In his opening remarks, President Hargrave described the Fine Art Center as the “jewel of the campus.” As an alumni of ECU himself, Hargrave introduced another alumni, the guest of honor, Bill Thrash of Oklahoma’s OETA, whose name and presence will forever be etched on the walls of the new high definition television studio. Thrash was raised in Ada, OK and is no stranger to the halls of ECU. He began his career in an ABC affiliate, KTEN, before catapulting his career in Oklahoma City. After two decades or more with OETA,

Thrash continues to stress the importance of finding stories in Oklahoma for an audience that was born and bred on a couple hundred years of red earth history.

He also gave the ECU students a goal, “I challenge the students to be creative and to stretch the envelope. My hope, in the not too distant future, is for them to develop creative programming to broadcast on
OETA.”

Later, after the ribbon cutting ceremony, the question was posed, “How soon do you expect that to happen?” “When the dust settles in a year,” was his estimation.

The vision for a Fine Arts Center and state of the art television studio began after the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that paved the way for the New media or converged media disciplines. Dr. Donna Gough was then ten years into her teaching career at ECU when she became a member of the team that outlined the vision into a practical reality that led to the creation of the jewel of Ada known as the Hallie Brown Ford Fine Art Center and the William Thrash TV Studio.

“Television production is not going away,” said Dr. Gough, from her new offices at Claflin University in South Carolina, where she now serves as Chair and Professor of the Mass Communications Department. “We knew back then that we had to train students for the converging New media that all leads to the Internet.” Gough left the halls of ECU the year the Art Center opened in 2009. Assistant Professor Chris Shofner, who now teaches television and audio production, filled her position. He is also in charge of the television studio.

The day before the dedication of the studio, Shofner was plugging in cables to the monitors and cleaning the counter tops with a feather duster. “The system is definitely high definition. It’s 250 percent better than the old system.”

Shofner himself is not much older than many of his students and understands the heartbeat of that generation. “Students love technology. There is no doubt. They love new toys.”

Shofner affirms Thrash’s challenge to the school and students, “The new system will be more hands on. The new curriculum in our department will also be more specific to the field of New media and more practical in nature.”

Thrash kept his words simple, a reflection of his 1950’s training in radio broadcast, “They [the students] should find cultural and historical stories that can be told in different ways with new and fresh ideas.”

The team effort that began in 1996 and culminated in the opening of the studio in 2009 is reflected in a quilt that decorates one of the Hallie Brown Ford hallways. Faces of former presidents and esteemed members of the campus are featured in the orange and black design. Former President Bill Cole was instrumental in the dream, and since his passing, Hargrave has taken up the baton as he brings ECU into the next decade.

By Linda Schaefer

This was only the second year for the Boys and Girls Club of Ada raffle, but the organization succeeded in raising an impressive $36,086 by raffling off a 2009 Nissan Titan, $1000 savings bond, I Pad, 42” flat screen TV and a children’s ATV.

Brian Ford, the organization’s executive director credits the raffle’s success to the generosity of sponsors and the heart warming response from the community.

“We are extremely grateful to Vision Bank, Citizens Bank, 1st United Bank, Ada Discount Motors, Pre Paid Legal, Ada Nissan and Cantrell Solutions for providing the prizes,” said Ford. “These are big-ticket items that created a great deal of excitement and enthusiasm for the raffle.”

Ford explained that all of the prizes were donated, except for the truck. “We purchased the truck for $20,000, but Ada Nissan gave us a very generous $14,000 discount,” explained Ford.

Ford said the Boys and Girls Club raffled off a 2008 model of the truck last year. It proved to be the “wow” factor that stimulated ticket sales, so they felt confident in the investment this year.

“We decided to build on what was successful last year and it paid off,” said Ford. “This year’s truck cost about $3,000 more, but it was certain worth it considering the attention it received. I think people were expecting a similar grand prize this year and they weren’t disappointed.”

Out of the 1000 tickets printed, 700 were distributed for a voluntary contribution of $62 per single ticket and $50 a piece for multiple tickets. “We decided on $62, because Boys and Girls Club of Ada first got started back in 1962,” said Ford.

He reported that out of the $36,086 raised, the Boys and Girls Club of Ada received about $10,000 after the costs of the truck, promotional costs and supplies. “We learned from last year that the closer we got to the deadline, the more excited people became and the greater the ticket sales. This year, we didn’t start advertising until toward the end. Of course, driving the truck around town with a big banner was a real attention-getter.”

