|
| | Come Grow With Us! |
The Estrella Warbirds Museum has always been "the place to go" for local meeting, group dinners and company events. If you enjoy working with people and groups and are interested in making some extra money each month, we are currently in need of a part time facility rental coordinator. Experience preferred. Contact us today! We'd love to hear from you.
|
|
|
Oct. Dinner
Special Guest Speaker
Dennis Johansen
Estrella Warbirds Museum
Aircraft Restoration Manager
Combat Photographer
Wednesday, Oct 7, 2019
No Host Bar starts at 5:30 p.m.
Dinner starts at 6:30 p.m.
Dennis (Denny) Johansen and his wife moved to the Central Coast in 1970 shortly after completing his enlistment with the U.S. Army. They established Jim's Campus Camera on Higuera Street in San luis Obispo and operated the store for the next 43 years.
With the onset of retirement, he fairly quickly ran out of projects to do around their five acres just north of Santa Margarita and boredom was setting in. He had visited Estrella Warbirds Museum a couple times after moving to North County and since he had his private pilot ticket, the interest in airplanes was always in the background.
When Denny first arrived at the museum he had no idea how he could contribute at the Museum, but since he had been a docent at the Point San Luis Light Station for more than ten years, he figured that being a docent would be a low impact, fun thing to do while meeting a lot of interesting people. Ron Boyt, along with few other people, were in the midst of restoring the FA-8G and Ron suggested that he try his hand at sanding. Ron said that he could use another person on the end of a paint gun, and if he was willing to learn, Ron was willing to teach him the finer points of putting paint on airplanes. Denny had four mid-seventies collector cars that he had helped restore, but when it came to painting them, that was a task he felt was way beyond his talents so he reluctantly paid the high price to have a quality paint shop finish the cars off.
Ron convinced him that with practice and patience, most anyone could learn to paint. Denny wasted no time and dove right in, plus read several books about restoring and painting airplanes, and thanks to the internet, he found many YouTube videos about painting cars and planes.
Since then, he has painted eight aircraft, three jeeps and trucks, and one caterpillar in the EWM restoration shop. He has just recently finished the OV-10A Bronco (an excellent job!) and will soon roll the A-7 Corsair II into the paint shop to begin the process all over again.
|
|
Sponsor a month or give us your best shot!
Photo Contest and Sponsors Needed! Deadline 31 Oct 20.
We are currently preparing the 2021 11"x17" inch wall calendar featuring various aircraft, vehicles or artifacts currently on display at Estrella Warbirds Museum. We did this successfully in the past for several years. They sold out fast! 2020 may not have been the best of years, but ringing in 2021 is an excellent time to restart the program. We are putting the word out looking for sponsors and photographs to be included in our 2021 high quality printed wall calendar.
Sponsors: Just $200 sponsorship for individuals or for businesses to sponsor a month, have your name and logos (and/or small advertisement) imprinted on this high quality wall calendar. You will need to act now, as the deadline will be October 31st, 2020 or if all sponsor slots are filled prior to that date (3 of 12 are already committed at this writing). Calendars to be sold locally in giftshop. This will be an official "Estrella Warbirds Museum Collector's Edition" wall calendar. Act fast!
Photographers: We are searching for one of your best high resolution digital picture of an Estrella Warbirds Museum artifact or activities to be included in the calendar. Now is the time to have your creativity seen by thousands (and earn some free calendars)!
Full information/details and registration requirements are available via the below link. Also view the 'printers proof' from a previous calendar if you haven't seen one from before, at the below link.
|
|
Fall Swap Meet hosted by Estrella Warbirds Museum
Reserve Saturday, October 3d now! The Fall Swap Meet, to be located on the Estrella Warbirds Museum taxiway, is an opportunity to buy, sell, or trade parts and accessories for cars and trucks, aircraft, tractors, motorcycles, bicycles,
boats, and tools, shop equipment, and supplies.
But it is not just an automotive swap meet. Power tools, yard maintenance equipment, home appliances, antique furniture, housewares, crafts, and more can be bought and sold. Sorry, no clothing.
If you don't want to be a seller, but have saleable items you would like to donate to the Museum, call us at 805 238-9317.
For complete information about the swap meet, including how to register as a seller, visit our website here, click on the events tab, and select Paso Robles Swap Meet.
Proceeds from the swap meet will benefit the Estrella Warbirds Museum.
The State of California has mandated special COVID-19 procedures that require all visitors wear facial masks and practice social distancing.
Additionally, for safety purposes dogs, bicycles, and skate boards are prohibited.
Estrella Warbirds Museum has a plethora of Jeeps on display. Attendees at the Fall Swap Meet will have a chance to purchase this 1946 Willys CJ-2A, ready for your next restoration project!
|
|
Here's Something You Won't See Every Day!
During World War II, air craft pilots were limited on protective clothing worn wh ice flying onboard a thin-skinned, no insulation, aircraft (and you think it gets cold during the winter?) This 1938 Electric Colvinex Flight Suit made of metal core yarn, issued by the Bureau of Aeronautics, US Navy, is typical of those worn by flight crews during WWII. The suit was recently acquired by our EWM Curator, Dr. Jill Thayer, from a private collection, for future display in Freedom Hall. This is just one of many items which have recently been added to the ever increasing collection of military artifacts at the Estrella Warbirds Museum. There's always something new! Come on down! |
|
Work Continues On Curators Storage Facility
By the time you read this, the exterior will be completed for our Curatorial Archival Facility at Estrella Warbirds Museum. Should take only 3 days! Forgive the brownish haze. We are ever reminded of California's current plague of wildfires.
Next we will work on the drywall, floor treatment, HVAC, lighting, fire suppression system, shelving, cabinetry, fixtures, a cedar-lined closet for the uniforms, and storage capacity for the archives and artifacts not on display. Dr. Jill Thayer has a tad more space planning to do as this new facility evolves for storage, fixtures, staging of displays, and office integration with our data base management system.
She has been hoping for and planning this space to properly house our artifacts and archives for many years. As you can imagine, she's literally ricocheting off the rafters with joy!
Thanks to Nunno Corporation for erecting the building shell so quickly, to EWM Chief Operating Officer Scott Stelzle for overseeing the project, and most of all to Ron Brooks for his generous support in the stewardship of our collection.
|
|
Middle - High School Students
Click on image for more information on the club.
|
|
|
|
|
|
