By Wayne Flury, EAA Lifetime 117059
Third year of Build and Fly program marks first utilization of new classroom/multi-purpose room
Anyone who has ever endured a home remodeling project knows that it never goes as smoothly as expected, takes more time than expected, might cost more than expected, and there is always dirt, dust, and building material cluttering up the area (all generally speaking, of course!). As it turns out, the same is also true for a hangar upgrade project!
On Sunday, September 14, members of EAA Chapter 878 welcomed guests, visitors, and potential new members to our hangar home on the Maple Lake Airport with an “Open House” event. This celebrated the progress of our “hangar remodeling” program and our recently completed classroom. With good food and socializing, plus a little self-congratulatory backslapping, we introduced the local and aviation communities to Chapter 878, the hangar and classroom, its purpose, and our anticipated future. We’re referring to the hangar as the Chapter 878 Aviation Education Center.
Chapter 878 began in 1986 and had an immediate emphasis on programs for youth. But we faced restrictions in what we could provide for programs due to limited space, an inability to set up and conduct training or educational programs in a “borrowed facility,” and lack of storage for chapter assets and program materials. We also usually needed to hold our general meetings in facilities provided by others.
In 2021 the chapter was able to purchase a hangar at the Maple Lake. This followed years of talking, planning, and holding fundraising events (pork chop dinner fly-ins, pancake breakfasts, and anything else we could think of). We also received generous donations from chapter members, and our local Star Bank expressed their faith in us by virtue of a loan. Upgrades were needed, known, and began almost immediately. These included a new concrete floor, repair/refurbish the roof, install and insulate the ceiling, replace/upgrade all electrical, install new LED lighting, construct the classroom and a utility room, install a heating system for the classroom and utility room, stubbed in for a future restroom, and a few additional things to bring it all up to code for classroom use. Other, less immediate, improvements will follow.
Earlier this summer the classroom was initiated by three volunteers from the chapter and nine youths from the area who participated in a six-week course based on EAA’s “Build and Fly” program (building a radio-controlled airplane). This was our third year of offering this opportunity to students.
The classroom has also hosted at least one meeting of the Maple Lake Airport Commission.
Next up will be the start of a long-awaited RV-4 construction project, being offered to youths involved with the Delano CAP squadron. This is being coordinated by a chapter and CAP member who has already held a class to introduce the prospective builders to the magic of sheet metal layout, drilling, and riveting.
Fundraising will necessarily continue and will allow the chapter to introduce more improvements and upgrades, making the hangar even more useable and functional for other educational events and chapter activities.
People interested in more information about EAA Chapter 878, our hangar, the EAA Build and Fly program and Chapter 878’s specific adaptations of the program, or our RV-4 project may contact the author at wflury@outlook.com.
Wayne Flury is a rural Buffalo, Minnesota, resident, an EAA Chapter 878 founding member, former chapter secretary and newsletter editor, currently acting vice president, an advocate for general aviation, and an AirVenture Oshkosh volunteer.