ON SILVER WINGS

Fall Issue 2015

Gwynne ShotwellSilver Wings National Honorary President

On Silver WingsFall Issue 2015

Contributors: Silver Wings National Staff, Gwynne Shotwell, Peter Mask, Shawn Cagle, John Hodge, Joey Fitzpatrick, McKinnon Pearse, Mackenna Krohn, and Joel Hoyer

Support provided by USAA

Designed by Hayden Wagner

For digital distribution only

Copyright 2015 Silver Wings, all rights reserved

Table of ContentsImportant Announcements ........................... 1

Letter from the President ............................... 2

Academic Scholarships .................................. 3

Gwynne Shotwell............................................. 5

Perspective ....................................................... 6

Sustainability Officer ...................................... 8

Joint National Project - Spirit of 45 ............. 9

Air Force Aid Society Fundraiser .................10

AAS and SW Joint Relations ........................11

Silver Wings Regional Sevice Hours ...........12

1

Important Announcements

ScholarshipsAcademic Cash ScholarshipsSilver Wings sophomores, juniors and non-graduating* seniors may apply**

Flight ScholarshipsAvailable to all students in Silver Wings

The deadline for academic and flight scholarships is November 15, 2015

ASEFSupport ASEF when shopping on AmazonUse Amazon Smile and select “Arnold Air Society - Silver Wings Angel Flight Educational Fund Inc” as your charity, and have your family and friends do the same (it’s free).

Link to share with family and friends: https://smile.amazon.com/ch/47-1229002

ASAF FundraiserRaise money for the Air Force Aid SocietyInformation regarding ongoing fundraising and donations on page 10

Gear Store and New ToolsSilver Wings Gear Store is liveOnline store with SW branded merchandise for sale

Projects Database is liveCollection of successful projects and fundraisers for chapters

Development Database is livePersonal and professional workshops for chapters

* “non-graduating” is defined as a student graduating in December 2015 or later. ** applicants must demonstrate financial need

APPLY FOR CASH

APPLY FOR FLIGHT

SET AS CHARITY

BUY SW GEAR

VIEW DEV. DB

VIEW PROJECTS DB

2

Letter from the Presidentby Joseph Fitzpatrick, SW National President

This fall issue of On Silver Wings is packed with great stories from our SW Leadership as well as new additions to our organization.

We are working tirelessly towards making our goal of 55 chapters, 6,000 service hours, and increased sustainability. Earlier this year I outlined our 3 phases of how we are going to get there. Additions like the Project & Development Database, Continuity Templates, and the SW Playbook are the tools that are going to strengthen our chapters this year.

The past few weeks our National Staff has been traveling the country to all of the ARCON’s, and the stories they come back with are noth-ing short of amazing. We have chapters that are doing region-wide service projects, members who are going above and beyond working towards the Spirit of ’45, and young leaders who are stepping up to take on leadership positions for the 2016-2017 year.

This newsletter not only highlights our work thus far, but also the limitless opportunities that our organization provides. I leave you with this: do not let the fear of taking risks hold you back from your potential. Fail forward. Man’s greatest tool for success is failure. Apply for that internship that you’ve been wanting to take; run for that leadership position in SW that you are passionate about and make a difference. Take on that service project, no matter what the size is, and make an impact in another life—I guarantee they will never forget it.

“Whether you think you can, or think you can’t—you’re right” - Henry Ford

Best of luck this fall, I look forward to seeing you all at NATCON! Sincerely, Joseph Fitzpatrick Silver Wings National President

3

I am a student at Colorado State University and a member of the Columbine Chapter.

I am majoring in mechanical engineering and minoring in political science. I started in Silver Wings during the spring semester of my sophomore year. When I started, I was a cadet and looking to get more involved in my community. I am no longer a cadet, but I am still passionate about what Silver Wings allows members to do and loving my involvement. At the time of applying to and receiving this scholarship, I was president of my chapter.

Scholarship Application

The scholarship, from the Airlift Tanker Association, awarded me $2000, $500 of which was dedicated to covering registra-tion and travel costs associated with NAT-CON. I applied for this scholarship because I knew that I had a decent chance of receiving

a scholarship, due to the number of appli-cants in years past and the relative size of our organizations. I also applied because I needed help paying tuition and bills and the application was not very intensive. It included a resume, a letter of nomination, and a 3-page essay on air mobility or the impact of technology on today’s air op-erations. I already had a resume, so I only needed the letter of nomination from my supporting detachment and to write the essay. I wrote the letter of nomination and gave it to my advisor to review and sign, as is military fashion.

