National Model Aviation Museum

McAlister's Deli in Muncie, IN will host a fundraiser for the National Model Aviation Museum on June 13th between 3pm and 9:30pm. Stop in and grab a bite to eat and a portion of the proceeds will support the National Model Aviation Museum's Museum in a Box outreach program! McAlister's Deli is located at 600 E. McGalliard Road. Check out their menu online here. Learn more about the National Model Aviation Museum here. Thank you to McAlister's Deli for supporting AMA and the Museum!

Visit the National Model Aviation throughout the month of February to learn more about the history of African Americans in aviation and celebrate Black History Month. The museum will host “Black Wings: American Dreams of Flight”—a Smithsonian traveling exhibition—to honor the history of African Americans in flight, as well as a speaker series on February 10, 2018. The exhibition will open at the National Model Aviation Museum in Muncie, Ind., on February 1, 2018, and will be on view through the month of February in honor of Black History Month. The Wright brothers signaled the arrival of the new air age with their historic flight in 1903, they sparked America’s new fascination with and exploration of flight. And while many African Americans were enthusiastic about flight, they still faced racial discrimination and were denied access to formal training as pilots and mechanics. The Smithsonian traveling exhibition “Black Wings: American Dreams of Flight” chronicles the powerful group of aviation proponents who challenged these obstacles and created their own legacy in the world of flight. “Black Wings” will open at the National Model Aviation Museum in Muncie, Ind., on February 1, 2018, and will be on view through the month of February in honor of Black History Month. Developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, the exhibition was made possible by the generous support of the MetLife Foundation. On February 10, 2018, the National Model Aviation Museum will host a special speaker series featuring members of the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals (OBAP) who will be sharing their experiences in the aviation industry. Returning panelists include Captain Albert Glenn (OBAP) and John Graham (FedEx), and joining them will be A.C. Glenn (F3A Team USA). The discussion will begin at 1 p.m. inside the gallery of the National Model Aviation Museum. Admission to the panel discussion and the museum will be free of charge for members of the community. This event is presented in partnership with the YWCA of Muncie and the Muncie Chapter of the Indiana Black Expo, Inc. This exhibition chronicles some of the most important black figures from the past and present who helped make the dream of careers in flight and space exploration possible, including Bessie Coleman, a young African American woman who desired to fly but whose race prevented her from doing so in the U.S. To combat this injustice, Coleman went to France to learn to fly. Another important figure, William J. Powell, led an ambitious program to promote aviation by establishing the Bessie Coleman Flying Club and later sponsored the first all-black air show in Los Angeles in the late 1930s. These are people who shaped the lasting legacy African Americans would forever leave on aviation. Divided into six sections, “Black Wings” chronicles the evolution of aviation through the stories of African Americans who dreamed of flight, left their mark and helped pave the way for those who would follow. Figures whose contributions are explored include the Tuskegee Airmen—the first military division of African American pilots who fought in World War II—and Mae Jemison, the first African American woman to fly in space. The exhibition is based on the book “Black Wings: Courageous Stories of African Americans in Aviation and Space History” (HarperCollins, 2008) by exhibition curator Von Hardesty of the National Air and Space Museum. The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum maintains the largest collection of historic air and spacecraft in the world, is a vital center for research into the history, science, and technology of aviation and space flight, and memorializes the national development of aviation and space flight. Learn more online, airandspace.si.edu. SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for more than 65 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. Exhibition descriptions and tour schedules are available at sites.si.edu. For more information please visit our Facebook event page https://www.facebook.com/events/1939877386332461/?active_tab=about.  

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