2014 TIA/TAA Reunion Recap and notice for the 2015 TIA/TAA Reunion

Saturday, October 4th we celebrated 28 years of the closing of a great airline with great employees.  We returned to the Club House at the Las Positas Golf Course, Livermore Airport, Livermore, California, after a 12 year hiatus. What a classy venue and a step-up from the Harbor Bay Club where we had been for the last 8 years.  The staff at the Club House was terrific as well as the lunch, complete with flat ware, china, and glassware.  Nicer than our first class china I might say.  Only one request for next year – ribs on the menu instead of tri-tip.  It’s done.

We will be having our 29^th REUNION at the same place next year and we are already on the calendar for the first Saturday in October 2015, which is OCTOBER 3, 2015. The airshow that was to be held this year the same day as our Reunion was cancelled on short notice due to construction at the airport.  However, we have been assured that next year the Airshow will be on the same day as our Reunion.  A nice added touch.  Ralph Requa was ready for the airshow and flew his Bonanza in from Henderson, Nevada.

Our attendance of 121 employees was a little above last year and after all these years there were some folks here for the first time.  Name tags with large lettering are always a great help.  It was a wonderful warm day of perfect weather, with the beautiful golf course view, conversations and memories shared, laughs, and a few tears all crammed into 5 short hours.

We received notice that morning that Tom Gaston, had died while flying his own airplane on a test run after some maintenance he and his mechanic had completed on his aircraft.  It is always so sad for us to lose another one of our own to the Wings West.  We also were told that pilot Terry Shade had an unfortunate accident while walking his neighbor’s dogs.  He was tripped, fell, and hit his head on concrete.  He sustained a serious head injury and is slowly recovering.  We are sure he would love to hear from his “TIA/TAA family friends“.