Academic Scholarshipsby John Hodge, SW Region 8 President

My name is John Hodge and through Silver Wings, I applied for and received a scholarship from the Airlift Tanker Association.

“The process was simple and the reward has been immeasurable.”

John Hodge (furthest right in foreground) being congratulated by Gen(Ret) McNabb for winning a SW academic scholarship

4

Essay Topic

I chose to write my essay on the airlift oper-ations during the Gulf War. These operations were Desert Shield, Desert Storm, and Oper-ation Provide Comfort. I landed on this topic because in my Air Force history class we had discussed the magnitude of these operations and I thought it would be an interesting topic to research. Once my package was complete, I turned it into my detachment commander. There was one other Silver Wings member that was in the same class level as I that also applied. According to the rules of the scholarship, only one member from each grade can be nominated from each detach-ment. After reviewing both packages, the commander decided that my package was the stronger of the two and sent it off to the scholarship selection committee. In a few weeks, I was told to attend the Leadership Laboratory at our school and there I was told I had been awarded a scholarship.

Scholarship Impact

The scholarship money has impacted me in very positive ways. The $1500 allowed me to pay for three months of rent, which in turn allowed me to focus on school and not have to hold down a part time job. It also allowed me to put more time and effort into my Sil-ver Wings chapter and members.

The $500 gave me the incredible experience of attending NATCON and visiting Chicago for the first time. At NATCON, I listened to several unique and inspiring speakers and

was given the opportunity to ask a question to Lisa Disbrow, who was the acting under-secretary of the Air Force at the time, during her address and speak with her personally afterwards. I was able to bring back what I learned from NATCON and apply it my posi-tion and chapter. This scholarship has giv-en me much more than the $2000 that was awarded and I am extremely grateful for it.

I encourage every member of Silver Wings to apply for the exclusive scholarships that our organizations offer. The process was simple and the reward has been immeasurable.

Academic Scholarships (continued)

5

As President and COO of SpaceX, Gwynne Shotwell is responsible for day-to-day operations and for managing all customer and strategic relations to support com-

pany growth. She joined SpaceX in 2002 as Vice President of Business Development and built the Falcon vehicle family manifest to more than 70 launches, representing nearly $8 billion in revenue. Shotwell is a member of the SpaceX Board of Directors.

SpaceX supports science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs locally near its offices as well as national engineering programs and competitions. Through leadership in both corporate and external programs, Shotwell has helped raise over $1 million for STEM education programs reaching thousands of students nationwide.

Shotwell received, with honors, her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northwestern University in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, and currently serves on the Advisory Council for Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering. She has authored dozens of papers on a variety of space related subjects.

“What impresses me about the Silver Wings is that it is entirely stu-dent led. The students are in charge from the chapter level all the way up to the national office. As a result, each student is learning valuable leadership lessons as well as life lessons, which they will carry with them beyond graduation. I am honored to help represent such an accomplished organization and look forward to supporting the Silver Wings over the coming year.” - Gwynne Shotwell

Gwynne ShotwellSilver Wings National Honorary President

Gwynne Shotwell, President and COO of SpaceX

6

Throughout my time at college, I had the opportunity to serve in

a variety of roles in Arnold Air So-ciety as Public Affairs Officer, Silver Wings as the rechartering President for the Thomas H. Borders chapter at the University of Alabama, Region V President and National Develop-ment Officer on National Staff. Be-ing a part of both societies allowed me to make lifelong friendships and experiences that I fondly remember to this day.

Like most students, I graduated and commissioned focusing on career and life after college. It was not until eight years later that a friend I served as Region President with reached out to me to help rebuild the

Joint Alumni Association. It is through my interac-tions with the students and cadets over the past four years that I realized not much has changed. On my recent move, I found an article I had written during my tenure as the National Development Officer and despite major life events, moves, and changes, the issues that challenged the societies then are still fo-cus areas for the squadrons and chapters today. The major issues we faced from 1998 – 2003 and today are the following: recruitment, fundraising, and ca-det/student ratio. We are more alike than different and despite changes in personnel and circumstanc-es, time and experience are the major players that contribute to perspective. I hope some of the items I share with you will help you as you begin/continue/finish your college experience in Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings. Recruiting is quite simple, real-ly. People have often asked me how I rechartered my Silver Wings chapter with a group of 40+ from nothing. It started with a decision and the help of a

