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Bremen Hobbies holds silent auction to benefit AMA Foundation

Bremen Hobbies recently held a silent auction promotional event giving shoppers the opportunity to purchase a Balsa USA 1/6th scale Sopwith Pup, built and ready for receiver and battery. The aircraft was built at Bremen Hobbies by Chuck Hamilton and Lee Watkins of Hangar 331. Balsa USA donated the kit, covering materials, and accessories, and Bremen Hobbies donated the electric motor, speed control and servos. The winner was announced in the store in Bremen, Indiana on April 29th. Brad Hjerpe was the top bidder and winner of the aircraft.

 

Bremen Hobbies recently held a silent auction promotional event giving shoppers the opportunity to purchase a Balsa USA 1/6th scale Sopwith Pup, built and ready for receiver and battery. The aircraft was built at Bremen Hobbies by Chuck Hamilton and Lee Watkins of Hangar 331. Balsa USA donated the kit, covering materials, and accessories, and Bremen Hobbies donated the electric motor, speed control and servos. The winner was announced in the store in Bremen, Indiana on April 29th. Brad Hjerpe was the top bidder and winner of the aircraft. All proceeds from the winning bid were donated to the AMA Foundation, a total of $779.00 to the Scholarship Fund.

This video originally appeared in the June 1, 2017 edition of AMA's webcast: AMA Air. Find more episodes at https://air.modelaircraft.org.

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The AMA Foundation would like to thank Bremen Hobbies for this wonderful opportunity to give back to the AMA Scholarship Fund. For more details about the scholarship fund, view here. AMA Foundation staff members would also like to thank Joe Vermillion for his efforts to help us capture video and pictures from the live winning bid announcement.          

Friends honor Crash Hancock with Walk of Fame brick

Mike "Crash" Hancock was born October 14, 1966 and was a native of Waco, Texas. In his younger days, he crashed just about every plane he put in the air, earning him the nickname Crash and it stuck. Crash was in the hobby for 40 years and was most well known for founding and hosting the longest running RC aviation podcast, "The CrashCast" (https://www.thecrashcast.com/) which started in 2009. In all, there were 360 episodes covering virtually every topic you can think of related to RC aviation.

 

Mike "Crash" Hancock was born October 14, 1966 and was a native of Waco, Texas. In his younger days, he crashed just about every plane he put in the air, earning him the nickname Crash and it stuck. Crash was in the hobby for 40 years and was most well known for founding and hosting the longest running RC aviation podcast, "The CrashCast" (https://www.thecrashcast.com/) which started in 2009. In all, there were 360 episodes covering virtually every topic you can think of related to RC aviation. Every Wednesday night, modelers could listen in to the live show, join the chat, and then stay and listen to the often silly and off-topic 'after-show' that wasn't recorded. Crash started his show by saying "If it flies, and it's RC...I like to play with it!" From micro to giant scale, wet fuel and electric, airplanes, sailplanes, helis and multi-rotors. He even designed, manufactured via CNC, and sold his own line of quad frames out of his garage. Crash was also well known for doing everything in his power to help out a fellow modeler, whether he knew them personally or not, and even if the issue was not RC related. He had a truly charitable heart and attitude that made him a very easy person to befriend. Crash touched literally thousands of modelers' lives around the world with his podcast, and was always available to help out with building advice, flying advice, or anything else one might need.  He truly enjoyed the hobby and those who participated in it. 'Build something, fly something, and enjoy this great RC hobby’ was the way Crash ended each of his podcasts, but also how he lived his life. Many came together to honor his memory by purchasing a brick in the AMA Walk of Fame. Crash touched so many lives, that the money was raised in less than one day and the fundraiser stayed open for a few weeks, raising over $1700 to give to Crash's family to keep The CrashCast online.     Additional links: https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?2988021-The-Hobby-Lost-a-Friend-Crash-Hancock CrashCast listeners FB page - https://www.facebook.com/groups/167851760066170/?ref=bookmarks AoA (Angle of Attack podcast) - angleofattackpodcast.com Thank you to Nik Zinsli for sharing about Crash in order for this blog to be written.  

Beresford Area Radio Flyers Receive Club Recognition Reward and Grant

The Beresford Area Radio Flyers has recently been awarded with a $50 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. Beresford Area Radio flyers were featured in the Sioux Center News for hosting a 25th annual model airplane show at Centre Mall in Sioux. Hobbyist came from Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa to see about 40 planes on display.

