An AirVenture Family Affair

STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHY

BY JADE MORRIS AIRVENTURE TODAY STAFF

THREE GENERATIONS OF PILOTS in one family are fully immersed in aviation, so much so that to them coming to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh is a family reunion.

Donald Duck grew up around aviation. When he was 5 years old he built model airplanes and received his first airplane ride in a Cub. After some time, Donald’s father bought a Cub himself. Donald did most of the flying when his dad purchased the Cub, and he went on to join the Air Force. He became an EAA member in 1968.

Eventually Donald met his wife, Karen, and introduced her to the world of aviation. Karen always flew with Donald and was his biggest supporter. Karen and Donald have volunteered in South Maintenance for 20-25 years and have loved every second of it.

When Donald and Karen decided it was time to start a family, they made sure their children had the opportunity to be involved with aviation. Their oldest son, Donald Scott, who goes by Scott, has always admired his father’s love for aviation. With that in mind, Scott wanted his dad to see the Cub his dad acquired in the 1960s attend AirVenture. Donald tore the Cub down in 1972, and the restoration began in 2006. After a lengthy rebuild, last Tuesday, July 18, was the first test flight. The family’s youngest son, Craig, got checked out in it, and after that, the family set out for AirVenture.

The trip was made from Edwardsburg, Michigan, with Scott flying a Piper PA-17 Vagabond and his son, Craig, flying the Piper J-3 Cub.

Donald and Karen’s second-oldest son, Tim, watched his dad’s reaction as his airplanes flew in. Even though it was nerve-wracking for Scott and Craig as they flew the airplanes in, Tim thought it was all worth it when he saw the smile it brought to their dad’s face.

“To see him come in here with the two of them and the Cub, the smile on his face,” Tim said, “I thought when they first came in, it was worth a lifetime.”

“To see him break down in tears when we got there made it all worthwhile,” Craig added.

The family loves attending AirVenture year after year because they get to see friends who have become family and spend time with their immediate family. The whole family, including the kids, parents, wives, and grandkids, all give their time to volunteer during AirVenture. They all value family connections and relationships, so when AirVenture comes around, it is a chance to have quality time together. They love what the event brings to them and everything it has done for their family.

“The group we work with is a family; the people make us want to volunteer year after year,” Karen said, “I love when the family is around; family is very important to us.”

“There is a couple that is with our group, they have no background in aviation,” Donald said, “but they come up here and have a good time volunteering.”

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