Perspectiveby Major Peter Mask, President – Joint Alumni Association

Peter Mask (third from the left, first row) at Executive Board in 2002, at the University of Alabama

7

couple of books. I decided that despite what the naysayers told me (there were some neg-ative people in my detachment at first) – I wanted to create a professional organization that made everyone feel welcome, provided opportunities for professional development and growth – one that people could “work hard and play hard” in while supporting the Air Force. I read John C. Maxwell’s “21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership” and “Fail-ing Forward” along with John T. Phillips “Lincoln on Leadership” – these provid-ed the inspiration to navigate through the hard times and create an environment to get things started correctly. Once an initial group was formed, we looked at ways to dif-ferentiate our organization from other social and professional organizations and found creative ways to market our Silver Wings brand around campus. We tailored our re-cruiting to find those that wanted to be a part of something new – we created a fervor and excitement for Silver Wings. After our first initiates were in place, we worked hard to obtain funding to run our organization.

Funds are the lifeblood of the organization and can either make or break the events that your chapters do. Of all the positions in the chapter, fundraising is one of the most hated and misunderstood activities. This is no different after college or in other organizations. I think it is because people are taught to not ask for money or feel too “salesman – like”. My approach has been to make fundraising fun, after all, it does have the word “fun” in the beginning of the word.

Also, I leverage synergies amongst projects, so they will fulfill multiple requirements at once (i.e. social event could also be a fund-raiser, etc.). It is easier than you think – most people are creatures of habit. Try this test. Get your people to ask the managers/owners of the establishments you frequent quite often for gift cards, free appetizers and goods in kind donations for door prizes, etc. and see how well you fare. Due to you giving them frequent patronage, I assure you that you WILL get something. Sometimes all you have to do is ask. I did this and stumbled across a donor that would help me raise ap-proximately $55,000 in merchandise over a five year period. From the earlier discussed issues we faced, the cadet to student ratio remained a consistent problem for both Ar-nold Air Society and Silver Wings.

Back when I was a student, many of the Sil-ver Wings chapters had an issue with the cadet to student ratio. Many times, it was due to a variety of reasons – interpersonal conflicts, like of the nice aiguillette, hazing, or their own personal inclinations towards Silver Wings versus Arnold Air Society. Re-gardless of what individual reasons were, we always made it a point to target students and not cadets to join the local chapter. As many of you face this same problem, it is import-ant to understand each person’s reasoning for joining and why they are not joining Ar-nold Air Society. Culture or perception can be hard things to change – it is up to you and your chapters to work towards a mu-tually beneficial relationship between the

Perspective (continued)

CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

8

I had the incredible opportunity to serve as the National De-velopment Officer on the 2014-2015 National Staff, which was one of the best experiences I have ever had. Getting to know prospective chapter members, hearing their stories and learning what made them passionate about our organization was something truly unforgettable.

During my term as Development Officer, I was responsible for not only activating new chapters, but also monitoring and re-taining our previously established chapters. After a quick year as Development Officer, I was able to activate 10 additional chapters, leading to a grand total of 50 Silver Wings chapters nationwide. However, when it comes to the growth of our Sil-ver Wings nation, retaining our chapters is equally important

(if not more important) than activating new ones.

National Sustainability Officerby McKinnon Pearse, SW National Sustainability Officer

Hello, Silver Wings! My name is McKinnon Pearse, I am a senior at Auburn University and have been a member of

the John “Boots” Stratford Chapter since my freshman year in 2012.

Noticing a necessity for improved chapter and membership stability, this year’s National Staff asked me to join their team as the Sustainability Offi-cer, a newly created position focusing solely on chapter retention and overall sustainability. In order to achieve our goal of seeing a marked improvement in chapter retention this year, we have established detailed continuity guide-lines, accessible to all chapters, so we can begin to properly train our mem-bers to become strong chapter leaders. We have also crafted a five-year plan to guide future Silver Wings leaders to keep our wonderful organization on the right track toward 100% growth through sustainability.

I sincerely hope this position is utilized by future National Staffs. Chapter sustainability is an incredibly important aspect to our organization, without it Silver Wings will not continue to have the success we are currently seeing. I am truly honored to have the opportunity to be a part of such a driven team of Silver Wings leaders and I know there are many amazing years ahead for this special organization.

