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 Charlie
R. Hillard had the mark of a highly determined individual at a
very young age. Born on March 22, 1938, Charlie was ten when he
went to work for his dad "King Charlie Hillard" dusting cars on
the family car lot for $10 a week. Young Charlie had a plan. By
his 16th birthday that plan was becoming a reality as
he made his first solo flight that year. Then, as a freshman at
Georgia Tech, Charlie purchased his first airplane, a Piper Cub.
At 18, he mastered sky diving and again proving his fierce
determination, earned a place on the U.S. Skydiving team just
two years later in 1958. That summer, Charlie began building his
list of "firsts" as he and partner Steve Snyder were the very
first in the U.S. to pass a baton in a free-fall.
Charlie then began to concentrate solely on precision
aerobatic flying and in turn, began to amaze audiences around
the country. He won the National Championship in 1967 and
represented the U.S. in four world championships. Charlie made
America especially proud in 1972, as he was the first American
to win the world aerobatic title. It was the year after he
partnered with Gene Soucy and Tom Poberezny to form the Red
Devil Aerobatic Team, a world-class aerobatic team that would
take precision aerobatic flight to new and amazing heights. In
1979, the threesome made their debut as the Eagles Aerobatic
Flight Team with Charlie as lead pilot. They flew together for
more than 25 years and became synonymous around the world with
precision aerobatic perfection. In 1996, with more than 15,000
flying hours to his credit, Charlie decided to embark on the
next exciting phase of his amazing career as a solo aerobatic
pilot in his Hawker Fury, a high-performance, fixed-wing
monoplane.
Throughout his life Charlie was recognized many times for his
aerobatic excellence including the International Council of Air
Show’s Wilkinson Sword of Excellence Award and induction into
the International Aerobatics Hall of Fame. While Charlie was
truly key to the advancement of precision aerobatics, he was
also an enthusiastic contributor and volunteer in his community,
particularly devoted to family and children’s causes and
organizations. To the people who knew and loved Charlie, this
was no surprise, as it was well understood that at the very core
of this remarkable man, who regularly soared to heights not
often reached or even imagined by others, was his limitless love
and dedication to home and his family.
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As a boy,
he dreamed of himself sailing through the air.
Feeling free – without limits.
As a teen,
he began to understand what it would take to turn his
dreams into a reality.
And then, he flew.
All the while his dreams continued to grow along with him.
As a man,
he was fully living his dreams, reaching all of his very
lofty goals.
But now, he held the heartfelt belief that the flight path
to each of his goals, to each of his dreams,
carried as much glory, maybe even more, than reaching the
goal itself.
Charlie Loved Life |
This memorial scholarship is in honor of Charlie R. Hillard,
1938 - 1996. The Charlie R. Hillard Scholarship provides a grant to begin or continue flight training
and is open to those between the ages of 18 and 30. The Hillard family believes there are many young, deserving aviation
enthusiasts, and is pleased to offer an opportunity for growth. The
Charlie Hillard Scholarship Selection Committee is headed by
Charlie's son and daughter, Ryan and Heather Hillard, and
Charlie's wife, Doreen Hillard.
Qualifications:
The recipient must be a
young man or woman between the
ages of 18 and 30, and the scholarship monies must be used to
begin or continue
flight training. Scholarship Amount: $2,000.
Download
the application form
(right-click link and select
"Save Target" from the popup menu)
Charlie Hillard Application
Follow the submission
instructions on the application form carefully.
Return completed applications to:
scholarships@icasfoundation.org
Applications received by
July 1st are considered for this year's award |
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