 

The Beresford Area Radio Flyers has recently been awarded with a $50 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. Beresford Area Radio flyers were featured in the Sioux Center News for hosting a 25th annual model airplane show at Centre Mall in Sioux. Hobbyist came from Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa to see about 40 planes on display. Coordinator of the event Don Van Voorst told reporter Steve Hoogland, “If you’re going to be a club and you want to fly, you’re pretty much bound to the AMA.” The AMA Foundation thanks the Beresford Area Radio Flyers and attendees for making the event such a large success. The AMA Club Recognition and Reward Program was established to encourage clubs to promote model aviation. The AMA offers clubs cash incentives for positive local media coverage for a public event, public service, club announcement, or other coverage. Click here to learn more about this program.

Rend Lake RC Club Receives TAG Grant

Earlier this year, members of Rend Lake RC Club applied for the Take Off and Grow (TAG) Grant. The AMA is excited to announce Rend Lake RC Club has received a $500 award by District 6 Vice President, Randy Cameron. This grant was awarded to Rend Lake to help with Open Houses and their RC Kid’s Camp this summer.

 

Earlier this year, members of Rend Lake RC Club applied for the Take Off and Grow (TAG) Grant. The AMA is excited to announce Rend Lake RC Club has received a $500 award by District 6 Vice President, Randy Cameron. This grant was awarded to Rend Lake to help with Open Houses and their RC Kid’s Camp this summer. Rend Lake   Rend Lake RC Club encourages anyone interested to attend their open house May 20 and August 1 from 12 - 4 p.m. Aircraft will be present and members will be there for any questions attendees may have. There will also be trainers present to allow attendees an opportunity to learn the Buddy-Box System and receive a first flight certificate.   For more information about the Rend Lake RC Club open house and camp, visit their website here.    

South Coast RC Squadron Receives Club Recognition and Reward Grant

The South Coast RC Squadron were recently awarded with a $175 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. The club secretary and treasurer, Albert Schmidt, spoke on KCBY TV station about their Remote Control Model Expo on March 3, 4 and 5. Secretary and treasurer, Schmidt, explained the club had been putting on their show for years, but they thought it would be best this year if they could expand the show to encompass all different types of people. He encouraged people who were not yet involved with the hobby to come check out the show and ask questions to get more involved in model aviation.

 

The South Coast RC Squadron were recently awarded with a $175 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. The club secretary and treasurer, Albert Schmidt, spoke on KCBY TV station about their Remote Control Model Expo on March 3, 4 and 5. Secretary and treasurer, Schmidt, explained the club had been putting on their show for years, but they thought it would be best this year if they could expand the show to encompass all different types of people. He encouraged people who were not yet involved with the hobby to come check out the show and ask questions to get more involved in model aviation. Albert Schmidt mentions the Academy of Model Aeronautic in his interview here. He explains that the AMA works to provide education support in STEM programs and works to provide scholarships for students who are involved in the hobby. KCBY    AMA  Foundation thanks Albert and the rest of the South Coast RC Squadron for involving all different public's into the hobby.     The AMA Club Recognition and Reward Program was established to encourage clubs to promote model aviation. The AMA offers clubs cash incentives for positive local media coverage for a public event, public service, club announcement, or other coverage. Click here to learn more about this program.

McMinn County Radio Control Club Receives Club Recognition and Reward Grant

The McMinn County Radio Control Association in Athens, TN recently received a $75 Club Recognition Reward and Grant by the AMA Foundation. The club received this recognition due to their efforts in making the Academy of Model Aeronautics more well known. Members, Pierce Ashburn, Sean Ashburn, Sid Averett, Dana Thornton, Tom Miller, Lynn Perkinson, Richard Weir and Bob Miller appeared in the Daily Post Athenian newspaper. The members were photographed for bringing copies of the Academy of Model Aeronautic Magazine to the E.G. Fisher Public Library.

