Every year, Camp AMA, for teens ages 13 to 19, is held in Muncie, Indiana. The youngsters spend the entire week flying and receiving instruction for everything from beginner flying to extreme aerobatics.
For the past several years, District VI has sponsored a deserving teen to attend the camp. I am currently looking for a candidate to send to camp in 2019. If you know of an interested teen, please have him or her submit to me a ¼-page write-up stating why he or she would like to attend camp. The deadline is December 1, 2018.
The following is a summary by Lillieann Todich of her experiences as the 2018 District VI-sponsored AMA camper.
“I went to Camp AMA in Muncie, Indiana. It was a great experience for me as a pilot and as a person. I arrived at the camp on June 10, and stayed until the last day, June 16. Camp taught me a great deal about this hobby that I didn’t necessarily know.
“The instructors, Jessy, RJ, and Mike, were super nice and willing to help with anything I needed. All of the campers were also nice and willing to show me anything I didn’t know.
“Another thing about the camp is flying with people your own age. As younger pilots, we don’t see that as often. It was fun and interesting to meet people my own age from across the US. As a camper, you make lots of friends in this hobby.
“During camp we did a lot and we were always busy—whether flying with friends, flying on the simulator, or building an airplane to fly. I remember one day where a bunch of campers made airplanes out of pizza boxes we had left over from lunch.
“We did much more than fly. We had water day and a night where we did karaoke. These activities got us raffle tickets for the last day of camp. With those activities I got three raffle tickets. The activities were super fun to do with everyone you had flown with.
“Every day at camp, we’d wake up about 8 a.m. and head to the field where we’d fly all day until dinner time. After dinner, we’d either go back to the field or do some other activity at the hotel.
“One night we had our night fly. We had spent all the beginning of the week and that morning putting LEDs on our models. The airplanes looked amazing all lit up in the dark. I flew a night VisionAire with the rest of the campers. The night fly was fun for everyone; even if you didn’t fly, watching the others was enough.
“At camp we spent all our time flying, thinking about flying, or getting ready to fly. At the hotel one night, we made an obstacle course. The boys had put ironing tables and clothes racks on the beds to fly Tiny Whoops through in our rooms. We all love to fly.
“Saturday was the last day of camp where we had our awards and raffle. During the raffle, I won a HobbyZone Duet RTF, which was fun.
“This camp was fun and interesting. You’d never get bored. I would love to go again next year, and I am planning on it. If you’re a young pilot looking to get more into the hobby, I recommend this camp. Have fun flying. I hope to meet more pilots in this hobby.”
If you would like to see an event from your own club here, email me a short write-up with the word “magazine” in the subject line and attach a few high quality digital pictures!
Gary Himes
Vice President District VI