DOWNTOWN ISLAND AIRPORT ALSO HOSTED A CHAPTER 17 YOUNG EAGLES EVENT ON MAY 14
The winds were strong but aligned with the runway and most of the kids were tolerant of the bumps. (Sorry about that one, Mark.)
We thank the Pilots and Ground Crews for their contributions of time and fuel. We had pilots new to me at this Young Eagle rally. Marc Hightower is an EAA member and displayed his WACO biplane at the Smoky Mountain Air Show and joined us to support Young Eagles. David Yates brought his Czech SportCruiser.
Marv McGraw is a chapter member and has hosted our meeting at his private airport. He may have flown these events before, but pilots stay busy and sometimes out of sight. George Douglas is our President, but as a new member this was his first opportunity to fly kids with our chapter. We give our thanks to Alex Shore for giving the preparatory Ground School. To
Linda Haynes for her calligraphy applied to the Young Eagles documents. To John Haynes and all the regulars we give our appreciation. Thanks also to Darrell Sexton of Sexton Air Shows for volunteering as Air Boss and Safety Officer. To Tim Hair for hosting our event and providing sandwich fixings after the event closed. To Karen and Gordon Meyer we give our gratitude for a job well done registering, organizing and preparing certificates for our many passengers that allowed this event to run so smoothly.
Note:
Our EAA Chapter 17 has been doing these Young Eagles events for a long time.
My current log book only goes back to 1998 and I find YE events mentioned then. Before those events we were flying out of Sky Ranch. My point is that those youth are now adults. It makes me proud when some stranger tells me that I gave them their first airplane ride and thanks me. Just a few more even tell me that they are now pilots themselves. I am thankful for their sharing there joy with me. Even if they don’t become pilots, they are Informed Voters less likely to sign a petition to close their area airport.