Aces of Trades: Jack Harper's work as missionary mechanic is for God's glory
COSHOCTON – He had one primary plan, and that was to follow God’s plan.
“As a child, I loved motorsports, and tinkering with anything mechanical,” recalled Jack Harper. “I spent a lot of time with my dad working on cars, dirt bikes, snowmobiles, and many other types of vehicles. My dad would frequently bring home old engines from lawnmowers or pressure washers for me to take apart and explore.
“Late in high school,” he continued, “I began being interested in aviation. Again, this interest was sparked by my dad. He’s a pilot, and we loved flying together in our family’s Aeronca Champ. Around that time, I read a book about a missionary pilot. After reading that book, I realized God could use my interest in airplanes and mechanics for His glory. At that point, I decided to pursue becoming a missionary pilot/mechanic.”
Today, Harper is a supervisor at MMS Aviation, a unique Coshocton-based facility that provides hands-on training for missionary pilots and mechanics. MMS, by the way, stands for Missionary Maintenance Service.
“I participate in aircraft maintenance projects while supervising apprentices working on the project,” he explained. “I’m relatively new to this profession and don’t yet have an area of expertise. However, I really enjoy sheet metal fabrication. That’s a good thing, because many of the airplanes that come to MMS need extensive structural repairs.”
Harper, 27, grew up in Stillwater, Minnesota, near the Twin Cities. He was homeschooled through high school and graduated in 2014. He then went to LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas, to study mission aviation, which included aircraft maintenance and flight training. He graduated in 2018.
“I developed an interest in ministry before I was interested in airplanes,” he said. “My family frequently went on short-term mission trips to a home for children in Morelia, Mexico. We went down there for a week almost every year during my childhood. Those trips helped me understand that a big world exists outside of my own bubble. God used those trips to call me to ministry. I’m grateful that both of my parents gave me opportunities to experience ministry in other countries.”
Before coming to MMS, Harper worked as a flight instructor at LeTourneau University.
“At that time, I thought God was leading me to serve as a missionary pilot overseas,” he said. “However, God had other plans. God made it clear to my wife and I that we were supposed to stay in the US and that I should pursue aircraft maintenance rather than being a pilot. Since I already had relationships with people at MMS, it seemed to be a logical place to serve as an aircraft mechanic.”
Harper started at MMS in October 2022.
“We first met Jack several years ago when he came with a volunteer team from LeTourneau University,” remembered Phil Maddux, the president and CEO at MMS Aviation. “He impressed us then as being a student who was serious about how he wanted to use his training to serve the Lord. When Jack asked to apply for service at MMS, we were excited to bring him onto the team. We look forward to many years of working together.”
“I feel very privileged to be doing something I love for God’s glory,” Harper responded. “I enjoy the challenge of problem-solving in this job, and I feel like there’s something new to learn every day. This isn’t what I expected to do for a career, but I’m very happy to be here.”
MMS Aviation is located at 24387 Airport Road. For more information, call 740-622-6848 or log on www.mmsaviation.org.
Aces of Trades is a weekly series focusing on people and their jobs – whether they’re unusual jobs, fun jobs or people who take ordinary jobs and make them extraordinary. If you have a suggestion for a future profile, let us know at ctnews@coshoctontribune.com.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Jack Harper of MMS followed his passions and God's plan
