TAIL MA ed IL R ® ® CAF Red Tail Squadron N EW SLETTER Monthly Newsletter Since our RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit® hit the road in July of 2011, it has made been seen by over 156,000 adults, but most importantly 130,000 children. Don Hinz had a vision that we could use the excitement of a flying airplane and the story of the Tuskegee Airmen to inspire and educate young people and that was the genesis of the RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit. Every year I attend several events with the exhibit, and I have witnessed first hand the impact that we make. Several years ago, we were set up at the Hearne, Texas airport for school tours. Photo courtesy Max Haynes Hearne is an economically depressed area in south central Texas. At the end of In This Issue - April 2019 the presentation we would bring up the lights, and I would walk into the exhibit to ask and answer questions. I asked the 3rd grade class, “What were the lessons • Leaders view of the Tuskegee Airmen?” A girl quickly raised her hand and was enthusiastically • Tour schedule at a glance waving, so I called on her. She stood up and with determination and conviction • Greetings from the she said, “Work Hard, Dream Big, Never Give Up!” All the hours flying cross Ambassador team country fighting difficult weather to get to events, and the nights away from • Event photos home in a hotel became totally worth it. A young girl growing up in a place • Our mission in action with limited opportunity just figured out the road map for success. • Educational resources The Six Guiding Principles© on our RISE ABOVE: Red Tail dog tags really sum • Shop with a purpose it up – Aim High, Believe in Yourself, Use Your Brain, Be Ready to Go, Never • Quote of the month Quit, Expect to Win. It is a roadmap for life, and while I fully understand that • Profiles of Tuskegee not every kid who attends the RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit® is inspired to Airmen: Robert Robinson achieve, we know that many are. • Join the Top Flight Club • And then there where It is exactly those principles we have used to overcome the adversities we have women! Tuskegee encountered in our efforts operating the program. And those principles are the Airmen Nurses roadmap for our new and exciting effort to create the next chapter to educate • Did you know and inspire, “RISE ABOVE: WASP.” The story of the Women’s Air Service Pilots will increase the impact of both the Red Tail and WASP stories through better • Virtual Museum artifcat logistics and greater access for both programs. spotlight • In your words I am very grateful for what we have achieved since those days back in that • Blue Skies Robert hangar in Minnesota, mapping out our ambitious plan. The addition of RISE McDaniel ABOVE: WASP will keep us growing and impacting more young people (and • A Tuskegee hero is buried adults) with the excitement and inspiring stories more will understand no matter 75 years after his death in what obstacles we face, we too, can “Rise Above!” World War II • Archive photos • Thank you supporters • For more information Tailwinds, Doug Rozendaal CAF Red Tail Squadron Leader RISE ABOVE tour schedule at a glance PLEASE CHECK OUR SCHEDULE ONLINE FOR UPDATES! DATE EVENT LOCATION April 27-28 MCAS Beaufort Air Show Beaufort, SC RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang May 10-12 Joint Base Andrews Air Show Camp Springs, MD RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang May 15-18 LAUNCH Chicago at DuSable Museum Chicago, IL RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit May 24-26 The National Salute to America’s Heroes/Miami Miami, FL Beach Air & Sea Show RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang June 4-9 Fort Wayne Air Show Fort Wayne, IN RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang June 12-15 Aviation Heritage Park Hangar Party Bowling Green, KY RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit July 6-7 Kansas City Air Show Kansas City, MO RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang July 22-28 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, WI RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang August 3-4 Fly Iowa Boone, IA P-51C Mustang August 14-18 Power on the Prairie Sioux Falls, SD RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang August 20-25 Herbert Hoover National Historic Site West Branch, IA RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit September 6-8 Spirit of St. Louis Air Show & STEM Expo St. Louis, MO RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit September 14-15 Marion Wings & Wheels Marion, OH RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang September 19-22 Pikes Peak Regional Airshow Colorado Springs, RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang CO September 25-29 Bikes, Blues, BBQ, and Bombers: Arkansas Air & Fayetteville, AR