VOLUNTEERS ENJOY MAGICAL VIEWS WHILE PREPARING WALKER RIDGE

At about this time, every year, we have this conversation at the RAF about what our year end letter (code for asking for your financial support) should say to you, and about the RAF and the accomplishments of the past year.

A Christmas gift of flight lessons from his parents started Scott Anttila’s aviation journey in 1985. “I learned at Johnson Field, a small grass strip tucked into the woods in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and that early exposure to simple backcountry flying stuck with me,” Scott says. Growing up in the U.P., he spent a lot of time outdoors and found that flying was another way to get to the places he liked to explore—especially the ones most people never saw. As he earned more ratings and eventually moved to the Detroit area for work, Scott realized he needed a way to stay connected to northern Michigan. He bought an airplane and used it to get back to the smaller airstrips and lake country he enjoyed. Along the way, he also flew gliders out of Frankfort, soaring along the Sleeping Bear Dunes and towing sailplanes over the Great Lakes. “Those flights gave me a different appreciation for the landscape and made me even more interested in the small, out-of-the-way airports scattered around the state,” he says. Visiting those kinds of places, Scott first came across the Recreational Aviation Foundation. He started using RAF-supported airstrips both inside and outside Michigan. “I noticed how well-kept they were and how much access they opened up,” he says, adding, ”Over the years, I’ve watched a number of grass strips close, which made the RAF’s mission feel especially important to me. Maintaining these airstrips keeps aviation connected to the outdoors and makes it possible for more people to reach the quiet, remote areas that inspired me to fly in the first place.” Scott joins the other two RAF Michigan Liaisons, General Grant and Tanmoy Ganguly. He can be reached at santtila@theraf.org . Submitted December 11, 2025.

Chris at TacAero in Fredericksburg, Texas to fly what he calls, "the mighty XCub. It's an awesome airplane,” he added.

That is the end of a quote that goes a bit like this: “It may not be easy, but if you don’t start, it won’t happen at all.” When I read that, I thought back 23 holiday seasons ago, about when the RAF got underway. We likely were a bit naïve about the road, or lack thereof, that was out front of the RAF, but we were wise enough to grasp that if the RAF were to become a successful contributor to our country’s recreational and backcountry aviation, the path would not be easy. What we did know was – and some of you have heard this before – “If not us, who? And if not now, when?” That simple realization got us started, or it wouldn’t have happened at all. The RAF works much that way today. We are a “jump in and figure it out” organization. We sense a need, and bypass the tendency to spend lots of time getting ready to get ready. As RAF Director Bill Brine of Massachusetts says, “The RAF has a bias towards action.” And we attract folks who have that same get-it-done attitude. What I try to do in this piece is relate these words to other parts of my life, and those who spend a few minutes reading them. With it being the giving season, I suggest that one of the best gifts you can perhaps give is one that says, “It might not be easy, but now is a good time to get going or (you guessed it), it won’t happen at all.” In this digital consumption world we live in, I urge you to be your best authentic you. We’re all bombarded with algorithms and social media. If you’re reading this, you are that authentic person the RAF seeks, who pitches in on the team that the RAF thrives on. You can be the wrapping paper around the gift of getting started, of helping others to take meaningful action, and accepting responsibility as opposed to taking credit, all while embracing the learning that comes from the occasional setback. If success had been a requirement ahead of passion, the RAF would not be where it is today. The RAF has proven that people with passion get things done. So, at this time of year, give that gift of passion and leadership, the kind the RAF works hard to exemplify. - John McKenna, RAF Chairman  Submitted December 9th, 2025.