Museum of Flight Gala

Sherry & James Raisbeck with Raisbeck Aviation HS Student

Curmedgeon Ken and I enjoyed attending the Museum of Flight Gala this past weekend as guests of Puget Sound Business Journal.  It was a spectacular party with around one-third of the guests really getting into the spirit and dressing up in Great Gatsby era clothing.

Greeting guests near the front door by his exquisite classic car was James Raisbeck along with wife Sherry and a student from the new Raisbeck Aviation High School.  Sherry was wearing her special dress that had been Marilyn Monroe's and looked fantastic in it.

Ken Hatch with the "Champagne Girl"

Of course, one of the guest stars of the evening was the Electra 10-E airplane, a restored plane identical to the one Amelia Earhart loved flying and ultimately disappeared in, which came wheeling in front of the Museum of Flight piloted by Ann Simpson, Delta Airlines Captain, Museum of Flight Trustee and co-chair of the evening's festivities.

The Museum of Flight is of such grand size and scale that the tables awaiting the guests for dinner seemed tiny in comparison to the big Blackbird airplane towering over them.

We saw many friends including Gordy Prouty,

The tables awaiting the guests in the shadow of the Blackbird.

The "Champagne Lady"

Star of the Party:  The Electra 10-E

Marshal McReal, Patti Payne, Lee Keller, Nancy & Charlie Hogan, Dottie Simpson, Ann Wyckopf, Susan & Andy Hutchison, Bruce McCaw, Stacy & Doug King, Laurel & John Nesholm, Laurie Lyford, Robin Gainey & Jerry Sanford, Glenna Olson, Craig Stewart and others.

On the Eve of TNT: Travel & Technology Conference

Emma Landis and Claire Dillow working on TNT

The entire ZINO Society team has been hard at work preparing for TNT: Travel & Technology Conference that we are producing tomorrow in partnership with Garvey Schubert Barer.

We are expecting 150 people to join us at Bell Harbor International Conference Center tomorrow afternoon to hear from nineteen expert panelists in three separate panels in the fields of hospitality, travel and tourism and how technology impacts these business sectors along with one Dealflow flight which will include six entrepreneurs from start up and expansion companies in these sectors.  Click HERE to see more details about the

Ana Ongko and Meg Landies working on TNT

companies represented by panelists and entrepreneurs.

Meg Landies, ZINO Society Operations and Dealflow Manager, has prepared the presenting entrepreneurs to be ready to pitch their companies tomorrow, while Emma Landis, Member Services Manager, has worked on audience development and Claire Dillow, Marketing & Event Manager and newest team member, Ana Ongko, Events Coordinator, have handled the hundreds of details necessary to produce an event of this complexity.

Preparing the nametags for TNT.

The day will end with presentation of the TNT Explosive Idea Awards for best presentation and best investment opportunity followed by a networking reception featuring beer and wine from ZINO Society Brew & Wine Professional Members, Woodward Canyon Winery, Avennia, Castillo de Feliciano and Emerald City Beer.

AppleFest 2013

Penny Thackery at work cutting apples.

Carole Ellison at the press

A week ago, we braved the rain and wind to go to Carnation Valley to join our friends, Nancy & Van Strom,  at their annual AppleFest event.  This event is all about crushing apples for cider followed by a delicious dinner on our hosts' covered porch.

Though it was cold and rainy as we were driving to the party, when we arrived the rain began to clear so that it was positively sunny by later in the day.  To get us in the spirit of the project, we began with fresh apple juice on ice mixed with rum.  Ken pulled up a chair where he could supervise and keep a close eye on the work being done.

Michele & Dan Heidt at the press

There are many sticky jobs that are part of producing apple cider including washing the apples in a big old-fashioned bathtub, cutting the oversize apples in half so they will fit in the press, moving the apples from the bath to the press in buckets, pouring the apples into the press one or two apples at a time, twisting the press to squeeze out the juice, catching the juice in a pitcher and changing out the pitcher as needed, pouring the juice into bottles and capping them and cleaning out the "apple slush" of peels, worms(?), stems, etc that are trapped in the screen and don't make it into the juice.  The "apple slush" was all loaded into the blade of a front-loader to be driven to a neighbor's home later for his pigs.

Susan Taylor, Toni Hoffman, Joyce McCallum, Nancy Strom

Many of the guests took part in the production.  Susan Taylor handled catching the juice for much of the day, Carole Ellison was twisting the apple press, while Bob Cremin made dozens of trips back and forth from the bathtub to the press with buckets of apples. Michele & Dan Heidt took a turn at the press too as did several others.  Penny Thackery, Arlene Wright and I took turns cutting apples in half as needed. Along with others, Toni Hoffman and Jan Rogers poured juice in bottles.

If we needed to choose one person who worked non-stop on the apple-pressing project from beginning to end, it would be Carole Ellison, whom I think we should crown as AppleFest Queen!

