Hello again and I hope everyone had a wonderful flying season. I am getting ready for a long winter and building season. I hope to at least get one aircraft finished this winter. My article this month is devoted to a very dear friend.

I met Wilbur Morlan 22 years ago at a mall show in Boardman, Ohio. He had built a 1/3 scale Cap 20L and Weeks Special. I was humbled by his building skills, and I wanted to meet this gentleman. I was only fourteen years old when I met Wilbur. Wilbur immediately took me under his wing.

Wilbur told me all about his planes. He came to my home and told me what a great job I had done in building my Weeks Special. I was overwhelmed by Wilbur's kindness and generosity.

Once you became Wilbur's friend, you were his friend for life. He inspired me to want to get more involved with the hobby to the point that I ran for District 3 Director. He helped me organize the Dist 3 winter symposiums. He was of the founders of the East Ohio Big Wings, Chapter 319, in East Liverpool, Ohio which hosted the District 3 symposiums.

I moved away and went college but I always kept in contact with Wilbur and met up with him at several IMAA fly-ins. I was always over-whelmed at how many people knew and loved Wilbur. He had a great since of humor and laughed at himself. Wilbur was a great builder, a great IMAA supporter and one of the best friends a person could ever have. I feel fortunate to have known Wilbur Morlan.

Wilbur Morlan died this October after a long illness. He treated me as his own son. No person could ask for a higher compliment. It is people like Wilbur Morlan who have made the IMAA a stronger and wiser organization. I take solace that, while I feel the loss of a wonderful friend, he lives in every plane I build, every flight I make, and in the smile of every child who points at a giant scale plane in the sky and says to their parent "someday I'm going to build and fly a plane just like that!"

I hope that all of your lives have been touched by your own Wilbur Morlan.