Six years late, America's romance with the Wright Brothers had begun!

On September 29, 1909, Wilbur made his first public flight in America, flying across New York harbor, around the middle of the Statute of Liberty and back again, as part of the great Hudson-Fulton Celebration. On October 4th, he made a second momentous flight, flying up the Hudson River from Governors Island to Grant's tomb and back again, a flight of about 20 miles. He was again accompanied by the music of bells, whistles, and foghorns.

Toward the later part of 1909, Orville and Wilbur started their own manufacturing company to build Flyers. This was the first fluttering of an aviation industry. After much hard work and negotiating, they finally had a contract with the U.S. Army Signal Corps and delivered their first military plane to the U.S. Army for the princely sum of $30,000.

Three years later, on May 30, 1912, tragedy struck the Wright family, when Wilbur died of typhoid fever. A spark in Orville died along with Wilbur.

In 1915, Orville, a millionaire, sold their aircraft company but continued to do aviation research for many years, developing a number of aircraft systems over the years. Wilbur died on January 30, 1948, at the age of 76, just 21 years before the Apollo II landed on the moon in 1969.

Astronaut Neil Armstrong took a piece of cloth from the Wright Flyer with him when he walked on the moon.

Today, aviation has established a firm foothold in the world and has changed our lives forever. Never in the wildest dreams of the Wright brothers would they have believed that aviation would have the profound effect on the world that it has had.

We can all learn from the accomplishments of Wilbur and Orville Wright. Let each of us, in our lives and in our own way, try to give something back to the world. In this, the 100th year of powered flight, do something special in your own world, be it for a neighbor, or in your own area of expertise. We are limited only by our dreams. Follow Your Dreams!

Mardell Haskins is a 65 years old widow with 8 children, 25 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren. She lives on Lake Mead near Overton, Nevada, is a cross country air race pilot and retired construction heavy equipment operator, and a member of The Ninety-Nines, International Organization of Women Pilots. She works with students and has a Scout Aviation Explorer Unit in Overton. She's the Founder and Chairman of Overton Airport Day (10 years) which gives free airplane rides to students, ages 8-17 called Young Eagles Flights. They have flown over 1,000 students. Mardell also does a lot of speaking at schools and organizations. She'll be speaking at a math forum for girls ages 8-10 in Erie, Penn in May. Mardell Haskins has organized women pilots groups for 99s in Brazil, Hungary, and Germany. She does a lot of international travel for the 99s and will be flying in a race in New Zealand in March and April of 2004.