September 1, 2025
This is the semimonthly email newsletter from the Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 54 of Lake Elmo, Minn. If you have difficulty reading this information, view it on the chapter website. Unless otherwise noted, all events occur at the Chapter House, at the south entrance of Lake Elmo Airport off Manning Avenue. Find fly-in and drive-in information here.
Camperships
Three camperships awarded for 2026 Air Academy
Related: September Board of Directors meeting minutes (courtesy of Ed Trudeau)
Pancake breakfast fly-in
It was a hit!
Nearly 50 volunteers worked tirelessly to pull off the only major fundraiser for Chapter 54. And the communities in our area responded with outstanding attendance and their demanding appetites. Initially, the fly-in was beset with a persistent fog, which lifted around 9:30, time enough for some pretty neat aircraft to arrive, two of whom took home judges' honors. The support of the communities makes possible Chapter 54's mission to provide scholarships, camperships and opportunities in aviation. We hope you were able to meet some of our outstanding recipients.
Although it hasn't been decided yet, it appears that there is an appetite for doing this again next year, although the effort will probably require new management. Still, it's not too early to make a note to keep August 9, 2026 open!
Related: See photos of the event (36 photos)
Fly-in Feedback
So far, there appears to be an appetite for holding the event next year. Here are the results of chapter member feedback:
* Nearly 70% were very happy with the event. About 30% were generally happy with the event.
* 87% were happy with the facilities; 12.5% were mostly happy
* 81% were happy with their assignment; 1 person was not (that person did not reveal what his/her assignment was), 1 person was relatively neutral, 1 person was mostly happy
* 78% were happy with the communication from their team leader; 2 volunteers were somewhat happy, 1 person was somewhat unhappy (that person chose not to reveal what team he/she was on)
* Aircraft marshaling seemed to be an area needing more attention in 2026
* 77.8% were happy with the Saturday setup; 22.2% were somewhat happy
* 70% were happy with Sunday break-down; 2 people were mostly happy; 1 percent was somewhere between happy and unhappy
* 93.8% said we should hold the event next year.
* 93.8% said they intended to volunteer next year; 1 person said "no" (it was Collins)
* 56.3% said they'd take the same assignment next year; 12.5% said they don't want to, roughly a third said they're not sure.
* Comments regarding the above question:
"A very small number of people did a very large amount of the work"
"Not sure if anyone else would lead. If so, great."
"Redundant role-too many people doing a similar thing"
General comments (edited for space):
"Planning could be better. Needed more outreach to Chapter members to participate. Emails work up to a point, then someone needs to make individual contact. Reach out, call, ask."
"Rotate assignments between demanding grilling duty and less demanding team duty (dining?). I will take a 2 hour shift on grilling. Auto team -- thankless and alienating way to spend a whole morning -- recruit boy scouts to help parking (at least they get badge credits), 2 hour shift for leads. Marshallers ready for aircraft at 7am when non-movement area goes live."
"Alternate or backup plan in case of inclement weather"
"More cooperative weather, enjoyed the real maple syrup"
"My wife said it was much better run than the CAP breakfast last time they had one"
"Find out what size the pancakes are suppose to be made to in order to meet the servings per container. Many people commented on how much they enjoyed the pancakes. Eggs and sausage were a hit especially for those that didn't eat pancakes due to glucose, carbs or other. People liked the sausages to. I believe having eggs and sausages were good additions to the pancakes. If weather would have cooperated I think we could have had another 50 people or more flying in."
"The coffee was excellent. Juice and milk well done! Too many pancakes done too far in advance, I like fresher pancakes hot off the griddle. The layout for serving was about perfect, good order and plenty of room to work around each other. Paper plates were flimsy, I cleaned up several messes on the floor where syrup spilled and dripped off a bending plate. I do not have a better suggestion, maybe reusable plates or plate supports. When we knew planes would not fly in, we needed to get members planes out there on display, as many as possible. Another well done was selecting and purchasing supplies, we were able to increase margin and thus profit towards our goal. It might be obvious to the public that this is a fund raising event but I wonder if we should be more direct, tell them exactly what the funds go to, not just a bunch of old white guys and their hobby."
"Thought all went well. Bob and others did an excellent job planning for the event. Maybe have a shelter ready to go to cover the kitchen area if weather looks poor, but it was fine being in the open this year."
