Kettle Moraine Youth Aviation, Inc. (KMYA), a program working with Hartford Union and Slinger High School students building airplanes, has received a generous Matching Grant from the Ray Foundation of Naples Florida. Monies from the Ray Foundation Grant will allow the program to expand to a second aviation education site in West Bend, WI that will accommodate additional high school student teams to build an FAA approved RV-12iS aircraft.
Your donations will help to fund:
Facility/Tools/Insurance
Flight Training
RV12 Kit
Empennage (tailbone)
Fuselage
Wings
Power Plant (engine and propeller)
Avionics
KMYA was founded in 2020 by local aviators in cooperation with the West Bend EAA Chapter 1158 and has worked with more than 30 students. KMYA completed its first RV12iS airplane in June 2022, and is half way through its second plane at its hangar at Hartford Municipal Airport in Wisconsin.
The Ray Foundation grant provides up front funds to equip a second work space at the Chapter 1158 building at West Bend Airport, and matches up to an additional $75,000 of funds raised by KMYA this year. This funding allows a third plane to be built by West Bend, Kewaskum, and Jackson area high school students.
The Ray Foundation was founded in 1963 by James and Joan Ray and 'supports programs and organizations, primarily within the field of aviation, that develop life skills such as honesty, work ethic, self-confidence and self-discipline in young adults. James and Joan Ray, felt that with these personal attributes, a person can truly be free to pursue their dreams and succeed in life.'
Howard Kaney, President of EAA Chapter 1158, adds that "Immersing students in aviation, hands on learning and STEAM principles opens student horizons and career path opportunities. Students in this program are better equipped to work in the local manufacturing and aviation economies, as well as get a head start on technical aviation, maintenance, electronics or professional flight opportunities."
A fund drive to match the $75,000 offer from the Ray Foundation has begun.
For additional information for interested donors, students, parents or volunteers contact:
Larry Sullivan
kmya1@yahoo.com
(414) 719-5000