District X—Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah
Lawrence Tougas
Vice President
ama.district10@gmail.com
Box 276, Fairfield CA 94533
Tel.: (707) 480-2053; www.ama10.org
Happy Fourth of July. I hope you’re able to spend the holiday with friends and family enjoying all of the freedoms our country has to offer. I hope you can work in some great flying, too.
Now that summer is in full swing, look at the fire protection plans in place at your field—and please don’t say, “What fire protection plans?”
This past winter, we had so much rain that the grass surrounding our flying sites is dense and tall. Cut back the grass and brush to reduce the amount of fuel in areas where aircraft may go down. If a fire starts, know how to put it out and how to get help from your local fire department. Thankfully, no personal injury has resulted, but serious property damage has occurred in the past because of fires. With only a little wind, a fire will spread faster than you can imagine. Be prepared, just in case. Let’s do our best to minimize the chance of a fire.
The AMA has some wonderful programs that give back to clubs and individuals. 2017 has been a great year for District X in this regard, and I’d like to discuss our awardees.
I’m happy to announce that five clubs were recipients of flying site assistance grants. The Flying Site Assistance Grant program was designed to help clubs improve their facilities. As a club, you have a lot of latitude concerning what you can spend the funds on, as long as it is for site improvement.
All applications are scored by a panel consisting of representatives from each district. Then the applications are rewarded based on these scores. The program provides for 10% of your club’s project up to a maximum of $3,000. In other words, a $30,000 project would qualify for the largest award of $3,000. Let’s look at the clubs that received grants or, as they say, the envelope please …
The Tucson Radio Control Club, in Arizona, received the program maximum of $3,000. The Arizona Model Pilots Society qualified for, and was awarded, $1,790. The First Weedwacker Aerosquadron of Lakeside, California, was granted $1,876. The Thousand Oaks Soaring Society, in California, was awarded $3,000, and the newly reborn Bayside R/C Club in California was given $1,887.
Congratulations to all of the clubs that received funds. This year all District X clubs that applied were issued grants. If your club is expanding its facilities, take advantage of this great program and maybe next year your club will be a grant recipient.
The AMA Scholarship Program came through for Troy Davis of Elk Grove, California. Troy represented the United States at the Free Flight World Championships in 2014 in Romania and 2016 in Macedonia as a Junior. Troy flew F1B which is Rubber-Powered Free Flight.
Troy was awarded a Charles Hampson Grant scholarship, which provides him with $3,000 for his college expenses at Cosumnes River College where he will study physical therapy.
In total, the AMA awards more than $40,000 in scholarships each year. This year, $48,000 was awarded to our college-bound members. If you have a child, or know of a club member who will be starting school next year, please apply for the 2018 scholarships. I’d be very happy to list your name next year. Great job, Troy.
The Take off And Grow (TAG) program provided funding for clubs to hold an event with the public to promote the hobby. This year, we had a full slate of applicants. I’m happy to announce that San Jose’s South Bay Soaring Society was awarded $200; the Casa Grande RC Flyers of Casa Grande, Arizona, received $566.67; the Sacramento Area Modelers club in Sacramento, California, was given $100; the UC Davis Cal Aggies received $566.67; and the Price Utah Desert Wings were awarded $566.66. I look forward to hearing about all of the good events that these awards helped provide for.
Finally, the Woodland-Davis Aeromodelers club in California received a $500 disaster relief grant to help restore its runway after this winter’s heavy rains laid havoc to the club’s field. The AMA’s Disaster Relief Program allows for a $500 grant to help a club get back on its feet after it has been dealt a setback.
This year, District X clubs and individuals were awarded more than $17,000. These are great programs that, as AMA members, I hope you take advantage of. If you have any questions about next year’s applications, please let me know.
Until next month, I wish you all happy landings.
