Happy Landings

Official Publication of the Atlanta Radio Control Club
1600 Constitution Rd. Atlanta, GA 30316 www.atlrcclub.org
December 2011

Coming Events
January 1st - Club Meeting 2:00 PM and Annual Chili Fly starting at Noon.

2011 Accomplishments

2011 Comes to a close for Atlanta RC Club with several achievements. We developed a relationship with the Dekalb County Commissioner's Office, PATH Foundation, Dekalb County Parks and Recreation Department and adopted Intrenchment Creek Park through the Park Pride, which is the land we maintain and use for flying. A funds drive was conducted to collect money for runway repairs and maintenance to fill larger cracks in the runway. 90 percent of the funds were generated in a couple of weeks thanks to our generous members.

We had a successful Kid's Day where our members came out and showed off our club and hobby to local youths from member Willie Watkin's church as well as Dekalb County Officials and their children. A successful Airplane Fun Fly was held in September to raise revenue for the club. The Annual Helicopter Fun Fly in October was a big hit that attracted Matt Botos and Team Synergy as well as some really nice scale helicopter pilots. The helicopter fun fly raffle was sponsored by ReadyHeli.com and NankinHobby.com. We plan to continue to grow our fun fly events and other events that educate and entertain the community in the 2012 year.

Moving Forward
At the December meeting we elected the 2012 Board of Directors for Atlanta RC Club.

By a show of hands we elected the following people:

• Tim Neeland - President
• Wicki Mitchell - Vice President
• Alex Mitchell - Treasurer
• Randolph Prather - Safety Officer
• John Monagan - Safety Officer
• Mike O'Rourke - Safety Officer

From Left to Right: John Monagan, Mike O'Rourke, Tim Neeland, Wicki Mitchell, Alex Mitchell, Randolph Prather

A Little Background
Many of you already know most of your 2012 Board of Directors. Tim Neeland was our Vice President in prior years and is our club airplane pilot trainer and has assisted in many of our events. Alex Mitchell has been Treasurer in prior years and has organized many of our events. Wicki Mitchell is new to Atlanta RC Club. She is a project manager by trade and will be flying airplanes. She has also assisted in may of our events before she became a member of our club. Randolph Prather is an airplane pilot and has been a member for some time now. He has been active in suggesting and researching improvement projects for the club. John Monagan is an airplane pilot who has been a member of our club since its early beginnings. If you want to know anything about Atlanta RC Club, Johnny is your go to guy. Mike O'Rourke has been a Safety Officer in prior years. He is a helicopter pilot and has assisted in many of our events. We look forward to the collective skills our Board of Directors bring to the table for the coming 2012 year.

Future Vision
Think of Atlanta RC Club as a Community within a Community. We need to continue to expand our outreach to local residents, schools, and public officials. This is not only an aspect of being good citizens, but proves that we can offer service worthy of attention so that we are viable in the community. Once we are a viable and visible service in the community we will gain a better chance to obtain help, grants and assistance from Dekalb County, Path Foundation and local residents. It's up to us as a collective group to show that we are serious about reaching out to the community. In the coming weeks we will outline some ideas that incorporate public outreach that will include fund raising for different charities (e.g. Ronald McDonald House). We look forward to your input and assistance as we work toward becoming more active stewards of the community.

The AMA Model Aviation Magazine January 2012 issue has an interesting article you should read. Turn to page 156 where you will find a segment called "Flying Site Assistance" by Tony Stillman. Tony attended the National Recreation and Park Association annual convention here in Atlanta where the AMA set up a booth. The article explains that NRPA members, park mangers and educational institutions are interested in RC Aeromodeling and working with AMA groups to create and foster more air parks like ours. The article is of particular pertinence to our club as we reside in Intrenchment Creek Park which is a Dekalb County Park. We will discuss becoming more involved in the Flying Site Assistance program in the coming year.

The link below contains some video footage of Tony Stillman talking about the Flying Site Assistance Agendas:

AMA Flying Site Assistance Video with Tony Stillman

More information: http://www.modelaircraft.org/membership/clubs/fsap.aspx

Closing
We have a great crew moving into 2012. We look forward to the meeting new challenges and making the Atlanta RC Club a better place for members and the community alike. Join us in our quest for new levels of excellence and pride by becoming stewards in and for the community via Atlanta RC Club.

See you at the Chili Fly!

Be Courteous Call out

Taking Off Landing Dead Stick

Please pick up after yourself and use the provided trash cans

Last one out lock the gate!