JULY 4 YOUNG EAGLES DAY SUMMARY

It sure seems to me that we had a really successful YE Day! We flew a total of 101 kids. Ninety-six flew as Young Eagles and five flew as Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Cadets. The following pilots, listed in alphabetical order, participated: DON COLE (C-182), BILL DEWEY (C-172), BRUCE GUSTAFSON (C-120), GARY LUDEKE (RV-6A), VIRGIL PRATT (C-172), RANDY STOUT (J-3), ALAN WIEDER (RV-9A).

Four pilots participated in our traditional parade fly-over at 11:00. They were: JIM BEAL (RV-9A), GARY LUDEKE, RANDY STOUT, ALAN WIEDER.

At the risk of leaving someone out (if this happens I’m truly sorry!) the following people played key roles on the ground to make everything happen as safely and as efficiently as was reasonably possible:

BRIDGET PRATT handled the unenviable task of seeing that all the YE forms were filled out by the parents/guardians of the YE’s. She also produced all the YE certificates and saw that each YE received a certificate and YE logbook.

KEN SCHMIDT was responsible for getting all the YE’s matched up with a pilot/airplane. I’m sure this can be a very stressful task since some kids want to fly in a particular airplane; some want to fly with a sibling or a friend, and some want to fly but may be extremely fearful of going up with a total stranger, particularly if they are a first time flyer! Then there’s the stress of finding the kids in the crowd when it’s their turn to fly!

TOM CUNNINGHAM again used his airplane as the parade float representing EAA Chapter 31 and promoting the Young Eagle program. Tom also did a lot of “behind the scenes” work such as representing the chapter at Creswell Chamber of Commerce July 4 coordination meetings, preparing his airplane (Kolb Firestar) by getting it washed and mounting our Young Eagles banners on the wings. He also towed the plane in the parade (using Hal Skinner’s generously offered vehicle), then moved it to the car show for display, and then brought it back at the end of the event.

And finally, there are all the people who just stepped forward to help in any way they could. A probably incomplete list includes JIM BEAL, DAVE EASON, STEVE RILEY, CHARLIE WALKER and my wonderful wife SANDY.

The list would not be complete without a special thanks to Airport Manager SHELLEY HUMBLE and our airport aviation fuel supplier, WORLD FUEL SERVICES, who provided $500 worth of aviation fuel for the Young Eagle pilots!

A sincere thanks to all! I’m sure we changed the lives of some young people for the better. I am very honored to be serving as your President!

Gary

 

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