Military Museum RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit & P-51C Mustang November 1-3 Salute to Military Event at Kemah Boardwalk Kemah, TX RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit To book RISE ABOVE: Red Tail for your event contact Kristi Younkin, Senior Logistics Coordinator, at [email protected] or (479) 228-4520 Page 2 GREETINGS FROM THE AMBASSADOR TEAM! I would like to take this opportunity to say Thank You to our Ambassador Deidre McGee, who has been assisting behind the scenes with our newsletter. Also, to our Ambassador Mark Erickson who helped us out in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at the Executive Airport, Open House. Tuskegee Airman, Lt. Col. George Hardy joined us and it was a fantastic event! If you are interested in volunteering and becoming part of the Red Tail team, please complete the online volunteer application form and a representative Volunteer Coordinator from the CAF Red Tail Squadron will contact you. Melanie Burden VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT Marianne Leary & Richard Calvert Marianne Leary and Richard Calvert are two of our enthusiastic volunteers, married for over 17 years, they live in Leawood, Kansas. Marianne’s father, Thomas Conway Leary, (now deceased) was a P-51 Pilot in WWII based in Madna, Italy with the 2nd Fighter Squadron, 52nd Fighter Group of the 15th Air Force. Conway was shot down while on a staffing mission outside of Budapest, Hungary and was a POW for six months, spending some of his time in captivity in Stalag Luft III, made famous by the Great Escape. Marianne learned about the Tuskegee Airmen from her father. The Red Tails were based at an airfield about 25 miles from where Marianne’s father was located in Italy. Marianne and Richard were inspired by Marianne’s dad and also by a good friend, Alexander Jefferson, a Red Tail P-51 pilot and POW who was also held in Stalag Luft III. Richard served in the Vietnam War as an Army Combat Medic and earned the Purple Heart. He completed Special Forces Training and then served with various groups and special operations in Vietnam including Long Range Reconnaissance, 101st Airborne and Dust Off Units. The South Vietnamese Army recognized Richard for making 54 combat jumps with their 1st Airborne Division. Richard followed in his uncle Robert Calvert’s footsteps, his uncle was an Army Combat Medic in WWII in the Pacific Theater. Marianne and Richard both enjoy history, travel and attending Air Venture in Oshkosh and the Reno Air Races. They are regular volunteers for the Heartland Honor Flight in Kansas City and support numerous Veteran’s Organizations and causes. Marianne is an attorney working in the telecommunications industry and is an avid equestrian enthusiast. Richard works for a home energy audit firm and spends his spare time working on the restoration of his 1929 Dodge hot rod. Page 3 EVENT PHOTOS To see more photos, please visit our Facebook page! Be sure to LIKE and SHARE! Halifax Community Collage March 12 - 16 Left: Halifax Community College President Michael Elam and his wife Page 4 Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport March 20-24 Lt. Col George Hardy posing with a group of U.S. Customs and Border Security Patrol students and instructors Make a one-time or recurring donation to help us to ensure the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen is passed on to future generations, so that their strength of character, courage and ability to triumph over adversity may serve as a means to inspire others to RISE ABOVE obstacles in their own lives and achieve their goals! Give online, by calling 888-928-0188, or by mail at: CAF Red Tail Squadron 971 Hallstrom Drive Red Wing, MN 55066 Page 5 OUR MISSION IN ACTION - The message of RISE ABOVE changes lives! Meet Trevor Simoneau - we are proud to have played a small part in this young mans “rise to success”! When I was 11 years old, I visited the DeLand Municipal Airport for an Experimental Aircraft Association Young Eagles rally. As we pulled up to the hangar, I noticed an airplane that I had always loved and admired but had only dreamed about seeing in real life. The airplane was a red-tailed P-51 Mustang. I couldn’t believe my eyes. A P-51 on the tarmac of my hometown airport. The Commemorative Air Force Red Tail Squadron showcased their Rise Above Traveling Exhibit at KDED. I had basic prior knowledge about the Tuskegee Airmen. I knew they were the first black pilots to serve in the U.S. Army Air Forces. Rise Above taught me who these brave men are and the myriad obstacles they faced in order to serve our country. The Tuskegee Airmen rose above segregation to defend a country that ironically segregated them at home and in service during World War II. Their journey enthralled me. Determined to share their story with more students, I chose to study the Tuskegee Airmen for my National History Day project.