Ford said the Ada Air Show provided a free both for the raffle. Tickets for the major prizes were sold on Friday and Saturday, as were $1.00 tickets for a miniraffle with prizes announced every hour through the use of a mega phone. The grand prize raffle winners were announced at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

How will Boys and Girls Club of Ada use their hard-earned cash? Ford said the money will be well-spent on summer and after-school programs, including the sports programs, field trips, staffing, snacks and other activities, as well as a current remodeling project.

“Our entire budget is about $300,000,” said Ford. “Most of that funding comes from the National Boys and Girls Club, local United Way, state grants, donors and sponsors and program fees. These resources, in addition to the funds we raise from the raffle, help ensure that we continue to provide quality programs and qualified instructors here in Ada.”

Ford said that prior to his accepting the position of executive director in 2008, a large percentage of the community was unaware of the services the organization offered.

“The annual raffle helps us get the word out that we’re here to keep the kids off the street by giving them a safe, supportive and positive environment after school and during the summer,” said Ford. “Our sports programs are growing each year; we currently offer basketball, flag football, T-Ball and wrestling. We’re also fighting the epidemic of youth obesity with nutrition education and there’s a library with computers for learning experiences. The children get to go swimming and skating, plus enjoy fun and informative visits from guests representing organizations such as the 4-H, Narcanon and ECU students.

The Boys and Girls Club of Ada currently serves about 1300 local boys and girls per year with the largest number being in the sports program.

“With schools all over the state eliminating extra-curricular activities and after-school programs due to budget cuts, it’s gratifying the see that that Ada understands and appreciates how this organization is stepping up to meet the need,” said Ford. “It takes everyone – sponsors, a great board of directors, volunteers, parents, funding resources, trained professionals – all working together to ensure the health and safety of our kids.

When everyone cares and gets involved, it really doesn’t matter who drives off in the truck. Our kids are the big winners.

By Denise May

Dr. Bratton graduated from Waurika High School before obtaining her bachelors and O.D. at Northeastern State University College of Optometry. While working for her Optometry degree she won an award for “Outstanding Research in Vision Development.” She practiced as a faculty member at NSU for a year before opening her office in Ada. She now lives in Ada with her husband, a local dentist, and her three children.

Taking a walk through Ada Vision’s brightly colored rooms and halls; you notice that they have the machines and equipment that you would expect in an optometry office, but some of their services are less then ordinary. Ada Vision is possibly proudest of its Vision Therapy, an alternative for optical-corrective treatment. Dr. Bratton is in the process of becoming board certified by the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD) and has completed 80 hours of Vision Therapy sessions.

Ada Vision’s outlook is to help anyone who needs vision treatment, but according to Dr. Bratton her primary goal is also to help children. She says “My passion is with vision therapy for children.” Children benefit the most from Vision Therapy because in some instances eyeglasses are not a viable option to correct certain eye problems.

Vision Therapy can treat children or adults with disabilities and those with vision defects. Two of the most frequently corrected eye problems using Vision Therapy are strabismus, which is the turning of an eye or commonly referred to as “cross-eyed,” and amblyopia, or more simply a “lazy” eye. Symptoms for these common conditions usually are double vision, blurriness, and occasionally a loss of vision. Each therapy session lasts roughly 30 minutes to an hour, but results and treatment varies depending on each patient’s personal needs. For the best turnout, therapy is typically needed once or twice a week for 6-8 months, including exercises that must be completed at home.

Another unique service that you shouldn’t overlook is the Latisse treatment. Latisse is a safe, liquid solution for those with short unattractively thin eyelashes. The liquid is gently applied to the lashes with a brush and its effects are noticeable within just a few weeks resulting in thicker, longer, and lavish looking lashes.

No matter what your vision needs include, you have a clear selection of choices at Ada Vision. To contact Dr. Bratton’s office, you can call 580-272-9600 or stop by at 500 N. Monte Vista Suite 3 near Valley View Regional Hospital.

By: Brock Parsons

Rough Trails is a coming of age story about a teenage boy who lost his father to cancer. Young Craig finds himself forced to grow up as he is left to care for his sister, assume his father’s responsibilities and worry about his grief stricken mother who is becoming a different person. Craig ends up asking a lot of questions about God and himself as he struggles through a crisis he never thought he would face.

