Fall Fly-in, November 4th, Gilbert International Airpark (SC45), 10am-3pm

A BT-13 Vultee Warbird from Dry Swamp Airport (1DS) is shown above.
Click on the photo above for more photos

     Our Fall Fly-in on Saturday, November 4th was a huge success. We counted 137 people for lunch and 28 aircraft in attendance. Everyone seemed to have enjoyed it immensely, and we received many compliments. Everyone who came received an "attendance" ticket, and our chapter gave away 4 gift certificates by drawing tickets.  Winners were Delores Rucker, Dick Hitt, Mike Ballee, and Ed Seibert.  We also sponsored a 50/50 drawing. The winning ticket was held by Tony Scribner, so he won half the "pot". The other half went to the chapter to help fund the food and supplies used today. Thank all of you who had a part in making this event a success. You all did a great job, and it showed to all who attended!

October 15th Meeting, Gilbert International Airpark (SC45). 12pm-4pm

Student Pilot, Grace Lastinger, receives a chapter certificate for completing her first solo flight on October 11th, 2023
Click on the above photo to witness her solo flight video

     Our October meeting was held on October 15th, 2023 at Gilbert International Airpark (SC45). Members started arriving as early as 12:00noon and started socializing. We had a nice lunch beginning around 1:00pm. The September 17th minutes were approve, and our Treasurer gave a financial report. We received the Ford Tri-motor check from EAA, which was more than we had originally anticipated, so our treasurer is even healthier now.

    Our major business task for today was to finalize planning for our upcoming Fall Fly-in scheduled for November 4th with an alternate "rain date" of Saturday, November 11th.  President, Randy Berry, has secured the EAA liability insurance for the event and posted notifications on the EAA and Social Flight websites. He also sent personal invitations to several local clubs and individuals. He further arranged for EAA to send out a "chapterblast" to all EAA members within about a 75-mile radius of SC45 about 10-14 days prior to the event. Other aspects of the fly-in are going well, and we feel that we are as prepared for the fly-in as we can be. Now, the weather will hopefully cooperate.

     Also, our 501(c)(3) status has been approved by the State of South Carolina and the iRS, so our chapter is now able to accept donations of money, aircraft, property, or otherwise on a "tax exempt" basis and donors may claim their donations as deductions on their future taxes. The chapter membership voted to accept the new bylaws, which are essentially the same as the previous bylaws, but with verbiage required by the IRS. Thanks to chapter member and local attorney, Michael Morris, for his invaluable assistance in achieving this milestone; we could not have achieved it without his help.

September 17th, 2023 Meeting, Gilbert International Airpark (SC45), 12pm-4pm

Chapter member & attorney, Michael Morris, receives thanks for getting Our IRS "Tax Exempt" status approved
Click on the above photo for photos taken on 10/15/23

      Our September meeting was held on September 17th, 2023  at Gilbert International Airpark (SC45). Members started arriving as early as 12:00noon and started socializing. We continued socializing and had a nice lunch beginning around 1:00pm.Then, President, Randy Berry, conducted our business/information meeting starting around 2:00pm. The minutes for August were approved, and we had a financial report, which indicates that our chapter treasury is healthy.

     There were two major items of business today: (1) Chapter member, Michael Morris, has been working diligently on gaining approval for our 501(c)(3) "tax exempt" status, and that process is nearing completion. It has been approved by the State of South Carolina, and we are currently awaiting approval by the IRS. (2) We performed the initial planning for our upcoming Fall Fly-in scheduled for November 4th, 2023. Those plans are progressing well.