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We are pleased to announce the appointment of Roberta Gilley as our new Saturday docent. Born in Santa Barbara, California, Roberta grew up in Tampa, Florida. Georgia has been her home since 2017. She is the proud daughter of Robert A. Farley, a United States Marine who served in the Pacific Theatre during WWII and fought in the Battle of Okinawa. He continued to serve in the US Army Reserves and retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Roberta also had two uncles who served during WWII. Her family’s record of service and sacrifice does not end here.

Roberta has two daughters, two stepsons, one of whom is currently serving in the US Army. She is proud to have a brother who served during Desert Storm and two nephews who served both in Iraq and in Afghanistan. Roberta has a passion for history, especially WWII. She wants to do her part to keep these memories and stories alive. Come by the WWII Flight Training Base and Museum on Saturdays and meet Roberta.

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for Charles J. Loring Memorial and Cadet Park

On Friday 22 November 2024, the World War II Flight Training Museum, the 63rd Preservation Society, the WWII Flight Training Base Committee, and the City of Douglas held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the newly-named Cadet Park and the Charles J. Loring Memorial. This event commemorated the 72nd anniversary of Major Charles J. Loring Jr.'s heroic actions and included the dedication of a memorial in his honor. Many family members of Charles Loring, along with several distinguished guests, were present at the well-attended event.

The aircraft on display at the Cadet Park was acquired by the Douglas 63rd Preservation Society, Inc., for use in this memorial. It is painted as Lockheed F-80C, S/N49-1830 (FT-830) as flown by Maj. Charles J. Loring, Jr. Local volunteers and U.S. Air Force Maintainers from Moody AFB dedicated many hours of their time and skills to the restoration of the F-80 Shooting Star, the centerpiece of the memorial.

Thank you to Al Thomas and his crew at Al’s Paint & Body Shop for the beautiful paint job; Jimmy Kitchens, American Truck Parts, for transporting and positioning the F-80 on the display platform; and a special thank you to Sue and Hugh Harrington for their generous gift to help with this restoration. And a big thank you to Don Brooks who made all of this happen!

To see the special newsletter describing the event, click here: Cadet Flyer: Special Edition December 2024.