District II—New Jersey, New York, Europe
Eric Williams
Vice President
rcpilot@nycap.rr.com
4242 Amanda Ln., Schenectady NY 12303
Tel.: (518) 356-2057
www.amadistrict-ii.org
www.facebook.com/DistrictIIAMA
Clubs host events for many good purposes. Sometimes club gatherings are for special flight categories such as warbirds, Scale, Pattern, helicopter, or aerobatic aircraft. Often events are simply for the camaraderie of open flying and fun-flys, or raising money for charitable causes. And, many events are named after individuals as memorials to people who contributed to a club or modeling in general.
I recently had the honor of being invited to a unique club event. On October 21, 2017, I attended the Meroke RC Club’s memorial fun-fly. Located in Cedar Creek Park in Seaford, New York, the event is not dedicated to one person, but rather it’s a special day dedicated to all fallen club members and friends.
The Meroke’s Cedar Creek flying site is a historic landmark that pays tribute to aviators and aviation. The site was once part of a military air base in the early 1900s, named after Maj. Raoul Lufbery, a fighter pilot killed in action over France on May 19, 1918. In 2010, the Nassau County Legislature recognized and supported development of the site for model aviation, with the new facility known as the Cedar Creek Park Aerodrome.
The Cedar Creek Park Aerodrome is a magnificent facility. To cope with heavy crosswinds, modelers enjoy two
County officials strongly support the Cedar Creek Park Aerodrome.
American Legion veterans presented the colors at the Meroke event.
(L-R) Eric Williams, Lou Pinto, and Meroke RC Club President Joe Petrozza.
paved runways at 90° from each other. Each runway is its own flying site, with each having parking, a gazebo area, and numerous flight benches popularly known as the Meroke Safety Bench.
A September 2002 Model Aviation article documented the bench’s ingenious design. Today these benches are found worldwide including the US, Canada, Panama, Belgium, England, Australia, and South Africa. Perhaps tens of thousands of these benches have made our hobby safer around the globe. Congratulations to the Meroke club for its many contributions to our hobby.
As noted in a previous column, the Al Kanser Camp AMA Memorial Scholarship Fund has been established recently to send a deserving District II youth member to Camp AMA. Al was a highly respected District II volunteer who served in various capacities and was a champion for youth involvement in our hobby.
Several District II Camp AMA participants have gone on to become championship-caliber fliers, or are
Flowers were presented to the widow of a Meroke RC Club member.
The world-famous Meroke Safety Bench.
now working in the aviation industry. Your personal or club donation to this scholarship fund will make a big difference in a young person’s life. You can send your donation, made out to AMA, to District II at my address at the top of this page. Please consider helping this worthy cause.
Remember, it’s not about what you fly, it’s about the people.
