Make and Take 2009 IPMS-Gateway

Let's just say it was a quiet morning. The sun was up. Birds were chirping. The heat and humidity had started to climb. A quick drop into Hardees and I have myself a good breakfast for the day to come. You see, the Experimental Aircraft Association of St. Louis was having a young eagles day at Smart Field, north of St. Louis, Mo. It was bright and early, but I could already feel some of the heat. I've never been out to Smartt Field before… Sure seems like a long way out here. Finally, out in the middle of nowhere, I see in the distance a hanger and, sure enough, that's a C-47 parked out on the tarmac I must be at the right place. The day's already looking bright.

I pull into a tiny parking lot and look for security. Nope. The TSA mafia? Nope. Just an open hanger with a bunch of people inside. Almost all the boys are wearing scout uniforms, seated, listening to one of the officers of the EAA giving a talk on how aircraft stay in the air. I don't listen (because, of course, I know exactly how things that weigh thousands of tons stay in the sky…). In the back of the hanger I find our club members. Seven of us have arrived. The back of the hanger is open allowing in a breeze keeping the place cooled down.

I join the two club members that are setting out the club 1/144^th aircraft display. Mike has only brought US aircraft with him to this showing. The club actually has aircraft from several different nations covering several different eras. Even with only part of the display, we get to see first hand the difference in size between a C-5 cargo jet and a P-47. I'm always amazed by the difference.

At another table, two members are sorting out kits. The national organization of IPMS-USA has donated a box full of kits to our group to host a Make and Take with. In this box, we find A-10s, F-15s, F-4s, F-111s, and some UFO type machines. Past experience has shown us that the UFO thingies don't fit together so well, but a couple of club members have figured out what to shave to produce a semi-good fit. The kits are set out where the kids can choose which one they want. In the meantime, as the speaker is finishing his talk, there's a little down time for us, so we look out on the tarmac. Now, I'm no expert, but an F-15 flying upside down immediately above the tarmac on which another is parked seems out of place to me. Someday, I'll get the real scoop on that one. Off in the distance, hidden in a hanger, I also spot a restored B-25. Wasn't expecting that. What I didn't know is that the Commemorative Air Force keeps their B-25, "Show Me", hangered at Smart Field. What an excellent find!

Anyway, it's show-time! The speaker has given up his lecturn and allowed the scouts to scatter. There are about 30 of them. Some of them are even young ladies! The kids were broken into groups by the EAA members with three at a time being given flights up in small personal aircraft. While other kids were up in the air, the remaining kids crashed our tables with enthusiasm. At any one time, there were about 25 eager youth trying to put plastic pieces together. Some were clearly old hands at it. You could tell. They were the ones who snipped all the parts off the sprues immediately and promptly lost the instructions. A few of these guys actually finished their projects. Others remained hopelessly mired in glue. You see, these are the same guys who don't need any help. Doesn't sound familiar to anyone does it? Others were very careful to cut one piece off the sprue at a time and follow the directions carefully. Even so, there were several horizontal stabilizers that started out on the wrong side of the plane. Even the girls were catching on. You could tell that it was a first time for them. Working meticulously, asking for help at every step, unsure if that's really how that piece goes on, they finally ended up with completed aircraft. This was particularly rewarding, as they each went on and built another one because of their excitement after finishing the first.

Finally, a couple brave souls attempted the UFO! One young man actually finished something that looked vaguely like the picture in the instructions. Let's just say that the fit of the kit left a little to be desired. But that young man, and all of us, were darned proud to see him complete that challenge.

Finally, as the flights began to wind down and the lunch hour drew near, a few bold youth asked if they could bring a kit home. Of course! So many of our kids got to go home with a kit that they could spend a little more time on and share with a parent. By the time we were packing up to go, there were no kits left to pack up! Success!

Needless to say, our club's Make and Take was a success. Many kids were introduced or re-introduced to model building. The club got exposure as the kids looked at the display and worked with our club members getting their pride and joy together. And, of course, it was yet another excuse for the club members to get together and yack it up. So as the morning shifted to afternoon, and the sun began it's downward slide, I headed home more than a little content that we had participated in the lives of some of the youth in the St. Louis area.

Many thanks to the national IPMS organization for donating the kits for our group to use. Also many thanks go to the model companies that offer kits up to IPMS USA for events such as ours. I would highly recommend a Make and Take to any club willing to put out just a little bit of effort to enhance the lives of the youth in their area.