The former youth ministry teacher and children’s church instructor almost fell into being an author, although she always loved to write. “I’ve written almost as long as I can remember. I started writing poetry. I always loved to write and I always hoped I would publish a novel someday,” said Low.

She was a little intimidated by the idea of writing a book and admitted it wasn’t the kind of book she thought she would attempt. “Back in 1996 I started writing a women’s publication called ‘Women Breaking Bread’ and it was a devotional that I published and distributed locally to family and friends. I loved devotional writing and I thought if I wrote a book it would be a devotional. I’ve never been any good writing stories or even making up bedtime stories!”

Still, in 2000 the idea for her book started playing into her imagination everyday and two years later, her novel was born. For the next several years, her work remained hidden. “I didn’t know how to get it published and finally I decided that I really believed God inspired me with the story for this book and if He did, I needed to do something with it.”

After reading a book on how to find the right publisher, Low decided to submit her manuscript to Tate Publishing but she was skeptical, hoping for a sign. “My son had a band and was performing in the Battle of the Bands in Oklahoma City. I’d just sent my manuscript to Tate a couple of weeks before but I didn’t tell my husband. We were at the concert and my husband ran into a woman who said she was a publisher and wanted to see my book. I asked him where she was from and he said, ‘Tate Publishing.’

The acquisition editor promised to rush the novel for review and shortly after, a contract came in the mail. Only 4% of all manuscripts submitted to Tate Publishing ever get a contract but she was still cautious.Finally after much prayer, she signed the contract and is now planning a sequel.

True to her minister’s heart, Low incorporated an interactive feature to her site where young readers can play along with the book and participate with others. “I wanted them to be able to go to the site and find something encouraging. It helps them start discussions about things they may be going through themselves.”

Although her book is targeted for a young adult reader, Low is delighted to see that the strong message of faith through adversity is something readers of any age enjoy. “I’ve had a lot of adult readers who are enjoying the book as well.”

You can purchase a copy of the book and find out about her upcoming book signing
when you visit tamaralow.tatepublishing. net.

By Mindy Wood

Injunuity’s first full-length album entitled Fight for Survival, which was released earlier this month, truly showcases their broad repertoire of musical styles. Nothing is really too much of a stretch for this duo as they are able to piece together divergent styles such as Native, folk, rock, classical, and even jazz into a coherent collection of songs. This unique amalgamation of genres did not come without plenty of inspiration though, as both members pull this unique style from their own experiences and journeys with music.

Clonch was introduced to music at a young age. “My mother was classically trained in the piano for over twenty years and I would always hear her playing… It wasn’t until about the sixth grade that I got a piano and started playing and teaching myself, but I’ve been playing ever since.” With this background, Clonch has become a rather technical and classically trained artist, which is an aspect of their music which can definitely be heard at times with various string orchestra and piano sounds. Amongst other instruments, Clonch also plays the Native-flute, which is truly what gives Injunuity its unique style. “I was given my first Native-flute by a woman I worked with in Purcell. I picked up on it from there and when I started working for the Chickasaws, one of my first jobs was to score and write music for a live stage production, and they had Nativeflutes there that I was able to use. That is when I really started to incorporate more Native-flute into my music.” While working for the Chickasaws and venturing into a solo career with the Native-flute, Clonch met Carpenter, who had his own unique background in music as well.

“I started in music playing the saxophone for elementary band,” said Carpenter. “The saxophone is what really piqued my interest in music and then when I was about sixteen I picked up the guitar. I took guitar lessons and I really didn’t like it. I didn’t like the structure of taking lessons and taking time to learn new songs, so I quit lessons and started playing on my own and playing with friends. That is what really got me—playing with other people.” By branching out on his own, Carpenter developed a looser style that was heavily centered on rock music, so when he met Clonch, he was able to offer a different sound than what Clonch was able to do on his own. In 2007 they began playing together resulting in the genesis of Injunuity.

Since then, the band has grown and shrunk in size. They have won a couple of awards including an Addy Award for Best Elements of Sound: Music Only, and a NAMMY (Native American… And they have had the opportunity to travel all over the United States playing their music. Along with all of these personal breaks, doors have also been opened to help change peoples’ perspectives on Native Americans and Native American culture.

