AMA News
AMA/Charles H. Grant Scholarships
Each year the Academy of Model Aeronautics awards Charles Hampson Grant Scholarships to deserving high school seniors who will be pursuing a continuing academic program at an accredited college or university. In 1998, over 40 applications were received and processed by the five-person selection committee. Each applicant is screened and ranked using various criteria, including grade point average, test results, school and community activities, and aeromodeling activities.
In addition to the Grant Scholarship program, several specialized funds are available:
- Weak Signals Club scholarship: funds are generated by activities at the club’s annual model expo in Toledo, Ohio. In 1998, the club directed $3,500 be awarded to the top winner, in addition to the C.H. Grant funds.
- Sig Manufacturing, Inc. scholarship (Montezuma, Iowa): awarded on the basis of need and modeling activity. The 1998 award amount was $2,000.
- Tom Hutchinson grant: designated for the individual who exhibits the highest level of Free Flight modeling activity. The 1998 award was $1,000.
C.H. Grant award funds are generated through general funds using a formula based on Academy memberships and designated donations or memorials. The other awards represent specific donations by individuals or organizations.
Applications and information regarding scholarships or donations to the programs may be obtained by contacting AMA Headquarters, extension 201. The deadline for applications for the 1999 awards is April 30, 1999.
Nominations Due
Nominations for the offices of Executive Vice President and Vice Presidents in Districts III, VII, and XI are due at AMA Headquarters by June 28, 1999. Any AMA Open member may submit a nomination. The nominee must be a Leader Member of the Academy and must reside in the District.
A letter of acceptance from the nominee must be on file at AMA Headquarters by July 2, 1999 (ten days prior to the published meeting date). The nominee must also submit a resume of professional qualifications and model aviation experience. The resume should include, but not be limited to, the following:
- A statement regarding Leader Member status, including the date on which it was conferred.
- Background in the following areas as applicable:
- a. Management experience
- b. Financial background
- c. Insurance employment and/or expertise
- d. Legal background
- e. Technical background, including aeronautics, electronics (especially radio frequency propagation and usage), acoustics (as related to noise studies and analysis), and other areas of engineering
- The nominee's aeromodeling background. An individual elected to national office will be required to deal with questions relative to all phases of aeromodeling and should have a broad-based background to satisfy this requirement.
Additional rules:
- No person may nominate himself/herself for an AMA office.
- An incumbent must be properly nominated and must have accepted to be placed on the ballot.
Joe Beshar’s "Flying Site Assistance" column will resume in next month’s Model Aviation.
Executive VP's Report
Doug Holland AMA Executive VP 3517 Fernwood Dr. Raleigh, NC 27612 Home: (919) 787-5163 Office: (919) 787-7454
The AMA is establishing a planned giving program and can assist members in creating a program to meet individual needs. Options include gifts of stocks or cash, including AMA in a will, or setting up a charitable remainder trust that provides income to the donor for life while ultimately benefiting AMA.
I am pleased to report that AMA has been named beneficiary of a charitable remainder trust created by Mr. Leroy Weber, Jr., of Rio Vista, CA. Mr. Weber was born April 27, 1919, in Rochester, NY.
Mr. Weber’s involvement in aviation and modeling spans many decades:
- He saw a barnstorming pilot land near his home in Lockport, NY, in 1925.
- Lindbergh’s flight to Paris influenced his interest in modeling and aviation.
- He built his first flying model in 1928, named the Spirit of St. Louis.
- He later built many scale models, especially Cleveland kits, and participated in contests. A Baby Cyclone gas engine he won at a meet shifted his interest from rubber-powered models to engine-powered models.
- He is a charter member of the AMA (membership number 426).
Mr. Weber earned his private pilot’s license in January 1941 and moved to California that year, working at the Lockheed plant in various capacities. After the U.S. entered World War II, he was drafted in 1944 and trained for radio work in the Navy, serving until his discharge six months after the war ended. After the war he worked in merchandising with his father in Rio Vista, CA, where he still resides.
In the 1950s his modeling activities expanded. He worked with Dick Atkins on scale models and was asked by then-AMA president Walt Good to chair a Scale Advisory Committee, which included Claude McCullough, Tom Suiter, and Dick Atkins. They worked to establish common rules for scale events and develop uniform scale rules. Mr. Weber later worked with the international scale modeling group (CIAM), serving as chairman and helping to combine rules from other countries into unified regulations. He has judged static and scale events at the Nats, managed U.S. teams at world championships in England, and judged four world championship events.
Additional honors and accomplishments:
- Contest Director, AMA
- Distinguished Service Award for scale activities (1962–72), presented in 1974
- AMA Fellow, 1974
- Author: Profile Publications #106, P-38J-M Lockheed Lightning (published in England, 1966)
- His P-38 drawing is included in Outstanding Military Aircraft of WWII (Super Scale, 1961)
The charitable remainder trust Mr. Weber created will help add permanency to AMA’s assets. Plans include contributing books, model plans, and magazines to the AMA library and museum to update the collection and provide extra copies for other uses.
Our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Weber for his many contributions to AMA and model aviation.
Until later ...
Scale Masters
Recent coverage has highlighted the Scale Masters and the many great modelers and aircraft involved. No meet can exist without very capable workers. AVP Joe Vislay provided photos that exemplify some of their effort. Congratulations to The Ohio Radio Kontrol Society (TORKS) and Westerville Model Aero Association (WMAA) members for a great joint club effort. See what clubs can do when they work together.
Some of the workers and their roles:
- Static Judges: Bill DeVerna, Mark McIntyre, Larry Smith
- Bob Banka — judge
- Dan Cuckler — safety check
- Greg Poppel — halftime announcing
- Sam Wright and Terry Nitsch — (roles noted in photos)
- Sheila Tweedy — provided AMA materials
- Sally Brown — directed a flight line
- Club workers from WMAA and TORKS
Toledo Weak Signals
Don’t forget — the greatest R/C exposition in the district is in Toledo, April 9–11. Stop by the AMA booth and say hi!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
