ARLINGTON — The military camp looked official and slightly off limits.
That’s what Aaron LaPointe thought when he visited Camp Adams at the Arlington Fly-In last year. The Smokey Point teen visited each day of the air show and finally ran into Dave and Betty Ruckhaber.
The Bellevue co
uple participate in Camp Adams, the mobile military history museum at the Fly-In.
The camp features historical military airplanes, movies and radio equipment and lots of old jeeps and other vehicles. People dressed in uniforms from the World War II, Korea and Vietnam war eras serve as tour guides.
Aaron got to talking last summer with the Ruckhabers, who belong to the Evergreen Military Vehicle Club.
He became fascinated with what they know about military history. When he learned that his grandpa served in the Navy during World War II and was there during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Aaron was hooked.
He began to collect military uniforms, read history and watch documentaries on the war.
Now he is part of the scene at Camp Adams.
While opening day of this week’s Fly-In was sunny and packed for Kids Day, Thursday was wet and relatively slow. It didn’t matter to Aaron, 14, who wrapped his uniform trench coat tight around him.
Dressed in the khakis of an Army Air Corps pilot, Aaron hung out in the club’s mess tent to talk history. The Lakewood High School freshman couldn’t have been happier, despite the weather.
The Evergreen Military Vehicle Club has members from Snohomish, King, Pierce and Skagit counties who are scheduled to parade their military vehicles down a runway at about 4 p.m. Friday and welcome a World War II-era B-25 bomber to their encampment. Tours of the old plane are planned.
Also Friday, the schedule calls for radio-controlled miniature tank battles, jeep rides and military tank demonstrations.
Camp Adams is a tribute to veterans, Aaron said, and a way for people of his generation to learn what their grandparents lived through.
“Not a whole lot of other kids have this kind of opportunity to talk with veterans and learn from them,” Aaron said.
“I want to be a part of preserving this chapter of our country’s history.”
Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427; gfiege@heraldnet.com.
Reuse tickets
Because Thursday’s rain canceled some of the events at the Arlington Fly-In, people who bought Thursday tickets are welcome to use them again on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Tickets Friday through Sunday are $18 each. Children age 15 and younger get in free.
Find more information at www.arlingtonflyin.org or by calling 360-435-5857.
The highlight of the Fly-In is the daily 2 p.m. air show performance by acrobat pilots who have flown in from across the country, as well as displays of vintage airplanes, ultralights and home-built aircraft. A free shuttle to downtown Arlington’s annual street fair is available.
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