“I love flying,” said Mike Young, Gateway Eagles of Missouri Master Pilot volunteer. “I love talking about it, taking people flying and teaching them how to fly.”
Young was one of several volunteer pilots who taught children how to fly a Cessna 172 using Microsoft Flight Simulators on August 25 at the St. Louis Science Center. With Downtown St. Louis as a backdrop, children were asked to fly their planes through the Arch without crashing during 10 to 15 minute flying sessions.
Gateway Eagles of Missouri (GEM) volunteers meet on the fourth Saturday of every month in the Mission Control facility at the James S. McDonnell Planetarium. GEM is a predominately black aviation organization established in 1993. Its goal is to foster interest in aviation and space exploration among black youth.
The Cessna 172 is a small, single-engine aircraft that seats four people and travels at approximately 125 knots.
“You always fly a Cessna like someone you love is sitting next to you,” said Young, who has 19 years of flight experience.
Bert Vescolani, President and CEO of the St. Louis Science Center, appreciates their efforts.
“Volunteers are a big part of what makes non-profits at the Science Center a community resource. We really depend on them,” Vescolani said.
“I think a lot of people have preconceived notions and ideas about what they believe a scientist or pilot looks like. In some ways, this helps to broaden their perspective.”
This is the first year GEM has partnered with the St. Louis Science Center.
“What we found, in having this ongoing partnership, we can reach any child, not just the children we’re working with in the program,” said Armentha Russell, GEM secretary and volunteer educator.
Mark Varner, 15, of Parkway North High School is a member of St. Paul Saturdays. St. Paul Saturdays is a nationally and locally acclaimed mentoring program for African-American boys ages 6 to 17. It was established 27 years ago by Rev. C. Garnett Henning and the late Dr. William J. Harrison of St. Louis.
A group of mentors and mentees from St. Paul Saturdays were among those who received flight simulator instruction from GEM volunteers. Afterwards, some children flew hand-made paper airplanes while others enjoyed snippets of the movie Red Tails about the famous Tuskegee Airmen.
“If I wouldn’t have came to Science Center, I never would have became interested in such things like aviation,” Varner said.
However, he’s uncertain about whether or not he wants to be a pilot. “I would like to be one, but I don’t think I could handle the pressure of controlling that many peoples lives,” he said.
GEM collaborates with St. Louis schools, churches, community centers and organizations like the Boys & Girls Club of Greater St. Louis. Several GEM members are affiliated with the Black Pilots of America St. Louis chapter, which is named in honor of the late Major Lewis Lynch, who was a decorated Tuskegee Airman.
“If there’s any way that I can introduce anything to our children, then that’s what I want to do,” Russell said.
“They know there’s a pilot up there and an airline stewardess. Children, particularly our minority children, have no idea of all the careers and opportunities that are available in aviation.”
GEM volunteers steer children toward career fields in engineering, aerospace systems maintenance, civilian and military aerospace fields, aircrew, medical, communications, and computer systems and aerospace operations and controllers.
GEM introduces children to aerospace pioneers like Bessie Coleman, a famous African-American female pilot and air show performer during the early 1900s. Children learn the phonetic alphabet of pilots, how to measure nautical lines and read maps.
The organization boasts several success stories. Jared Joyner, a former member, obtained his pilot’s license and now works for Frontier Airlines. “Another guy who was an aviation major at Saint Louis U. is flying corporate jets,” said Jim Jeter, GEM Master Pilot volunteer. “It’s really gratifying.”
The organization is preparing for its free Annual Youth Aviation Day on Saturday, September 15 at the St. Louis Downtown Airport in Cahokia, IL from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Volunteer pilots have offered free airplane rides to children ages 10 to 17 and adults. Event attendees may also visit the aviation museum and educational exhibitions. Food and drinks are available for purchase.
If you plan to attend the event with large groups of children, advance notice is requested. For further details, please contact Jim Jeter at 314-406-3303 or by email jljthree@msn.com.
