April 16th, 2021 will be Wilbur Wright’s 154th Birthday. It’s also the day that we announce our 2021 Paul E Garber Honoree. We will be celebrating Wilbur’s birthday online throughout the day. Watch for videos, photos and social media posts.
Wilbur Wright is best known for developing the first successful airplane with his brother, Orville. Wilbur was born on April 16, 1867, near Millville, Indiana.
The FFS Paul Garber honoree is selected annually by a high-level panel appointed by the First Flight Society, from among numerous nominations submitted from around the world as well as compiled lists of qualified candidates. The Shrine is located within the Museum and Visitors Center at the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kitty Hawk, NC. The induction ceremony will be held on Wright Brothers Day, December 17, 2021, with a celebration banquet held on December 16, 2021 in Kitty Hawk. A portrait of the honoree will be unveiled and presented at the ceremony on December 17th, 2021, celebrating the 118th Anniversary of the Wright Brothers First Flight.
Mark April 16th on your calendar!
We are accepting nominations for the First Flight Society Paul E. Garber First Flight Shrine for 2022.
Honorees for the Paul E. Garber First Flight Shrine are selected annually by a National Advisory Committee from a list of nominees submitted to the First Flight Society and passed to the Committee for consideration. The committee accepts a letter of nomination accompanied by supporting documentation.
The nominee(s) may but does not have to be a “first” but rather “…a person, living or dead, who since December 17, 1903, either personally or with the assistance of others, has made such outstanding accomplishments in manned flight that they are generally recognized nationally and internationally for their achievements and contributions to aviation.” Nominees are kept on file for immediate or future consideration.
Enclosed is the Nomination Form for the Paul E. Garber First Flight Shrine, which should be mailed with any supporting documents to: First Flight Society, Post Office Box 1903, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949. Nominations may also be emailed to: admin@firstflight.org.
Nominations are due March 31, 2021. Please call our office if you have other questions.
First Flight Society would like to welcome our newest Bronze Sponsor and Business Member.
“In 1978, Twiddy & Company Realtors opened its first office on the Outer Banks in Duck Village. In 1982, the business expanded to include a second office in Corolla. As the company grew, the restored Kill Devil Hills Lifesaving Station was moved to Corolla to serve as an additional office space. A new office building was constructed in 1995 and expanded in 2003.
Twiddy & Company reflects the ideals, values, and vision of its Founder, Doug Twiddy, who has set the standard for excellence in professional real estate services in the northern Outer Banks area.
Doug’s philosophy was always that Twiddy & Company and rental property owners are business partners pursuing mutual goals. He believed creating success for our company, clients, and customers were achieved only through the combined efforts of a team of competent, experienced and motivated professionals who fully endorse the founder’s values of integrity and personal service. Doug’s sons, Clark and Ross, support these objectives that Twiddy & Company takes extraordinary measures to ensure high employee morale and retention.
As an Outer Banks vacation rental company, our mission is to provide superb property management to our homeowners and an exceptional Outer Banks vacation experience to our guests. Only when both are satisfied do we have a successful relationship rewarding to all parties. This relationship is the basis for Twiddy & Company’s long-term success, which depends on owner satisfaction, repeat guests and business referrals.” – from the Twiddy & Company Realtors website.
You can find more information about Twiddy & Company Realtors at https://www.twiddy.com/
KITTY HAWK, N.C. – January 26, 2021 — The First Flight Society would like to announce its Board of Directors for 2021.All of the directors are from North Carolina, except three who are from Virginia.
The newly elected Executive Committee consists of:
President-Mike Fonseca
1st Vice President-Dr Charles Davidson
2nd Vice President-William “Bill” Douglas
Treasurer-H Taylor Sugg
Secretary-Paul Carr
The rest of the 2021 board consists of :
Sara Lou Copeland, Danny Couch, M. Roy Daniels, III, David Daniels, Lisa Ellstrom, Judith Fearing, Orestes Gooden, Paul Wright Jameson, Arthur J. Lamothe, Blake Sauls, Doug Seay, Mike Smith, Penny Leary Smith and Peregrine White.
Joe Lamothe, Mike Smith and Geneva Perry are former presidents of the 94 year old Society that started out as the Kill Devil Hills Memorial Association.
The FFS plans an annual celebration at the Wright Brothers National Memorial on Wright Brothers Day, December 17th mandated by their bylaws to memorialize the work of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk, NC. First Flight Society also celebrates National Aviation Day on August 19th which is also Orville Wright’s birthday.
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.
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, Tuskegee Airmen, Mary Feik, John Glenn, Katherine Johnson (Hidden Figures) and most recently Colonel Gail “the Candy Bomber” Halvorsen among others.
First Flight Society promotes aviation education through an Aviation Education Committee to expand the knowledge of the Wright Brothers’ legacy by bringing aviation education programs to students in Dare County. They also offer an annual FFS Scholarship through Outer Banks Community Foundation for students pursuing aviation education in North Carolina.
Frank Walker Caldwell was a leading American propeller engineer and designer. As the United States government’s chief propeller engineer, he pioneered propeller engineering and propeller testing facilities and techniques. Mr. Caldwell’s many contributions to aviation in propeller technology highlighted by his winning with Hamilton Standard the 1933 Collier Trophy for design of the controllable-pitch propeller. His design innovations led to the Hydromatic constant-speed propeller used by virtually every frontline US aircraft in WWII, and his pioneering whirl test procedures were indispensable to the development of all modern high-performance propellers during the 20th Century.
Wright Brothers Day video featuring 2020 Honorary Member Sean D Tucker.
Video produced by Tucker / Hess Productions
TuckerHessProductions.com
