Mom's Log
Day 8
Saturday, June 4
Oklahoma
An exhausting day. M took many photos and talked with many of the antique airplane owners at the fly-in to gather possible leads for rides. She rode in 3 planes today. Martha met two astronauts, Ken Cameron and Marsha Ivans at the fly-in. Marsha flies a Stearman and autographed a special page in the back of Martha’s logbook, as well as her silk scarf which has the signatures of a few of the famous pilots she has met.
The awards banquet was $12.50 and they had a “People’s Choice Award” for the best plane. Martha saw Jim Kimball and his wife, who she knows from Florida. They arrived at the event in the Stearman that Martha lettered with gold leaf a few months ago. Martha flew with Jim today in this plane.
[Jim Kimball and his wife, Jane flew in from Zellwood, Florida in the beautiful, maroon 1943 Stearman which Jim recently restored at his world-class restoration facility, located on his own grass airfield in Tangerine, Florida. Mike Danforth is an orthopedic surgeon who owns the Stearman which he has named, “Amazin’ Grace.” There is a powerful sound system inside the biplane. A cassette tape plays a haunting bagpipes rendition of Amazing Grace as it flies through the air. It can be heard from the ground and the biplane is really something to see and hear.
A couple of months ago, before my journey began, I did some lettering jobs on three vintage aeroplanes at Bob White Airfield in Zellwood, Florida. They have a great motto on the sign there, "a grass strip forever.” One of the most difficult gold leaf jobs I ever did was on Mike Danforth’s Stearman. In a hot, humid, corrugated tin hangar, I lay on my back in midair on a twelve inch-wide plank positioned between two ladders just beneath the upper wing, gilding fancy flourishes on the upper wingtips in 23 carat gold leaf as well as the words “Amazin Grace” on the sides of the fuselage. Today, this Stearman won the People’s Choice Award at the Biplane Fly-in. Jim Kimball is well-known for his perfectionist standards in antique airplane restorations. I feel privileged and proud to have had a part in that Stearman's final appearance.
Tomorrow, in Iola Kansas Martha will attend a Chamber of Commerce celebration in her honor, 6 to 8 p.m. at Iola Airport. This evening Martha stayed at Hotel Phillips $61.00 Room 528. [A nice hotel, but a sterile, claustrophobic experience and too expensive for my budget. In hindsight I wished I had stayed at the airfield under a wing.]
Bob Carpenter, Lee Spencer’s friend from Oswego, KS called here at 9 p.m. He flew to Bartlesville with Don Garen in his 1983 Beech. He talked to Martha and said she is doing something very worthwhile that will develop into something very big. His daughter toured Europe and is now settled in Kansas. He is the man with the short haircut.
Day 9
Sunday, June 5
Kansas
Martha spent the night at Lee and Lois Spencer’s home in Iola, KS. (L-4 Piper?) She made a lot of phone calls to try to find next rides.