“We both grew up with musicians but I was never really connected to my heritage,” said Clonch “and the same was true for Jeff [Carpenter] as well. By being introduced to the Native-flute I became more interested in my heritage and I began studying my culture more.” Through music, Clonch and Carpenter have come closer to their heritage than they ever have been before, and they try to share that with others wherever they go. “Every year we go to different festivals and sometimes we get to speak to kids about the culture and heritage, and I believe our style of music is able to pique the interest of the kids. We’re then able to open up our culture’s history and help educate the kids about Native Americans… You would be surprised how many kids don’t even know that Indians still exist, and it’s kind of sad, especially in Oklahoma. But through our music we are able to show them who we are and to show Native Americans in a positive light.”

Part educators, part rock-stars, part cultural preservers, this duo has been able to accomplish more in a few years than many bands are able to do in a lifetime. And if the past is any indicator for the future, then the future is bright for Injunuity.

If you are interested in picking up Injunuity’s new album, they will be available in various locations including Hasting’s and on CDBaby.com and iTunes.

By Josh Forrester

This, however, was not an experience that would endure for much longer, for in 1964, Clark’s father, Ernie, was involved in a tragedy that would change her life forever.

One day, Captain Ernie Clark was filling in for a pilot who had called in sick. He was en route from Nevada to Oakland when a passenger entered the cockpit with a gun, killing Captain Clark and his first officer, and subsequently everyone onboard. In the 60’s, pilots were not required to keep the door to their cockpits locked, and therefore the gunman entered the cockpit with absolutely no resistance. Later, a law would be passed requiring pilots to lock the cockpit doors.

While, to most people, this would be an extremely discouraging event, for Clark it made her all the more determined to live out her father’s legacy and become a pilot. This greater determination would lead her to her first piloting job for Golden West Airlines. Later, she would become one of the first women to fly for a major airline by flying for Hughes Airwest, and in 1984 she became a captain for Northwest Airlines. After an extensive career with these airlines, she retired from Northwest in 2004.

In 1980, Clark had founded an air show company, then named Julie Clark’s American Aerobatics—now simply, American Aerobatics—which led to her dedication to, now, nearly 31 years of solo aerobatic air show flying. During this time she has garnered innumerable awards including the Art Scholl Memorial Showmanship Award and an induction into the Women in Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame of Women in Aviation, International. Also, she has since logged over 31,000 accident-free hours in the air and is truly a sight to behold; and on this 25th and 26th of June, Clark’s mesmerizing aerobatics will be on full display at the Ada Air Expo.

Her routine has been described as graceful, remarkable, elegant, and even rugged. With experience, dedication, and determination, Clark is sure to be a crowdpleaser, as she takes her restored T-34—dubbed “Free Spirit”—to the limits of its operating capability.

The T-34 is a plane that demands exceptional skill to perform aerobatics and Clark’s years of experience has honed her coordination and responsiveness to mind-blowing heights. This coordination and responsiveness leads to a routine that is “remarkable in its beauty and splendor.” Her unique and patriotic routine entitled, “Serenade in Red, White and Blue.” is sure to wow fans of all ages. The routine is breathtakingly choreographed to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA,” and to enhance her presentation, multi-colored wing-tip smoke trail her every maneuver as she concludes her performance with crowdpleasing pyrotechnics.

Julie Clark’s show is definitely one that no one would want to miss; therefore, every resident of Ada and Pontotoc County should make sure to attend the Ada Air Expo on the 25th and 26th of June. They won’t be disappointed.

*All information and quotes for this article were acquired through Julie Clark’s promotional website, americanaerobatics.com.

by: Josh Forrester

More than 30 teams from five states competed last year for $5,000 in prize money courtesy of Hoppe Construction and Kim’s Tanning, and a spot at the KCBS national contest.

Hoppe Construction and Kim’s Tanning once again are the main sponsors of the barbecue for this year’s event. Total prize money for the 2010 BBQ Cook-off has been increased to $6,000.

by Jennifer Quidas

For instance, Elizabeth Thible of France is cited as the first female to leave earth. She floated more than a mile above ground in a hot air balloon in 1784. By 1834, 22 women in Europe were piloting their own balloons on solo flights.

But Europe wasn’t the only place where women were making their mark. In the 1880s, Mary Myers of New York was one of the first female balloonists in America to make a solo flight.

Katherine Wright, sister to Orville and Wilbur Wright, was instrumental to her brothers’ successes in the early 1900s. She was called “the third Wright brother” by contemporaries of the time.

