school in Honolulu which has built an enviable reputation for encouraging and supporting wannabe aviators. Many of you probably know that the national overall success rate for student pilots is NOT very good. According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), only 20% (TWENTY PERCENT) of student pilots successfully complete the requirements for the FAA Private Pilot Certificate. This has always been a puzzlement for Vic since he has never failed a flight student during his 50 years as an instructor pilot. Working with some young instructors and aircraft technicians, Vic has assisted Pacific Flight Academy with a pro-active encouraging training plan to improve the chances for student success and the PFA team is achieving the desired success result. Since the military washout rate was only 25% (now improved to about 15%), Vic saw no reason why the civilian FAA success rate should be so dismal and he’s working to improve it along with other flight instructors who feel the same way.

The North Shore Challenge ocean swimming races continue to be strong motivators to beat the old age challenge and Vic competed in a very complicated one-mile race at Sunset Beach which caused several swimmers to drop out. He also finished the 1.2 Waimea Bay Race in 1:11:17.7 which is two minutes FASTER than last year’s Waimea race which means that Vic is getting faster or was blessed with a favorable current !! Who knows what the current whims of the mighty Pacific will do ……….. ?????!?!!

Best wishes to all for a happy and holy Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year.

Blue skies and happy landings.

Vic and Mary