"1) My reason for rating question 4 a 3 out of 5 is I felt the marshalling team could have had a complete review of safety and signaling procedures applicable to aircraft handling. 2) There was some discussion about volunteers talking it up with visitors as a PR promotion; but, I think it would be good to improve that thought. The marshalling team had a lot of slack time due to the weather, some of which can be utilized to benefit our relationship with the community outside our club."
"We need to find a parking spot for strollers, too many were left in front of the hangar door blocking the entrance. Also too many members stopped to talk to friends in front of the entrance . People need to move when asked to another spot to continue conversations . Our requests were ignored by members when asked. For the most part. The entrance got congested and blocked routinely."
"We should consider using two kinds of pancakes. I heard some complaints that they were salty. My wife hated them. I thought they were alright but could use some sugar or something to sweeten them up. Perhaps a blueberry or chocolate chip variety with a different batter."
it went off without a hitch except for the weather. We need to start a book and other aviation stuff collection for next year. Heard lots of comments about the free will offering book giveaway. I saw some 20’s in the collection box."
The anonymous feedback form remains open. Take the survey.
Our next gathering
Monday September 8, 7 pm: Combat helicopters
Related: Wisconsin pilot is the proud owner of one gallant 'Gull.' (Flying Magazine)
EAA Aviation Hall of Fame
Former Chapter Member nominated for Hall of Fame
Chapter Elections
New blood, enthusiasm set to join leadership team
The Board of Directors is required by the Chapter 54 bylaws to submit the nominees for chapter leadership positions by the September meeting. This section of The Beacon constitutes that submission.
Three Class III Directors (Class III directors are elected in odd-numbered years) face expiring terms and two of them are retiring. Bob Collins is leaving as Facilities Director and Scott Hanson is concluding his run as director of membership, In their place, Dan Theis has agreed to serve as Facilities Director and Mark Shanahan will serve as membership director if elected. We do not expect any additional candidates although if someone wishes to step forward, any competitive race would be interesting. It would also be near historic.
According to the history of Chapter 54:
The November 1979 annual election of officers featured one of the few occasions when more than one person ran for an office. That year, it was the vice president's position. Sandy Lemire outpolled incumbent Bill Schanks 13-to-6. In 1991, John Thomas and outgoing president Roger Westerberg ran for vice president with Thomas winning the position. In most years since then, chapter leaders could only dream of such competition. It is one of two times in the chapter's history that an incumbent officer lost a subsequent election.In 1981, three members ran for the presidency: Pat Driscoll, Bill Hart, and Jim Mickok. There are only three documented times when there was competition to lead the chapter. Driscoll won the election in '81, then faced Mike Fox in '83. Driscoll lost that election. In late 1989, Roger Westerberg outpolled George Mathiesen to win the presidency. Two years later, Mathiesen became chapter president.
This year, there will also be a series of bylaw proposals, the first review of chapter bylaws since 2019. Most of the changes seem to eliminate confusing, contradictory, or outdated language and one seeks to clarify the process of chapter dissolution. See an annotated list of proposed changes with an explanation of the reason for each one.
Young Eagles Coordinators of the Year
Vicky Moore honored at Oshkosh
The Young Eagles program has been completely volunteer supported for the past 33 years. Without the 50,000-plus dedicated individuals who volunteer on the ground and in the air, the program simply would not exist. EAA takes time during the annual member convention, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, to celebrate the volunteers who have made a particularly strong impact on the program in the past year. In 2025, EAA was honored to award six deserving volunteers at the Young Eagles Volunteer Banquet. One of those honored was Vicky Moore of Chapter 54. Here's the citation on the EAA website. Read all of the stories if you're looking to be inspired.
Although the pilots get much of the glory, and coordinators are the face of a chapter’s Young Eagles program, the true unsung heroes of a successful rally are the ground volunteers. Whether it’s assisting with check-in, dispatching flights, printing certificates, escorting families to and from the ramp, or leading hands-on activities, ground volunteers are the key to a smooth-running rally.
Vicky Moore from EAA Chapter 54 in Lake Elmo, Minnesota, is an integral part of her chapter’s successful Young Eagles rallies.
Vicky has been the straw that stirs the drink in Chapter 54’s Young Eagles program, almost since the day she joined the chapter in 2012. In 2022, she was tasked with reinvigorating the program following the pandemic and became the chapter’s Young Eagles coordinator.