In 1908, Tiny Broadwick became the first person to make a parachute jump from a hot air balloon. She was 15 years old. She later demonstrated parachute jumping from aircraft to the US Army.

On March 8 , 1910, French Baroness Raymonde de Laroche became the first woman to earn a pilot’s license. That milestone is being honored across the globe this year with numerous events.

In 1911, Harriet Quimby became the first licensed female pilot in the United States. Bessie Coleman became the first licensed African-American pilot in 1921. In 1928, Pearl Carter Scott, a Chickasaw, became the youngest licensed female pilot at 13 years old.

Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic in 1932. In 1938, Hanna Reitsch becomes the first licensed female helicopter pilot.

And let’s not forget the contributions made by the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS) and the Women’s Flying Training Detachment (WFTD). These organizations later merged together to become the Women’s Air Force Service Pilots or WASPs. These courageous women flew aircraft from factories to aerodromes to free up military pilots needed for combat missions. They were flight instructors, replacing men who had gone to war. They were eventually given veteran status for their wartime efforts.

Also making tremendous contributions to aviation during wartime were the Rosie the Riveters. These were the mothers, wives and daughters of the fighting men. Rosies were the working women of World War II, who helped the war effort from the home front. They worked in munitions plants, shipyards and airplane manufacturing plants, just to name a few.

Fast forward to 1963. Russian Valenhtina Tereshkova became the first woman in space. In 1979, six women were selected by NASA as astronaut candidates. In 1983, Sally K. Ride became the first US woman astronaut.

These are but a few examples of the accomplishments of woman in aviation. As the industry advances, you can be sure women will continue to be in the forefront.

By Jennifer Quidas

Prior to his death June 14, 2003, Stout wrote that of the 59 combat missions he flew, the missions to Wewak really stood out in his memory. “They could be called rough and tough missions, and in my opinion, they were. As I look back from the vantage point of time it is easy to understand why I will never forget Wewak,” he wrote.

The crews that flew with the 405th Bomb Squadron were known as “Green Dragons.” A large green dragon was the nose art on all the squadron’s B-25s. “The Green Dragon was visible from the ground when we made low level strafing runs,” Stout wrote. “Tokyo Rose spoke of us often however, her words were not kind. Although the Green Dragon
was attractive nose art, it may have incurred extra harsh treatment for downed crews taken prisoner by the Japanese.

There were many incidents during combat in which I was just plain lucky. In fact, some of my friends began to call me Lucky. I suppose I was willing to let fate control my destiny. Fate was really kind to me in my early combat days.”

Those early missions included strafing and bombing the Japanese Dagua airstrip at low level, 20 to 100 feet, on Aug. 21, 1943. The next month, the squadron flew a second mission to destroy ships carrying supplies to Wewak.

Stout grew up in Allen and graduated from Allen High School. He received
his Bachelor of Arts in government and history and also a Master’s Degree from
East Central University. He did graduate work at the University of Nevada and then returned to Oklahoma where he received his doctorate in administration and education from the University of Oklahoma.

He was employed at General Motors and taught in public schools in Nevada, California and Oklahoma. He was a professor in the ECU Education Department and served as dean of the graduate studies and continuing Education at ECU.

He served on Ada City Council for 20 years and as mayor of Ada for five terms.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army Infantry and later started flying and served as an education staff officer. He served in three wars, World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

He joined the National Guard in 1939 and went into the infantry for two years. From there, he went into the Army Air Corps in 1942.

He married Betty Jo Hopkins Feb. 2, 1950, who survives.

by Tony Pippen

GAMI was founded in 1994 by George Braly and Tim Roehl. Prior to the founding of GAMI, Braly, who had a degree in aeronautical engineering, had become friends to Roehl, who had experience in aerospace manufacturing. Braly was an active pilot who practiced law in the area and who also owned a Beechcraft Bonanza airplane. The aircraft contained a new engine monitoring system that, at the time, was a fairly new instrument that allowed the pilot to monitor the exhaust gas temperatures and the cylinder head temperatures of all six cylinders in their airplane’s engine. With this new device, Braly began to notice that the cylinders were operating at different air-fuel ratios. This is significant because when engine cylinders have different mixtures of air and fuel the engine’s performance can suffer greatly, resulting in larger fuel consumption.