McKinnon Pearse

9

Joint National Project - Spirit of 45by Mackenna Krohn, SW Region 11 President

Our Inspiration

Meet Dale Bowlin: a WWII veteran

and POW who lost his leg overseas in battle at age 19. His passion in life is to share his story with youth.

“I think it’s so important for young people to get oral history. To know what has happened in the past. And hope-fully use what we’ve learned in those situations to avoid similar situa-tions in the future. I think to hear a story from a person first-hand is best compared with movies or reading it in a book.” - Dale Bowlin

Let’s share his story and those of millions of other WWII veterans whom we are losing each and every day.

Spirit of ‘45

The joint assembly has elected that the JNP be “The Spirit of ‘45”. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII and perhaps the last opportunity for families and communities in every city and town in America to come together to say “Thank you!” to the men and women of our “greatest generation” and to ensure that their example of courage, shared sacrifice, service to others, and national unity will continue to inspire future generations - especially the youth of our country.

Dale Bowlin, WWII Veteran

10

societies, so that you can attract members to benefit you both. It will be a case-by-case basis, but one that with careful thought and deliberate action, both organiza-tions will benefit greatly.

Looking back, I now have the perspective of going through the difficult times and appreciate the memories and opportunities af-forded to me by being an active member in Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings. The road ahead will not be easy for most of you and that is okay. Albert Einstein said it best, “In the middle of diffi-culty lies opportunity”. This is your time and your opportunity to make your chapter, region, or national staff the best it can pos-sibly be. I hope that my perspec-tive can assist you as you create the memories and friendships to last a lifetime. Thanks for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you!

Perspective(continued from page 7)

Air Force Aid Fundraiser

The Air Force Aid Society is the official charity of the U.S. Air Force. It promotes the Air Force mission by helping “to relieve distress of Air Force members and their families and assisting them to finance their education.”

As approved by the General Assembly at NATCON 2015, it is our duty to carry out our promise of help-ing raise money for the Air Force Aid Society. Our goal is to have each Silver Wings chapter donate $100 dollars to the Air Force Aid Society.

AlumniPlease consider a donation that will help Silver Wings reach its goal. The button below will allow you to make a donation from a debit account. All donations will go to the Air Force Aid Society (please include“AFAS - YOURNAME” in the note with the donation).

Silver Wings Members Only Use the button below for more information regard-ing the AFAS fundraiser.

DONATE ON BEHALF OF SILVER WINGS

AFAS VIDEO

AFAS CHAPTER INFO

Include “AFAS - YOURNAME” in the note with the donation

11

The great American defense complex re-lies not only on its uniformed members,

but also its civilian leaders. Silver Wings remains a paramount organization for de-veloping leaders, with many of its members going on to become leaders in both the de-fense enterprise and the private sector. The cooperation seen between members of Sil-ver Wings and the Arnold Air Society reveals a promising future for tomorrow’s leaders with endless bounds and opportunities.

In the foothills of Colorado Springs, the im-portance of cooperation between these two organizations is exemplified through the relationship that has developed between the Falcon Squadron of the U.S. Air Force Academy and the Falcon Chapter of the Uni-versity of Colorado-Colorado Springs. Both organizations have had humble beginnings in recent years, but have grown together to become leaders in both the area and re-gion, culminating in successfully hosting an

ARCON this year at the Academy. This is a huge feat, with Falcon Chapter being one of the youngest Silver Wings chapters in the nation and Falcon Squadron undergoing its own rebirth in recent years. The camarade-rie and esprit de corps shared by these two organizations is truly amazing, laying the foundation for many great things to come.

The unique and strong bond which has de-veloped between these two is evidence of what can be accomplished through team-work and cooperation. It is a reflection of necessity for civilian and military leaders to come together to accomplish a common objective. As all of us approach graduation at some point, we realize the importance of maintaining these bonds beyond our years in Silver Wings and the Arnold Air Society. The long line of past and present members creates a network with endless potential and possibilities as we step into leadership roles throughout the nation.

The Falcon Chapter at the University of Colorado (2014-2015)

AAS and SW Joint Relationsby Shawn Cagle - Public Affairs Officer - Joint Alumni Association

12

Silver Wings Regional Service HoursThis graph represents service hours towards the JNP, SNP, and community service projects completed by Silver Wings chapters in the months of September and October. Service hours are displayed by region. Only reported service hours are shown.

Silver Wings Region

Tota

l Ser

vice

Ho

urs

(JN

P, S

NP

, an

d co

mm

un

ity

serv

ice)

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11