Ken Hatch and Jan Rogers

A number of the guests came bearing hors d'oeuvres to keep up everyone's energy during the hard work of apple pressing.  I was especially happy to see Joyce McCallum arrive with her devilled eggs and Jan Rogers with her warm sausage turnovers.  And for dessert, Toni Hoffman, Trudi Syferd and Mary Nelson brought three different versions of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.  Yum!

Several of the ladies escaped to the kitchen when it appeared to be time to help with dinner.  There were many cooks in the kitchen with varying opinions on the "right" way to prepare every food item.  I do have to say that Nancy has the patience of a saint because she was able to handle all the "help and advice" without batting an eyelash.  And in spite of the many cooks, everything turned out absolutely delicious!

Tim Premselaar shows his appreciation of Tom Raschella.

Some of the other guests not already mentioned included Carol & Spike Anderson, Sue & Tom Raschella, Sandi & Tim Premselaar, Ken Hatch, Doug McCallum, Dave Syferd, Diane & Gordon Kuenster, Nancy & Denny Rood, Mick Thackery, Rod Hoffman and Susan & Gary Neumann.

Arlene Wright with Carole Ellison, AppleFest Queen.

The Magic of Amelia Earhart and the Lockheed Electra

Debi Giannola & Cathi Hatch 

On Saturday, Debi Giannola and I went to the Museum of Flight as guests of sponsor, Wells Fargo, to witness the final flight and arrival of the Lockheed Model 10-E Electra, a replica of the plane in which Amelia Earhart flew around the world.

We arrived early enough to visit the Electra Simulator flights in the Aviation Learning Center.  We were each able to "pilot" our own plane and I discovered that landing is much harder than it appears.  My plane bounced on the ground

Debi Giannola in the Simulator cockpit

and then up into the clouds as I kept over compensating on the joystick.

It was also fascinating to wander through the great gallery and see the scores of planes that are part of the Museum of Flight collection; fighter jets, stealth bombers, mail planes, commercial airplanes, military planes, helicopters, gliders, the Space Shuttle trainer and even a car that could convert to a plane with fold-down wings.  I didn't realize the incredible number of planes that are on

A view of just a portion of the aircraft collection

display at the Museum of Flight and it is very impressive.

We then made our way to “Amelia’s Electra” public program in William M. Allen Theater presented by Chief Curator Dan Hagedorn and Bob Bogash, Aircraft Acquisition Expert. Dan is a huge fan of Amelia Earhart and shared dozens of photos of her that I had never seen previously.  

"Project Amelia" banner

Bob is a huge fan of Clarence Johnson, the famous Lockheed aircraft designer that did some wind tunnel tests on the Electra 10-E that were important to its safety along with a modification to the tail which became known as "guitar picks". He would include the guitar pick element on future planes he would design when he went on to become a very famous Lockheed aircraft designer.  Bob made use of his time at the podium to make an "ask" to Museum of Flight CEO Doug King, who was sitting in the audience, for the next plane which he wants to acquire for the Museum of Flight.  One of the bigger challenges is that it is the only one left in the world and currently sits at the bottom of the ocean just off the Hawaiian Islands.  He estimated at least a $10 million price tag to recover it. 

The Museum of Flight's newest acquisition

Following the lectures, we adjourned upstairs for lunch to the VIP Viewing Lounge and were able to go out on the deck when the Electra flew by twice before making her final landing. There was something quite emotional in watching that beautiful, shiny silver plane land and taxi towards us, stopping long enough to do a full 360 degree circle as if she was taking her final bow just before stopping in the viewing area in the parking lot for the welcoming ceremony.

Debi and I saw several friends at the event including Pam Ellison, Mary Knell, Mary Bass and Marco Abbruzzese all representing Wells Fargo and Brad Tilden representing Alaska Airlines, Ned Laird, Patti Payne, Stacy King, Dottie Simpson, Ann Simpson, James Raisbeck, Diane Tice and others.  There were also many dressed up to look like Amelia Earhart, which was fun to see.

Congratulations to the organizing committee and the Museum of Flight Board of Trustees who were able to raise the money necessary to bring the Electra to our museum!  

Happy Birthday Bode!

Bode Laramore contemplates his cake.

This past month has been a whirl of activities at ZINO Society and with the family too! We celebrated Bode's second birthday at Katie & Kevin Laramore's home in Bonney Lake.  Mom Katie, aka the Costco Queen, pretty much planned his birthday from beginning to end with food and gifts from Costco.

Bode's favorite gifts included many dinosaurs of all sizes including one that even roared and walked.  His other favorite gift was a collection of books

which he wanted to begin reading immediately.  Katie had to do some real convincing to get him to leave the books long enough to open his other birthday gifts.  Big brother Cutter was happy to "help" open Bode's presents and could certainly have solved that problem easily if he had been allowed to proceed.

Baby sister, Campbell, blissfully slept through most of the party and only joined the party at the end after most of the

The perfect baby, Campbell Laramore, with Mom Katie

guests had already departed.  What a perfect baby!