Because of this imbalance, Braly and Roehl wanted to see if they could balance the air-fuel ratios inside the engine’s cylinders and in doing so they began to modify the flow of the fuel injectors, thus leading to the invention of what they now call “GAMIjectors®” (GAMI + fuel injectors = GAMIjectors). By balancing the airfuel ratio they found that their engine would operate significantly better at more uniform temperatures and at much lower fuel flows, thus saving gallons upon gallons of fuel.

GAMIjectors® are manufactured in Ada and, as the recipient of Aviation Consumer Magazine’s “Product of the Year” Award, have not only become a worldwide success, but have also changed the way people fly planes. Because of the fact that these fuel injectors allow the engine to run much smoother they discovered that they could operate their engines at what is called “lean of peak EGT” (lean of peak for short). EGT stands for Exhaust Gas Temperature and the term “lean” essentially means to use less fuel, so therefore “lean of peak” basically means to run an engine with less fuel, lowering the exhaust gas temperature. This in turn saves a great amount of fuel, because before this discovery, pilots were told to run their engines “rich of peak” (the opposite of lean of peak) in order to make the engine work less, thus lowering the cylinder head temperatures, which keeps the engine from overheating.

Before GAMIjectors, there was no way to operate an engine lean of peak because the engine would not run smooth enough and the engine temperatures were dramatically different. With the ability to more closely control how much fuel is injected into the cylinders, they were able to operate the engine at lean of peak, and they found that they could indeed run leaner with the same amount of horsepower. Further, another difference was that when doing so, it ran cooler and it consumed significantly less fuel. There are now over 19,000 sets of GAMIjectors flying worldwide, all of which have completely changed conventional ideas within aviation and have also saved the general aviation industry tens of millions of gallons of fuel and this was merely the beginning of accomplishment for Braly and Roehl.

After the success of the GAMIjectors, one invention simply led to the next. The fact that they could now run engines at lower temperatures meant that there was a lot more power that could be utilized which opened the market for turbo-charging systems to become a more popular component in aircrafts. Turbochargers in essence increase the amount of air that is taken into the engine’s cylinders. With the engine running cooler the turbo systems could add more manifold pressure thus creating more horse power. Consequently, in 1998, Braly and Roehl founded TATI (Tornado Alley Turbo Inc.) and gained permission to modify existing turbo systems on many popular aircrafts to efficiently fit with their GAMIjectors.

Along with the modification of existing postmarket turbo systems, about four years ago TATI began manufacturing turbo systems for the most popular high performance single engine aircraft : the Cirrus SR22. For years Cirrus had been trying to incorporate a turbo system into the SR 22 model with little success. The people at TATI therefore decided that it would be wise to build a turbo system for this model in hopes that it would become a popular component for a popular airplane. When Cirrus caught wind of TATI’s manufacturing efforts, they decided that they would test it out for themselves and they liked it so much that they immediately started offering it at their factory. TATI has since manufactured close to 1000 turbo systems for the Cirrus SR 22 which is a venture that has led them straight into their current project: the creation of a highoctane unleaded fuel which can be used in place of the current leaded fuel that is used in many airplanes today.

The fleet of planes that TATI had manufactured the 1000 turbo systems for is now the first certified fleet to attempt to operate on their new unleaded fuel. The reason behind these attempts to create an unleaded fuel is that general aviation aircraft are some of the last remaining vehicles that still use leaded fuel because leaded fuels have high enough octane to satisfy and not damage the engines of aircrafts. But because of the pollutants that are emitted from leaded fuel, certain environmentalist interest groups have petitioned the EPA to crack down on the FAA in an attempt to rid the general aviation industry of leaded fuel. As a result the industry now faces the crisis of developing an unleaded fuel with a high enough octane to not hurt aircraft engines. GAMI has since taken this challenge and formulated an unleaded fuel with a 100 MON (Motor Octane Number) made only out of petroleum based chemicals. The fuel is now awaiting approval from the FAA. Once approved it will be one of the only unleaded fuels available with such a high octane, and for that reason, one of the most efficient. This could essentially solve the fuel crisis and provide the general aviation industry with a truly quality product.

With all of these innovations GAMI and TATI have rearranged and are still rearranging the landscape of the general aviation industry. Revolutionaries in their own right, with a gifted maintenance crew, without whom none of their work would be possible, their talent and accomplishments should not go overlooked. Citizens of Ada should feel proud to be home to such great minds.

By Josh Forrester