The First Flight Society announces its Board of Directors for 2024. Most of the directors are from North Carolina.
The newly elected Executive Committee consists of:
President-Mike Fonseca
Vice President-Paul Wright Jameson
Finance Committee Chair-Erica Paynter
Marketing/Membership Committee Chair-William “Bill” Douglas
Education Committee Chair-Judith Fearing
The rest of the 2024 board consists of:
Paul Carr, Sara Lou Copeland, Danny Couch, M. Roy Daniels, III, Dr Charles Davidson, Mark Flynn, Orestes Gooden, Penny Leary Smith, William Nelson, Mike Smith, K Lynn Tadlock. Erica Paynter is new to the board this year.
The FFS plans an annual celebration at the Wright Brothers National Memorial on Wright Brothers Day, December 17th to memorialize the work of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk, NC. First Flight Society also celebrates Wilbur Wright Day on April 16th and National Aviation Day on August 19th which is also Orville Wright’s birthday. December 17, 2024 is the 121st anniversary of the Wright Brothers first flight.
They created the Paul E Garber Shrine in 1966 to honor individuals and groups for achieving significant “firsts” in aviation development since 1903: Charles Lindbergh, General Chuck Yeager, Mary Feik, John Glenn, Katherine Johnson (Hidden Figures) and most recently Walter & Olive Ann Beech among others. The 2024 Inductee will be announced on April 16th.
Without the First Flight Society there would not be a Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. The Kill Devil Hills Memorial Association, later named First Flight Society, began as a group of local businessmen who successfully petitioned the US Congress to fund and build a monument to the Wright Brothers’ 1903 achievement. The FFS celebrates its 97th year in 2024.
First Flight Society has the Vision that One day people everywhere will be inspired by the dauntless resolution and tireless work of the Wright Brothers. Their Mission is that We tell the story of the Wright Brothers through community events, education, and the commemoration of the world’s very first powered flight, in Kitty Hawk, NC
More information about the First Flight Society can be found at https://firstflight.org or https://wrightbrothersday.org.
Link to Press release:
Introducing the 2024 First Flight Society Board of Directors