Neale Slater Memorial Scholarship
Established by Raymond Bottom in memory of Neale Slater
Sometimes, a fond memory of a friend long passed can be a gift in itself. Similarly, a gift alone can serve as an everlasting memorial to that same dear friend.
When Raymond Bottom established an EAA endowed scholarship, he had only one person in mind: his late young friend Neale Slater. The scholarship, created in 2006 to support youth through various EAA education camps or the Aero Squadron Scholars program, was created in memoriam of Neale, who died at the young age of 20 as the result of a tragic automobile accident.
The Neale Slater Memorial Scholarship truly embodies the entire spirit encompassed by EAA’s give wings campaign. “I hope that EAA will make these funds available to worthy kids perpetually,” said Ray, who has been visiting EAA’s AirVenture since 1970, not missing one along the way.
Ray met Neale, only 14 at the time, at a regional fly-in in of his VAA Chapter in North Carolina. Immediately, Ray could sense Neale’s intense interest in airplanes and aviation. In team, he wanted to assist Neale in reaching his goals, to help give wings to Neale’s dreams. Neale accepted invitations to attend several Air Adventure conventions in Oshkosh, as well as attending other VAA #3 fly-in events, open house shows at military bases and even went with a group to see the USAF Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
Though Neale lived in Maryland, the two kept in touch and strengthened their friendship through their mutual interest in aviation and everything that it stood for. Following Neale’s untimely death in a car accident, Ray came to EAA with the idea of funding a scholarship as a way of keeping his memory alive while simultaneously assisting future youth.
“I want to help boys and girls who participate in the Leadership Course, who are serious about aviation,” expressed Ray. “By bringing youngsters to Oshkosh every year and making them feel special, even volunteering in the Vintage Airplane Parking Area, they will really further their interest in aviation and will motivate them to learn to fly.”
Ray’s interest in giving wings rested not only in his wish to honor Neale, but also in wanting to contribute to increased youth involvement in aviation. “When I learned to fly in 1945, it was quite inexpensive. Now, it’s about ten times that amount,” said Ray.
Living near a large, active military base lent to Ray’s participation in the world of flight, beginning his aviation career as a line boy at a small airfield in Hampton, Va. Polishing and fueling small airplanes was the order of the day, just at the end of a nation still at war with Japan.
During the War, Ray joined the Civil Air Patrol as a cadet and volunteered in the government-created Aircraft Warning Service. “We kept logs on every plane sighted,” remembers Ray, only 13 at the time. At the spotting post atop his junior high school, telephone alerts to a center in Norfolk were routinely made, as the United States was in fear that German plane would bomb the Eastern coast
After the war had ended, the U.S. government was able to end all restrictions on private flying, and, as Ray put it, “Airplanes appeared like flies – appearing from everywhere, it seemed.” That gave Ray the opportunity to learn to fly and, by the end of August 1945, he soloed in a 1934 Taylorcraft E-2 Cub. A year later, he received his private license at the age of 17, launching a long career and owning a number of planes through the years.
His first was a nearly new 1946 Culver V, obtained with help from his Father. In 1948, Ray flew his Culver V to the Cleveland Air Races in Ohio. Following college graduation in 1952, Ray remembers, “I sort of forgot about airplanes for some years.” But, within months of graduation, he was commissioned in the U.S. Air Force as a second Lieutenant. He spent four years on extended active duty, mostly flying RB-36 reconnaissance planes, and a year at the SAC base in Kansas, equipped with the latest model RB-47 jets.
Today, Ray is a retired Colonel in the U.S. Air Force, serving 30 years on extended active duty and in the active reserve. He is also a retired media executive, having worked in radio, newspapers and television.
Ray supports other organizations, including EAA. “EAA goes far beyond other aviation organizations in that it embraces the lure of flight in a personal way,” expressed Ray. He believes that the EAA give wings campaign is important in sparking aviation interests in today’s youth. “Young people today, unlike my own time, have some difficulty in learning about aviation because of so many diversions.” Ray believes that EAA’s efforts in the Young Eagles program and the give wings initiative will continue to be a positive influence to create and foster aviation in young lives.
Thankfully, donations like the Neale Slater Memorial Scholarship will aid in inspiring children and teenagers to become involved in the world of aviation. “You’ve got to get them interested when they are young,” said Ray. “Then, hopefully, that desire will grow and foster.”
raymond bottom
“I want to help boys and girls who participate in the Leadership Course, who are serious about aviation. By bringing youngsters to Oshkosh every year and making them feel special, they will really further their interest in aviation and will motivate them to learn to fly.”