A Young Eagles day is chaos at a busy airport such as the one in Lake Elmo, but she created a check-in system that brought order to it. Her unflappable nature easily handled dozens of kids and their parents and a generous helping of pilots.
In March 2024, her husband, Pat, who was a Young Eagles ground volunteer, and another chapter member died when the Moores’ Swift crashed shortly after takeoff.
It wasn’t long after that Vicky made clear she’d be back at her post without interruption, and, indeed, there she was for the entire 2024 Young Eagles flying season, even in the midst of her grief.
She has demonstrated an above-and-beyond attitude toward helping young people fulfill their dreams of flight while inspiring her fellow chapter members to follow suit.
In addition to the work Vicky does with EAA Chapter 54, she is also a dedicated volunteer at the EAA Blue Barn — home of chapters and Young Eagles at AirVenture.
Vicky's plaque is on display in the vestibule of the Chapter House.
Chapter Awards
What we can learn from Oshkosh Chapter winners
We enjoy looking at who won the chapter awards at Oshkosh this year in the categories of web editor, newsletter editor, and major volunteer contributions. Our on Vicky Moore was honored as the Young Eagles Ground Volunteer of the year. A glance through the winning web entries reveals a few idea that we're going to steal here at Chapter 54. And we were particularly impressed by one of the winners in the newsletter editor category: John Butterfield of Swanton, Vermont. I know Vermont. Swanton is up there... way, way up there on the shores of Lake Champlain, a stone's throw from the world's beacon of freedom and democracy: Canada. How on earth do you keep a chapter going where the leaves turn in mid-August? John provided a video. Have a look.
John's newsletter is quite good. First, he produces it on a regular basis. Unlike us, it appears he produces it as a pdf file, which can then be displayed on a browser or downloaded. It has tons of pictures. In fact, one of the common characteristics of the winners was their newsletters provided TONS of pictures. Each also has a generous number of contributions from members. That's the primary difference between the winning chapters and other chapters. John's chapter is clearly very busy on a monthly basis, rather than one program a month.
This Week's Webinar
Ready! Fire! Aim!
In aircraft maintenance, the order in which you do things is critical. When troubleshooting a problem, it's essential to gather as much information about the problem before doing repairs or replacing parts. When an aircraft is undergoing its "annual ordeal," it's essential to complete the inspection checklist before starting to fix anything. But, according to Mike Busch, it's amazing how often these simple rules aren't obeyed and maintenance activities are done in the wrong sequence, resulting in a poor outcome. In this webinar, Mike Busch explores the importance of doing first things first and other things afterwards. Wednesday, September 3, 2025, 7 p.m. CDT. Qualifies for FAA WINGS. Register here.
Midwest Flyer
Medical Matters
You may have seen television ads for drugs like Ozempic or Wegovy. The medications, along with other similar medications, belong to the category of GLP-1 receptor agonists. GLP stands for glucagon like peptide, a hormone released by the small bowel in response to eating. This hormone tells your pancreas to produce insulin (lowering blood sugar), tells your liver to stop making sugar, slows down the emptying of food from your stomach (so you feel full longer), and works on your brain to make you feel less hungry. As an “agonist,” the drug mimics the effect of the natural hormone, boosting the effects of the natural hormone. As a result, these medications are very helpful in treatment of Type II diabetes and obesity. Although very expensive, this class of medication has become extremely popular because the medications are extremely effective. Read more >
Happy Anniversary
We recognize the following members on the occasion of their membership anniversary and applaud their contributions to EAA Chapter 54. Please remember your anniversary is also your membership renewal date. You can renew your membership here.
Doug Weiler (26 years)
Dan Fix (6 years)
Jon Dekko (5 years)
WoonYi Hanson (1 year)
Welcome New Members
We are very pleased to welcome these individuals and families who have recently decided to join Chapter 54 in recent months. Please watch for them at future meetings and make them feel part of our family.
Maria, Amelia, and Adeline Dopp
Dave Harvey
Ryan Rhederson
Phyllis Jaworski
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Who's Who in Chapter 54 Leadership President: Marlon Gunderson president@eaa54.org |
The E-Beacon is a semimonthly newsletter highlighting news items from Chapter 54. If you no longer wish to receive the email, you can unsubscribe by sending an email tothe newsletter editor.