 

The McMinn County Radio Control Association in Athens, TN recently received a $75 Club Recognition Reward and Grant by the AMA Foundation. The club received this recognition due to their efforts in making the Academy of Model Aeronautics more well known. Members, Pierce Ashburn, Sean Ashburn, Sid Averett, Dana Thornton, Tom Miller, Lynn Perkinson, Richard Weir and Bob Miller appeared in the Daily Post Athenian newspaper. The members were photographed for bringing copies of the Academy of Model Aeronautic Magazine to the E.G. Fisher Public Library. The AMA Foundation appreciates the members of McMinn County Radio Control Association for their efforts in spreading the messages of our organization.   The AMA Club Recognition and Reward Program was established to encourage clubs to promote model aviation. The AMA offers clubs cash incentives for positive local media coverage for a public event, public service, club announcement, or other coverage. Click here to learn more about this program.

Casa Grande RC Flyers Air Show A Huge Success

The Casa Grande RC Flyers held their 2nd annual air show on Saturday March 11, 2017 and enjoyed a record number of attendees at the club field.  This year’s air show benefited the Valley Humane Society who received many needed items as well as cash donations. The show featured pilots from Horizon Hobby and Hitec/Multiplex, a pilot from the Eloy airport who flew helicopters, and an internationally known aircraft pilot and designer from Arizona City.  People from around the valley filled the bleachers to watch the pilots perform amazing stunts during the two-hour event.

 

The Casa Grande RC Flyers held their 2nd annual air show on Saturday March 11, 2017 and enjoyed a record number of attendees at the club field.  This year’s air show benefited the Valley Humane Society who received many needed items as well as cash donations. The show featured pilots from Horizon Hobby and Hitec/Multiplex, a pilot from the Eloy airport who flew helicopters, and an internationally known aircraft pilot and designer from Arizona City.  People from around the valley filled the bleachers to watch the pilots perform amazing stunts during the two-hour event. Casa Grande Air ShowThe Casa Grande RC Flyers is an Arizona non-profit corporation and chartered club of the AMA whose purpose is to promote model aviation and support the Casa Grande community. Club members teach classes at area schools, participate in fairs and 4H events, and offer free lessons to individuals who wish to learn to fly model aircraft.  Details about the club and their activities can be found on their website:  www.CasaGrandeRCFlyers.com    

RC Resale on the road at the 2017 Toledo Show

RCResale-Logo Join us for a special AMA Foundation RC Resale sale during the Toledo Show: R/C Model Expo, April 7-9, in Toledo, OH. We will be set up upstairs in room 207 at the SeaGate Convention Centre, near the swap shop area.

 

RCResale-Logo Join us for a special AMA Foundation RC Resale sale during the Toledo Show: R/C Model Expo, April 7-9, in Toledo, OH. We will be set up upstairs in room 207 at the SeaGate Convention Centre, near the swap shop area. Thank you to the families of William Irving, Wayne Nyberg, and Charles Rife, and to Charles Sylvia for donating the collections to make this sale possible. The Toledo Show: R/C Model Expo is North America’s largest and longest running R/C model expo. This three day event showcases all types of R/C models including planes, cars, and boats. Along with all the exhibitors, there will be an R/C model competition, speakers, swap shop, and an auction. This event runs April 7 through April 9 and is fun for the whole family. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit https://www.toledoshow.com/ Here's a sneak peek at just a few of the planes RC Resale will have available! [gallery ids="3547,3548,3549,3550,3551,3552,3553,3555,3554"]

AMA Foundation staff members attend Expo East

Secaucus, New Jersey was the site of AMA Expo East in February. Many AMA staff members attended to run the show, but this was a special trip for foundation staff as we were going to pick up a donation to take with us to sell in the expo's Swap Shop. This donation came from a good friend of ours, Charles Sylvia. You may remember Mandee’s blog post about her trip with Tony to visit Charles back in October to pick up his first donation to the AMA foundation and now he was donating again! Mandee and I flew into LaGuardia airport and took our first New York City taxi ride into New Jersey.

 

