District VIII—Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
Vice President
lawharv@yahoo.com
932 Calloway St., Hurst TX 76053
Tel.: (817) 781-9615;
www.amadistrict-viii.org
We have a new District VIII RC Contest Coordinator. Amanda Coke will be taking over the duties from Doug “Chief” Powell. Thanks to Chief for many years of service to District VIII. Amanda’s contact information is at the bottom of the page.
Warbirds Over the Rio Grande Valley was sponsored by the Small Model Aircraft Society (SMASH) of Harlingen, Texas. As I looked around the pit area, I noticed two distinctly different club shirts. The collaboration of two clubs, the Tejas RC Association and the SMASH club, put on one very large event.
One of the outstanding pilots was 16-year-old Micah Gore pictured with his mom, Rachel. Micah also attended Camp AMA last summer.
It was an honor to meet Rio Hondo Police and Fire Chief William Bilokury (L) and his team when they came to the field.
SMASH club president, Bryan Ray (L), and Billy Maxwell.
The FPV Racing Squadron helped run the drone races.
Spark Plug of the Month
Roxanne Harris is the vice president of SMASH, located in the southernmost part of District VIII. Roxanne conducts the club raffle and is a builder and flier. She works as the CEO of the South Padre Island Chamber of Commerce.
AMA Foundation Board Vice Chairman Ron Pitcock is on the flightline, smiling as always.
The Associate Vice President of the month is Johnny Hunt.
A Texas flier, Johnny got his start in 1985. He is a member of many clubs including the Greater Southwest Aeromodelers, Fort Worth Thunderbirds, and the Texas Wings, where he served as president. He travels throughout District VIII flying electric-, glow-, and gas-powered airplanes. In 2015, he entered his first Scale contest at the AMA Nats in Novice class and placed first. Johnny is also active in the EAA and has his full-scale pilot’s license. He is one of the friendly ones; look for him at the events and say hi.
Associate Vice Presidents: Benny Behrens, Pearland TX; (832) 499-2043; cbbehrens@comcast.net; Bill Holland, Prague OK; (405) 626-1386; billholland@gmail.com; Johnny Hunt, Godley TX; (817) 905-8124; huntranch@aol.com; Woody Lake, Forth Worth TX; (817) 675-7613; at6pilot@att.net; Jim D. Marshall, Alton TX; (956) 894-9474; jimmarsh52@yahoo.com; Stew Moore, Jefferson TX; (903) 665-7501; mooremas1@netscape.com; Brian Regan, Albuquerque NM; (505) 508-6693; brain23@centurylink.net; Randy Ritch, Magnolia TX; (281) 701-3121; randyritch.dist8@yahoo.com
Olen Rutherford, Dardanelle AR; (479) 229-0403; email: olenrutherford@yahoo.com; Doug Staines, Belton TX; (254) 780-3512; dstaines@vvm.com; Gary Strickland, Hooks TX; (903) 278-5703; garystric@gmail.com; Cliff Town, Dumas TX; (806) 935-3063; town_cliff@hotmail.com; Ed Valls, Seguin TX; (830) 303-9921; edwarda10pilot@aol.com; Jerry Walters, Maurice LA; (337) 298-7755; jerome1w@bellsouth.net. AVP-Safety: Tony Breyen; Wichita Falls TX; (940) 733-2803; awb1056@sbcglobal.net. RC Sanctioned Event Coordinator: Amanda Coke, Dalhart TX; (806) 282-4227; amanda_coke@yahoo.com. CL/FF Sanctioned Event Coordinator: Contact AMA Headquarters at cpeirce@modelaircraft.org.
