October 2011 President's Prespective

AMA Executive Vide President Mark Smith	HI FOLKS! This has been an extremely busy month. Would you believe that in just one month, I have had the privilege of speaking at our 75th Anniversary banquet and flying with a number of modelers in Muncie, conducting my first Executive Council meeting, and making the welcoming address at not one, but two international events. A milestone in my modeling career was having the privilege of speaking at our 75th Anniversary celebration. On Friday evening, roughly 250 people from the modeling community as well as several Muncie dignitaries joined us in a well-executed event where we paid tribute to AMA.
The evening began with a cocktail party outside the banquet hall and then we moved to the dining area. During the next two hours, we announced the Hall of Fame inductees, AMA scholarship winners, and presented several other awards. There were several videos that gave a wonderful overview of our heritage. Again, this outstanding evening would not have been possible if it were not for the hard work of our staff, many of whom contributed countless hours putting this all together. We are so fortunate to have these talented AMA employees! On Saturday, we held our July Executive Council meeting. I was told that I just may have conducted the shortest meeting on record. I was focused on completing the necessary work and then to go flying! I felt it was important that our board members had the opportunity to interact with the people who came to enjoy the celebration. After all, we are all pulled together by model aviation, right? So I thought, “Let’s get out there and fly!” Although the Soaring Nats was still in progress, we used a flying site on the other side of the property to fly just about everything. I have heard nothing but high praise for the entire weekend. I was home for a week and then flew back to Indiana for the FAI F3A World Championships in Muncie where I took part in welcoming representatives from 31 countries along with FAI and local community dignitaries. Two days later, I drove to Dayton, Ohio, where I welcomed competitors from 16 countries to the Ninth Jet World Masters. My message to the audience at both events was to underscore to the competitors that today began another chapter in a story that originated the day they first flew a model airplane. What an honor it was for the competitors to be at the event, representing their various countries and competing in one of the world’s most prestigious model aviation events. It was equally important to recognize the event managers, friends, and the families that accompanied the contestants, because their support and encouragement was critical to each pilot’s success. Finally, it was important to acknowledge those who organized the contests and all of the volunteers. The countless telephone calls, emails, meetings, and discussions culminated in a fair and exciting competition, but equally important, it was a memorable and positive experience for all involved. These international competitions are held to determine the best of the best; however, there is so much more to a World Championship than just the competition. Throughout the contest, old friendships were renewed and new ones made—friendships that transcend any language barrier and borders and will last a lifetime. The common denominator that makes these friendships what they are is model aviation. I hope you can tell, this has been an exciting month and I look forward to the rest of the summer! Enjoy the hobby, help out a kid, and most importantly, have fun! Keep in touch.MA Mark Smith AMA Executive Vice President [email protected] Back To This Month's Issue of Model Aviation