Secaucus, New Jersey was the site of AMA Expo East in February. Many AMA staff members attended to run the show, but this was a special trip for foundation staff as we were going to pick up a donation to take with us to sell in the expo's Swap Shop. This donation came from a good friend of ours, Charles Sylvia. You may remember Mandee’s blog post about her trip with Tony to visit Charles back in October to pick up his first donation to the AMA foundation and now he was donating again! Mandee and I flew into LaGuardia airport and took our first New York City taxi ride into New Jersey. There we picked up our (not as small as we thought it would be) cargo van. We had a Cessna 310 to take to Charles as trade for another plane and then he was donating twelve additional planes to the foundation! Once we had the plane loaded and secured, we were off to New Hampshire. It was already dark and we had a four hour long drive ahead of us. We entered our destination into the GPS and Mandee nervously pulled off in our rented van. We made it to our hotel just after midnight to get a bit of sleep before heading out early to meet Charles. [caption id="attachment_3434" align="alignright" width="150"]expo east 5 Chrystal, Charles, Mandee[/caption] The next morning, we were welcomed into the home of Charles and his wife, Fran, where Charles already had all of the planes lined up and ready to load into the van! Charles is very organized and had a file to go along with each plane so that the new owner would have all the information they could ever need to know about their plane. Charles helped the two of us safely load them in the back of the van and we were also able to visit a bit with them while we were at it. Once we had the planes secured and took a photo documenting the occasion, we were back on the road. [caption id="attachment_3442" align="alignright" width="150"]Mandee driving on the George Washington Bridge Mandee driving on the George Washington Bridge[/caption] We thought we had the difficult part behind us, the long drive at night and loading up all the planes…but then we realized that we were going to have to drive back through New York City to get to the Meadowlands Exposition Center. Did I mention that Mandee is terrified of bridges? Well, I learned that about her on this trip. And she learned that there a lot of bridges in New York/New Jersey! As we got closer and closer to the George Washington Bridge, I tried as best as I could to calm Mandee’s nerves about driving a cargo van across it…in very heavy traffic. As you may be able to tell in the photo, she’s a little tense.  But, we made it! Once we pulled into the Expo Center, the relief of making it was so overwhelming to Mandee she had tears in her eyes and I believe she almost kissed the ground. And now, we actually had the hard part behind us! [caption id="attachment_3437" align="alignleft" width="150"]Mandee, Frank, Chrystal Mandee, Frank, Chrystal[/caption] The next few days were a whirlwind of activity in the Swap Shop. We got to meet so many people including District II AVP, Frank Granelli, who lent us his expertise in our booth.  One of our customers, AMA Member Frank Costello, came to the expo after hearing we were selling a C-47 twin. It had been a long-time dream of Frank’s to own this particular plane. We were excited to help make this dream come true…but not as excited as Frank was to take his plane home! [gallery columns="2" ids="3432,3431"] We had a great time at Expo East and sold all of our planes with the money raised benefiting AMA’s educational/youth programs. The foundation team is so thankful to everyone who made this trip so successful; Charles and Fran, Frank, and all of the members who are giving each plane sold the opportunity to fly again! It was a busy weekend but Mandee and I managed to make it into the city one night for dinner and a show...but don't worry, we left the driving up to a professional! [caption id="attachment_3441" align="aligncenter" width="150"]Mandee and Chrystal on Broadway Mandee and Chrystal on Broadway[/caption]   Chrystal Pearson Development Communications Coordinator AMA Foundation

Celina Flying Sportsmen Celebrates Annual Swap Meet

The Celina Flying Sportsmen have recently been awarded with at $175 Award Recognition and Grant by the AMA Foundation. The club hosted their annual Swap Meet where dozens of vendors filled 70 tables to get people started in the hobby of R.C. model flying. The club was featured in Hometown Station, WLIO Lima Ohio,  for the success of the event. Eric Nelson, a member of the Celina Flying Sportsmen R.C. Club said, “The hobby's been growing like mad. The Academy of Model Aeronautics (A.M.A) was about at 165,000 people.

 

The Celina Flying Sportsmen have recently been awarded with at $175 Award Recognition and Grant by the AMA Foundation. The club hosted their annual Swap Meet where dozens of vendors filled 70 tables to get people started in the hobby of R.C. model flying. The club was featured in Hometown Station, WLIO Lima Ohio,  for the success of the event. Eric Nelson, a member of the Celina Flying Sportsmen R.C. Club said, “The hobby's been growing like mad. The Academy of Model Aeronautics (A.M.A) was about at 165,000 people. This year, I saw the numbers we’re up to 195 thousand, that’s worldwide.” Gaining attention and growth into the hobby is something that is always appreciated by the AMA Foundation. We thank the Celina Flying Sportsmen R.C. Club for their efforts in sharing the passion of flying. Celina The AMA Club Recognition and Reward Program was established to encourage clubs to promote model aviation. The AMA offers clubs cash incentives for positive local media coverage for a public event, public service, club announcement, or other coverage. Click here to learn more about this program.

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