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The three cadets and five senior members traveled to Walterboro last week for a Leadership Mentoring/Aerospace Education Day, where they met Lt. Col. Hiram Mann, one of the United States' first black military airmen.
Cadet Kevin MacDonald, 15, a chief master sergeant in the South Carolina Wing Lowcountry Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol -- a countywide group -- got to shake hands and say hello to Mann at the educational day July 29 at Lowcountry Regional Airport. Mann spoke to cadets, senior members and about 50 people from the general public about the challenges he faced as one of the first black airmen in a time when racism was rampant. The Tuskegee Airmen were trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Tuskegee, Ala., and flew in World War II. Between 1941 and 1946, 996 pilots graduated from the program.
"The whole premise of (Mann's) speech was you can do whatever you want to and you can pretty much overcome whatever as long as you think you can do it," Kevin said.
Kevin said nothing is going to get in the way of him going to the U.S. Naval Academy and flying helicopters for the U.S. Marine Corps.
Kevin and two other cadets from his squadron joined Civil Air Patrol cadets and senior members from all across South Carolina to hear Mann's story. In addition to the speech, attendees heard motivational speeches by a TV news anchor, a restaurant manager, a store manager and an Army major, all encouraging them to work hard to achieve their goals. The event was organized by the South Carolina Wing Walterboro Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol.
For the aerospace part of the event, there were portable planetariums on display from The National Science Center, a solar oven display demonstration, and the Lowcountry squadron launched model rockets they had created beforehand. There were three airplanes on display, and a helicopter company offered paid tours to those interested in taking a flight.
Beaufort Civil Air Patrol cadet Marshall Bingham, 14, a chief master sergeant, enjoyed learning about the different stars and constellations at the event, but he also thought it was great to meet a Tuskegee Airman. He said it's hard to believe people were so racist, and he admires Mann for pushing through the battles he faced.
"Even though some things may be hard, you just have to keep pursuing what you want to do," Marshall said.
For Marshall, that means finishing high school and either going to the University of South Carolina or the U.S. Naval Academy and eventually becoming a U.S. Marine pilot.
Lowcountry Composite Squadron Commander Capt. Roger Kelly said there aren't many of the Tuskegee Airmen left, and he wanted to impress upon the cadets the racial hurdles the men had to go through to accomplish what was a little bit easier for others.
"I think it's something that they'll internalize, and it will be meaningful to them as they think more about it over time," Kelly said.
