Keep Your Airspeed Up: The Story of a Tuskegee Airman
Join The Cornell Club for a special presentation featuring Tuskegee Airman Lt. Colonel Harold H. Brown and author Marsha S. Bordner, the authors of Keep your Airspeed Up: The Story of a Tuskegee Airman. Dr. Harold Brown is one of the last surviving members of the storied Tuskegee Airmen – the first African American pilots allowed to join the U.S. Army Air Corps. Dr. Brown’s experiences as a combat fighter pilot include his harrowing experience being shot down and held as a prisoner of war. Following World War II Dr. Brown’s military career continued through his time in the Strategic Air Command during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The presentation will begin with a brief film showcasing Lt. Col. Brown’s story, from his childhood in Minneapolis to his storied career as one of the few living Tuskegee pilots from World War II, to his career after the war. The film will be followed by a Q&A session with attendees and a book signing.
Harold Brown grew up in Minneapolis and went through flight training at Tuskegee Institute in the early 1940’s. He became part of the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of men whose persistence and courage in flight led to the desegregation of the military—a necessary first step in our country’s move to integration in the country’s laws and society. Dr. Brown and his wife Marsha Bordner, a former college president and Ph.D. in English, have chronicled Brown’s life in Keep Your Airspeed Up: The Story of a Tuskegee Airman from his early years in Minnesota, through World War II and his post-war career in the two-year college system in Ohio.
The moderator for the evening, Gordon Smith, is an Executive Director with JPMorgan Chase where he works as a senior banker in the Commercial Banking Group. Gordon graduated from Princeton University with a degree in American History. Gordon is the proud son of Capt. Luther Smith, who was one of the original Tuskegee combat pilots. Capt. Smith flew 133 combat missions during World War II and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Force Medal, the Purple Heart and the Congressional Gold Medal, which was awarded to all of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen.
6:00pm reception; 6:30pm lecture, gratis. Dr. Brown’s book will be available for sale. Members and guests are invited to dine at The Club with the speakers following the lecture. The cost is $45 per person, inclusive of tax, service charge, and one glass of wine with dinner. Dinner reservations are required 48 hours prior to the program.
Please note that the post program dinner has sold out.
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