This piece originally ran in the July 2020 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine.
Doug Greenfield, EAA 377864, has been attending EAA AirVenture Oshkosh since the early 1990s and volunteering in numerous capacities, beginning a few years after his first visit. Doug initially volunteered on the flightline in the Ultralights area and was soon asked to be a co-chairman, a position he held for 15 years. With his sons Jacob and Adam helping out in the Ultralights area, Doug eventually decided to give up his co-chairmanship, which was subsequently given to his oldest son, Jacob. He then began working with EAA’s photography team to organize and coordinate air-to-air photoshoots with pilots and EAA photographers.
At first, Doug was the only volunteer performing these duties. His daughter, Amanda, soon joined him because there was simply too much to get done and organized. Even with Amanda on the team, Doug has some incredibly long days during AirVenture.
“We start at 4:30 in the morning and go all day long until [it] shuts down at 8:00 at night,” Doug said. “We’re running everywhere. I need extra bodies sometimes, so she’s been fantastic.”
Like many EAA volunteers, Doug gives up nearly his entire week to help out when he could be relaxing and simply enjoying the show. He donates his time because he wants to share his love for flying and aviation with anyone he can.
“I’ve been around aviation since I was 3 years old,” he said. “I love flying. When you first go to Oshkosh, it’s overwhelming. You can’t imagine how big it is, how much passion there is about flying. It’s the sharing of that same passion with so many people [that I enjoy]. Everybody there gets stressed during the week, but everyone works hard. But volunteers are the friendliest people in the world. Over time, those people have become family.”
In addition, Doug’s children have developed that same passion for AirVenture, something that’s made his volunteer service even more gratifying.
“It’s truly a time where my kids and I have a connection with each other,” he said. “We take family vacations and do things like that together, but over the years it’s been what we’ve done at Oshkosh and the people we connect with that we value as much as anything.”
Volunteers make EAA AirVenture Oshkosh— and just about everything else EAA does — possible. This space in EAA Sport Aviation is dedicated to thanking and shining the spotlight on volunteers from the community. Sadly, it cannot capture all of the thousands of volunteers who give so much to the community every year. So, next time you see a volunteer at AirVenture or elsewhere, however they are pitching in to make EAA better, be sure to thank them for it. It’s the least we can do. Do you know a volunteer you’d like to nominate for Volunteer Spotlight? Visit www.EAA.org/submissions.