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Last year I shared the experience Ben Flesher and I had when we attended Wounded Warrior Project’s VIPS Day at their headquarters in Jacksonville, FL. This was still one of the best adventures I have had at AMA. We got to learn so much and we both left knowing that our clubs had made a huge difference for veterans. While we were in one of the training sessions, we learned about WWP’s alumni programs. These are the activities they provide to veterans signed up for services the organization provides. They talked about how the veterans were given opportunities to learn new things, meet new friends, set new goals, etc. When we heard about it, I knew model flying would be the perfect activity for the veterans to learn about. It took some time, but eventually we were put in contact with Emily Gray, who helped us from start to finish to host our first Warrior Day at AMA. Our team welcomed a total of 35 people out to the International Aeromodeling Center to learn as much about model flying as possible in one day. The day started with introductions, including a welcome from Dennis Tyler, the mayor of Muncie, Dave Mathewson, AMA’s executive director, and Tim Jesky, AMA district VII vice president. We split the group up into three smaller groups and assigned a group leader for each. The groups then visited the following stations: 1: Flight simulator and buddy boxing 2: National Model Aviation Museum and hands-on activities 3: FPV racing/demonstrations with Ready Made RC. Most of the success for the day should be accredited to the great folks with the Blacksheep RC Squadron in Danville, Indiana. They came to Muncie for the entire day and really impressed our staff and each person that attended the event. With their help we put on a model airshow and everyone got to try to fly. I would like to personally thank each person that volunteered, and give special credit to Rege Hall for supporting our team by finding the volunteers and the airshow pilots. Another person who deserves a lot of credit is Deven Schei. I met Deven for the first time at the VIPS event last year. Since then, he has attended other AMA events on behalf of WWP. He’s a great speaker, a great friend to AMA, and was a great influence in introducing AMA to the decision makers at WWP. We would also like to recognize the following individuals and companies for their support: Mayor Dennis Tyler, Muncie Fire Department, Lifestream Services Inc., The Haven, Museum of the Soldier, Papa Johns, Pepsi Beverages Co., Readymade RC, Pilots Greg Alderman, Bill Gentry, Parker Hall, Rege E. Hall, Spencer Stevens, Steven Woods, and all volunteers that helped us with buddy boxing. And thank you again to the great Platinum Sponsors of this year’s National Model Aviation Day celebration who assisted us with this partnership: Ready Made RC, Hobbico, Horizon Hobby, and Hobby King Thank you to everyone that participated in this day of giving back to those who served our country!   [caption id="attachment_2998" align="alignnone" width="225"] AMA Foundation staff, Mandee Mikulski & Chrystal Pearson[/caption] Mandee Mikulski Director of Development, AMA Foundation

In the past the Muncy Indoor Flyers of Muncy, PA were well-known for their large indoor flying site. After the dome they used to fly collapsed, the club needed a new place to call home. Lee Eisele, a lifelong farmer and avid modeler, and his wife, Kitty, opened up their field and on-site hobby shop to the club and they became the Muncy Flyers. AMA President, Bob Brown and his wife, JoAnne, visited the club on many occasions over the years. During one of their visits, Bob suggested that the club begin holding events. The club was in agreeance and they began hosting great fun-fly events. As a result of the events, the club started making money and was able to install a fabric runway. The club continued to fly at the field, eventually named The Lee Eisele Memorial R/C Park, until both Lee and Kitty passed away. Although the club wanted to continue to operate, a lack of a flying site led the members to find other sites and clubs. Collectively the members of the Muncy Flyers wanted to give back to AMA for its help throughout the years and honor Lee and Kitty. It was decided to give some to nearby clubs to help them keep flying, and to support the AMA Foundation. They purchased a brick along the Walk of Fame in memory of Lee and Kitty and donated the remaining money to the Foundation. Tony Minnella, who was the latest president of the club said: “The AMA always supported our club. Because of that, we wanted to help support them.” We appreciate this gesture and want to wish each member of the club good luck and happy flying in the future.

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded the Marshalltown R/C Flyers with a $100 Club Recognition and Reward grant. The club was featured in the Times-Republican on August 10th, 2016. The Marshalltown R/C Flyers hosted their 2016 Fun Fly August 13-14. The Fun Fly had free admission and offered all in attendance the opportunity to see some world-class flying. To learn more about the Marshalltown R/C Flyers, visit their website. 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.

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded the Fort Wayne Flying Circuits with a $150 Club Recognition and Reward grant. The club was featured in KPC News and The Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette for two separate events they recently held. The KPC News featured an article about the club's participation in the community's seventh annual Balloons Aloft event on July 5, 2016. The event included many different activities including dancing, classic cars, face painting,  a 1-mile family walk, and of course, R/C aircraft. The club was participating for the first time in the event and members were excited to put on a good show for the community. To read the full article, visit KPC News. [caption id="attachment_2924" align="alignright" width="300"] Flying Circuits President, Tom Hayes, with his giant model airplane.[/caption] The Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette featured the club's 35th annual Monster Mash and Swap Meet. This year's event was in celebration of National Model Aviation Day. The club president, Tom Hayes, said the purpose of the event was to bring pilots together, but also to share the hobby with the public. Hayes' hope was that spectators at the event would develop an interest in model flying. Visit the Journal Gazette to read more about the event. 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.

