HANGAR/GARAGE SALE, 2018
“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” as the saying goes. On May 19, VAHS proved that old adage, holding its first hangar sale of surplus items from the archives and collections. 40 years-worth of treasure have been collecting in our storage areas. In some cases, the items were officially donated but in others, they just appeared on the doorstep of the old Richmond Airport facility and were impossible to trace to a donor. During the move from that location to our new home in Fredericksburg, careful examination was made of a huge number of models, charts, tools, parts, books, magazines, manuals, photos, drawings, prints, clothes, etc., etc. to determine if they had historic value, added to the story of aviation and aerospace in Virginia, or were donated with restrictions on their sale. Items that did not merit retention were separated from those that did. This examination was done by a group including Ray Tyson, Ray Gill, Van Crosby, Tim McSwain and our intrepid office administrator, Sue Baker. Consultations with David Hahn and Don Serio and others on certain items who could off er some insight on their provenance.
The most unusual item was a large frying pan, donated by the late Floyd Clark, that was used at his famous fl y-in pancake breakfasts. Tom Woodburn and Nancy Miller teamed up to buy it at auction held during the annual meeting.
Charlie Lamb (Delta Airport Consultants) bid the highest ($1,500) for the insurance policy generously donated by USI Insurance and Old Republic Aerospace.
On the appointed day, the weather was rainy and gloomy. For a while, the hangar loaned to VAHS by Luke Curtas for the sale was pretty quiet. However, with entertainment provided by The Three Jolly Coachmen, the able assistance of the Usual Suspects and spouses, the crowd slowly gathered with cash or credit cards in hand and by day’s end, VAHS made $5,585.00! We owe a big THANKS to everyone who donated their time to help us make the day a success.
—Tim McSwain