Message from the President and Executive Director:
One day I was talking to a friend, Jason Sharkey, and he started telling me about an idea he’d been thinking about for some time. He started by saying, “Paul, wouldn’t it be something if someone would organize getting a bunch of pre-war and WWII airplanes together so people could see them both in the air and on the ground? It would be a great way to showcase some of the fine airplanes made before and during the war.”
Because I’m a pilot and aviation is one of my favorite hobbies, I agreed that would be something.
He went on, saying, “And wouldn’t it be something if we could get a bunch of old 1930’s and 1940’s cars to show us the way people traveled in the United States during the 1940’s?
“And wouldn’t it be great if we could get people to dress in 1940s military and civilian clothes, and for one weekend, go back and re-live that unique period of American history?”
“Wouldn’t it be interesting to eat in a mess hall and see what a mobile hospital looked like? And wouldn’t it be something if that person could re-create a USO canteen, with a big band and the Andrews Sisters, with hostesses to dance with the troops? Or how about watching one of the classic black and white movies with the troops? Wouldn’t it be something to see lots of men and women in uniform, showing us what life in the military was like?”
I agreed all those activities would make a terrific event.
“And how about having the only transportation in the area being old tractors and military vehicles from the time period?
“It would be good to see what was going on in the home front, too, to see for ourselves how everyone contributed to the war effort. Seeing a victory garden, living with food and gas rationing, and seeing young boys and girls collecting tin and newspapers for recycling. Imagine sitting in a 1940’s kitchen for a cup of coffee, and seeing women quilting or knitting socks for the soldiers. I can just hear the local radio station playing that great 40’s music and listening to radio programs and war news. And wouldn’t it be great to see a fashion show showcasing the styles of the day?”
I continued to agree with Jason that all of these things would make a fascinating event, but I told him that anyone who undertook coordinating such an event would have to be a fool. Hello, I’m Paul King, the Executive Director of Victory Days, and I want to welcome you to the official Victory Days website.
All of the things that my friend Jason and I discussed that day are coming to pass. With the help of a group of passionate and hard-working believers, the very first Victory Days event will take place October 3-5, 2008. We have worked for several months on holding this event at the Columbus Airport in Columbus, Indiana, but due to the recent devastating floods, Bartholomew County has serious infrastructure damage that will not enable them to host an event of this size.
We are happy to announce the new venue that Victory Days will be held; Terre Haute, Indiana, the Terre Haute International Airport - Hulman Field.
If you have questions about a specific area of Victory Days, please feel free to contact the committee chairperson. For general questions, use info@victorydays.org, and someone will get back to you right away.
