It has been another quick month. It’s windy, but it’s getting warmer, which is a good thing.
I wanted to pass on that this year’s National Model Aviation Day is August 13. This year, the AMA Executive Council has decided to support the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) as our charity of choice. There are many reasons for this change. One is that it is an organization chartered by the U.S. Congress for disabled military veterans of the US Armed Forces, which helps them and their families through various means.
Programs supported by the DAV Trust typically include: providing food, shelter, and other necessary items to homeless or at-risk veterans;
accessibility or mobility items for veterans with vision or hearing impairments; therapeutic activities; physical and psychological activities for rehabilitation; and other forms of direct service for veterans and their families. The DAV is a highly rated charity.
Please keep in mind that you and your club may select any charity you prefer. Additionally, if you would like to support a local branch of the DAV, feel free to donate any money raised directly to your local DAV. We ask that you let AMA know how much you donated so we can provide total donation figures. We will have more information on this to follow.
I recently attended the Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, Moral, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) event called Wings and Wheels. It was the first event of its kind at this location. It was held on the parade grounds, and we were given a quadrant of it to fly from and over.
There were more than a dozen modelers from as far away as Kansas City, Rolla, and Eldon, Missouri, as well as a few local fliers. There were a dozen or more hot rods at the event as well as RC cars. The gates were open to the general public for this family event.
We set up a booth to do FPG-9 make-and-take gliders with children. We taught a few young soldiers to make the gliders and they staffed the station, enjoying the day with the children. We answered a lot of questions from parents and youngsters, and several were interested in joining the hobby.
Thanks to Laura Lee of the Fort Leonard Wood MWR for inviting us to attend, and thanks to Tim Townsend for managing the flightline. I look forward to doing it again.
Happy flying and great landings!
