Our History

The Foundation, through its “Rise to the Occasion” Campaign, generated funds for 2003 Centennial Celebration and ongoing capital improvement priorities at WBNM.

Funds raised and projects completed during this period totaled nearly $5 million and included: Commemorative Pylon Restoration ($383,000), Wright Plaza Improvements ($100,000), Pilot Facility ($300,000), First Flight Centennial Pavilion ($2,000,000), Special Guest (VIP) Hosting Area ($250,000), and Event and Special Funding ($1,600,000).

For seven days, 25,000 visitors entered the Park daily to see exhibits, hear speakers, view air shows, and to be thrilled by the spectacle of flight.

In 2007, the Foundation funded and managed a full-scale restoration of the Commemorative Pylon through a Memorandum of Agreement with the NPS at a cost of $558,490. The Foundation,in cooperation with the NPS, managed project contracting and construction and media relations.

The Foundation has received several awards and recognition:

2008 “Franco Mazzotti” Mille Miglia Club Foundation prize for “Courageous Intelligence-Intelligent Courage” in honor of Orville and Wilbur Wright
2008 Combs-Gates Award from the National Business Aviation Association
2008 Nominated for the Director’s Cooperative Conservation Award External Category

Major Projects & Past Events

First Flight Centennial Special Exhibits

First Flight Centennial Pavilion Exhibit Hall The First Flight Centennial Pavilion Exhibit Hall, an 8,000-square-foot building, one of the three buildings that comprised the $2-million, semi-permanent, 20,000 square-foot First Flight Centennial Pavilion; houses...

Honoring 100 Aviation Heroes

On December 16, 2003, one hundred aviation heroes, as selected by North Carolina's First Flight Centennial Commission, were honored as part of the First Flight Centennial Celebration. We hope this information about the honorees encourages you to celebrate the...

First Flight Centennial Celebration – Dec 12-17, 2003

Daily Themes Friday, December 12: Igniting the Imagination This day was designed to inspire the next generation of aviators by engaging children of all ages in the power of flight. The day's highlights included the Raleigh Boys Choir singing the National Anthem at...