Chillicothe, Missouri residents, Kevin Golden and Jack Hickey saw the potential for a local EAA Chapter. They organized our initial meeting in 1989. That meeting turned out several people that had an interest in aviation. There seemed to be nohesitation about our decision to form a local EAA Chapter. Our beginning “climb out” as a Chapter had the usual flight to solo excitement as we made our way into a “pattern”. Many of our early meetings were held in President Jack Hickey’s garage.Newsletters were written by President Hickey and Vice President Kevin Golden and mailed out to each member. After the death of President Jack Hickey, we began holding meetings at different member locations. In the early 1990’s, Slim and Holly Caselman made their home and hangar available to us for meetings. Using their grass airstrip turned our summer meetings into small Fly-ins. The Caselmans initiated a “winter picnic” that included out of state guests and speakers. When the Caselmans could no longer continue the winter picnics, our Chapter pitched in and this became a group function for quite some time.

  With increased membership, Chapter 944 planned outings to the Air Power Museum in Blakesburg, Iowa, the TWA Airline Museum at the downtown airport in Kansas City, Missouri and the Nicholas-Beazley Museum in Marshall, Missouri. We started to help out with local Fly-ins since we had pilots and planes available. Chapter members began Young Eagle flights at the Brookfield, Missouri Fly-in. We began to host our own Fly-ins with the Young Eagle Flights as our main focus, while still continuing our support at other area Fly -ins. The Chillicothe Airport built a new terminal building, and we attended the dedication of the new building on January 12, 2002. Richard (Dick) West, a local World War II “Double Ace” P-38 Pilot, was honored by the decision to name the building: “Richard L West Terminal Building”. As we got up to “cruise speed”, we made a permanent meeting place in the old terminal office. Our new meeting place required lots of remodel work. Chapter President – Bob Unternaehrer, Vice President – Doyle Leppin, and members – Bill Singer & Pat O’Donnell were able to devote a lot of time to this project. They were assisted by a host of volunteers from within our Chapter. In 2003, our Chapter President – Dyle Wilson was recognized at Oshkosh headquarters for his years of volunteer service. He was honored as “Flight Line Volunteer of the Year”. Dyle has been Chapter 944 President since 2002. Dyle was also recognized recently by his employer for his dedication as a volunteer in the community.

  With financial support from the community, we grew in strength over the years. Our Fly-In, held each August, revolves around Young Eagle Flights. Chillicothe’s American Legion and VFW Posts, including EAA Chapter member, Larry Warren, raise the flag to start our day. The National Anthem is sung by a local volunteer. The Fly-In includes a breakfast and many raffle items donated by local businesses. Groups also set up booths for displaying information. Kids are normally lined up waiting for their Young Eagle rides. We have several pilots that fly the kids while others get them safely from the waiting area to the plane they will take their first  light in. These Fly-ins have turned into an event that draws a large crowd each year. Local support has been fantastic and is largely due to some outstanding volunteers, such as Cathie Hamilton and Karen Kay Summerville, who work within our communities to promote the spirit of aviation. Several years ago, we started a Solo Flight Scholarship program that awards someone, after an application process, financial assistance for flight instruction. Our Chapter became a 501(c)3 organization in 2009 and we expanded the education program to include sending young people to EAA Air Academy in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. We plan to commemorate each Flight Scholarship and Air Academy recipient by displaying a list with their names in our meeting room. To date, more than 3,400 Young Eagles have flown with the pilots in our organization. One outstanding individual, Doyle Leppin, leads the Chapter with 645 Young Eagle and countless Silver Eagle flights that include a woman in her nineties that finally enjoyed her first airplane ride. He was also recognized by the Executive Director of Young Eagles for flying 53 in one month (that was more than anywhere in the US). We have lost members along the way who also contributed greatly to our group success, but our “flight” continues. We have a plaque on the wall in our chapter house with the names of our members who have “flown west”. With the support of our community and volunteers that do whatever it takes, we should continue to have a “smooth flight” into the future.