Changed Funeral Arrangements

We just received word of a changed venue for the service, required due to larger expected attendance.  The funeral and reception will still be held Friday, April 3, 2009, at 11:00 a.m., but now at:

Fairmont Seventh-day Adventist Church

730 S. Fairmont Ave.

Lodi, CA  95240

Louis Pullen on NBC Today Show

We just learned that Louis Pullen, Michael's father, will be on the NBC Today Show on Friday, March 27, 2009.

UPDATE:  Louis's interview is now available for online viewing at the address:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/29911780#29911780

Michael Pullen Family Memorial Fund

This information has already been posted once in the original blog entry, but folks have been asking questions, so I thought we'd put the information into a posting by itself.

With the help of financial expert, John McCann, a charitable gift fund has been set up for the Pullens.  All donations will be used for the Galt and Lodi SDA Elementry schools.  These gifts are tax-deductible as charitable contributions, and a tax-receipt will be issued.  All checks should be made out to "The Michael Pullen Family Memorial Fund," and mailed to the address below:

Pullen Memorial

P.O. Box 314 

Lodi, CA  95241

These gifts will be used to assist in the operational expenses for both the Galt and Lodi SDA Elementary schools where many happy memories were made for their family. This is another way that their love for God, learning and service can live on.

What really happened?

Welcome to the blog.  The purpose of this site is to provide a place for discussing the tragic plane crash in Butte, Montana, on Sunday, March 22, 2009.  A lot of erroneous information has been floating around, and hopefully, this blog, set up by the Pullen family, can help to cut through some of the fog.  So here goes . . .

The trip was planned as a ski vacation to the Big Sky Ski Resort in Bozeman, Montana.  The plane  left Redlands, California, then flew to Vacaville, California, picking up Michael and Vanessa Pullen, their children Sydney and Christopher; Erin and Amy Jacobson, and their children Taylor, Ava, and Jude.  From there the flight headed to Oroville, California, where Brent and Kristen Ching boarded along with their kids, Hailey and Caleb.  Kristen was expecting their third child.

The plane was refueled, and the kids all got off en masse to use the bathroom.  One airport employee commented that they were the cutest kids he ever saw.  The plane took off, heading for its final destination of Bozeman, Montana.  This is where the details become unclear.  When about 100 miles from Bozeman, the pilot deviated from his flight plan, heading for Butte, for reasons unknown.

Witnesses on the ground in Butte saw the plane approaching at a low altitude over the Butte cemetery heading for the Butte Airport runway.  Then suddenly, 500 feet from the runway, and 500 feet in the air, the plane banked left, and nose-dived into the cemetery.  All aboard were killed instantly from the impact of the crash, and most of the bodies were thrown free of the wreckage.  The plane then burst into a ball of fire.  The sheriff said that on his arrival there was a crater in the ground about five feet deep, and at that point there was nothing he could do except drag bodies away from the wreckage.  The pilot and Michael Pullen were the only ones remaining in the plane.  Michael was in the copilot seat, and was only removed at noon today.

News reports initially claimed that the plane was overloaded, but there were only seven children and seven adults aboard.  The total weight of the seven children was only around 200 pounds, the equivalent of one adult, so the true weight of the passengers was really only equivalent to eight adults, well within the plane's rated capacity.  The pilot,  Bud Summerfield, was a Viet Nam veteran pilot, approximately 65 years old, with thousands of hours of flying experience.  Today, (Tuesday, March 24) NTSB officials proposed the possibility that the crash may have been caused by icing on the wings of the plane.

Funeral arrangements for the Pullens are tentatively planned for Friday, April 3, in the Galt/Lodi area, the final location, yet to be determined, probably around 11:00 AM.  The Pullen family strongly desire that donations be given to either the Galt Seventh-day Adventist Christian School, or the Lodi Seventh-day Adventist Elementary School   in lieu of flowers or memorials.  The Pullens are extremely supportive of Adventist education, and would like to feel that your generosity would help it to continue in these difficult financial times.