[embed]https://youtu.be/A2Ik5ppfs8Y[/embed] Middle and high school students from across the US competed in the UAS4STEM program’s national competition at the International Aeromodeling Center in Muncie, Indiana. The student teams built their own drones and competed in various flying challenges for the national title. The contest is designed to teach Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) skills. The 2016 UAS4STEM Search and Rescue Challenge’s first-place winners are Quad Squad from Shoreview, Minnesota, who were awarded a trophy, medals, and a $2,500 cash prize. The PTC Droners of Georgia took second place and the St. Mary’s CAP Squadron-O89 of Maryland took third place. The Dewey O. Broberg Jr. scholarship was also awarded to one of the competitors during the UAS4STEM national competition. The award recognized a team member who showed dedication, determination, and adherence to the rules and purpose of the competition. Congratulations to Paige Hensley, the recipient of the 2016 Dewey Broberg Jr. Memorial Scholarship. The Academy of Model Aeronautics Foundation would like to thank the family of Dewey O. Broberg Jr. for establishing this scholarship, and thank each supporter who has made contributions to the fund. Learn more about the Dewey O. Broberg Jr. scholarship. UAS4STEM was designed by the AMA to encourage teamwork, competition, and success through a STEM-based education platform. The UAS4STEM program provides student teams of four to eight people with training, insurance, licensing, and equipment to compete in search-and-rescue challenges. The program is managed by AMA’s Education department as part of AMA Flight School. Each of the teams that participated in the national competition earned their spot by qualifying at one of the many regional competitions held throughout the country. To help support the UAS4STEM program and similar programs offered by the AMA, visit the AMA Foundation's donation page. Congratulations to Quad Squad for winning the 2016 UAS4STEM Search and Rescue Challenge! View more pictures from the competition on the AMA Flickr page. Details about this year’s event and how to sign up to compete next year are found on the UAS4STEM website, https://www.uas4stem.org/.

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded the North Mississippi Radio Control Club (NMRCC) with a $75 Club Recognition and Reward grant. The club was featured on the DeSoto Times-Tribune website on July 1, 2016 with the same article printed on July 5, 2016. [caption id="attachment_2883" align="alignright" width="300"] Mike Lee, DTT
Aaron Scott of Senatobia holds aloft a radio-controlled P51 during a Tail Draggers exercise at Arkabutla Lake and Dam field.[/caption] The article introduced the community to NMRCC and radio-controlled aircraft. Dave Doyle, president of the club, explained the organization and membership benefits. To read the full article, visit the Desoto Times-Tribune website. 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.  

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded the Black Hawk R/C Pilots with a $150 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. The club was featured on KWWL, the NBC-affiliated television station in Waterloo, Iowa on July 16, 2016. The Black Hawk R/C Pilots hosted a Warbird Fly-In and encouraged the public to come out and watch. Club president, Neal Leeper, was interviewed for the segment and spoke of the progression of flying R/C airplanes. Today's airplanes, many of which are able to fly right out of the box, make it much easier to learn to fly than earlier days in the hobby when airplanes had to be built from scratch. The segment also promoted the club's upcoming event in celebration of National Model Aviation Day in August. 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.

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded the Wolverine Skyhawks with a $75 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. The club was featured in The Cedar Springs Post on July 19, 2016. The Skyhawks held their annual remote-controlled airplane show in conjunction with  the Cedar Springs Library's summer reading program. The crowd of about 150 enjoyed a show put on at the club's field, including 16 year old Jace "the Ace" Dussia. Jace is an XFC 3D Aerobatics champion and has been flying since he was seven years old. The club also gave away a remote controlled airplane system, won by 14 year old Kerissa Basso. [caption id="attachment_2867" align="alignright" width="288"] Jase “the Ace” Dussia entertained the crowd with his skillful flying of his remote-controlled aircraft. Here it’s hovering not far off the ground. Photo by J. Reed.[/caption] Read the full story on the Post website. 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.

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded the Fluvanna County Radio Control Flying Club (FCRCFC) with a $175 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. The club was featured on Charlottesville's CBS 19 Newsplex and local radio station Z95. FCRCFC hosted the first annual Wings and Wheels 4 PAWS (WW4PAWS) Car Show and Model Aviation Extravaganza on Saturday, June 25th to benefit four animal rescue organizations in Fluvanna County. WWPAWS was the largest and most successful event ever hosted by the FCRCFC. On Sunday, July 3rd, president Bill Sykes presented a ceremonial check for $2,800 to the directors of the four beneficiary organizations. Read the full story on the Wings and Wheels 4 Paws website. 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.

The Academy of Model Aeronautics recently awarded The Capital Area Drone Squadron (CARDS) with a $50 Club Recognition and Reward Grant. The club was featured in an article in the Lansing State Journal as well as published online. The CARDS have been flying unmanned aircraft for nearly 30 years and are reaching out in their community to promote and protect their passion for flying models. The group offers free flying instructions once a week and newcomers can attend three sessions before they are asked to pay dues to join the club. The CARDS want people to learn to fly correctly and hold several events throughout the year to introduce flying to their community. An event schedule can be found on their website. [caption id="attachment_2766" align="alignright" width="300"] Aerial view of the CARDS flying field in Grand Ledge, Michigan.[/caption] 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.