Happy Hooligans host ‘Pilot for a Day’

By Capt. Penny Ripperger, 119th Wing Public Affairs / Published March 01, 2010

Col. Patrick Martin swears in Kris Young as a "pilot for a day" at the Air National Guard's 119th Fighter Wing in Fargo, N.D., on Friday, June 2, 2006. The pilot for a day program gives children with serious health conditions a day away from medical tests and treatments. Thirteen-year-old Kris, from West Fargo, N.D., has Burkitt's lymphoma, a type of cancer. He has two uncles in the Air Force, one in the Marines, one in the Coast Guard and one in the Army. Colonel Martin is vice commander of the 119th FW. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Master Sgt. David H. Lipp)

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 1 of 2

Brig.Gen. Patrick L. Martin, deputy adjutant general and Colonel at the time, temporarily swears in pilot for the day Kristopher Young at the North Dakota Air National Guard, Fargo, N.D. June 2, 2006. The pilot for a day program gives children who have serious or chronic health conditions that have robbed them of some of the joys of their childhood a special day as an honorary pilot and unit member, as well as giving their family members a day away from the many medical tests and treatments that have taken over much of their lives. (U.S. Air Force photo by SMSgt. David H. Lipp)

PHOTO DETAILS / DOWNLOAD HI-RES 2 of 2

Capt. Joshua Carlson helps "pilot for a day" Kris Young operate an F-16 Fighting Falcon flight simulator at the Air National Guard's 119th Fighter Wing in Fargo, N.D., on Friday, June 2, 2006. The pilot for a day program gives children with serious health conditions a day away from medical tests and treatments. Thirteen-year-old Kris, from West Fargo, N.D., has Burkitt's lymphoma, a type of cancer. He has two uncles in the Air Force, one in the Marines, one in the Coast Guard and one in the Army. Captain Carlson is with the 178th Fighter Squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Master Sgt. David H. Lipp)

Fargo -- On Tuesday a young boy will get first-hand experience of what it's like to be a superstar as the Happy Hooligans give him VIP treatment during their "Pilot for a Day" event at the North Dakota Air National Guard.

Jordan Dvorak, of Grand Forks, N.D. will visit the base for the day. The 5-year old was diagnosed with Leukemia in August. Dvorak, his parents Jason and Lavonne Dvorak, both police officers with the Grand Forks Police Department and several of his friends from Creative Kids Daycare, plan to visit the base where the Happy Hooligans are prepared to show them a day they will never forget.

"This is a day for Jordan, as he is in the stages of beating cancer. We hope to make this a special day with his family and friends, and for them to enjoy a break away from whatever challenges they may face. We are very excited to roll out the red carpet for this little boy," said 1st Lt. Mathew Aiken, 119th Wing C-21 pilot and event organizer.

The 'Pilot for a Day' program is not a new event for the Happy Hooligans. In the past, the Airmen hosted this cherished event with their previous mission of the F-16 Fighting Falcon, where they would honor children, typically those fighting a life-threatening illness or condition.

In 2007 the F-16 mission ended and the 119th Wing began the new mission of the C-21 Lear Jet. The Pilot for a Day program was temporarily discontinued due to the high operations tempo brought on by the mission changes.

"This will be the first time we've done Pilot for a Day with the C-21s. Everyone on base is excited to get this program started again. There are so many wonderful kids out there. If we can make it a memorable day for even a few of these brave kids, it's worth all the work," said 1st Lt. Lee Teigen, C-21 pilot and co-event organizer.

The day will be jam-packed with surprises for Jordan and his friends. Some of the events scheduled for the day include:

· Breakfast in the legendary "Hooligan frame room" with the pilots
· Flight suit made especially for Jordan with an honorary commission to the rank of General
· Interactive base tour
· Base fire department tour
· C-21 Lear Jet demonstration
· Tour of the nearby Air Traffic Control Tower
· Pizza Party at the Fargo Air Museum
· Presentation of donated Sioux Hockey Jersey and other awards

Media is invited to attend part or the entire event. The event will take place from 9 am to approximately 1:30 pm. B-roll and high resolution photos of the event will also be available upon request.

Contact Penny Ripperger, 119th Wing public affairs officer, at 701-451-2194 for the specific schedule and to arrange an escort on base.

Pilot for a Day events are made possible through the "Hooligans Helping Hooligans" fund. The following local businesses sponsored this event by contributing to the fund: Hornbachers, Pizza Hut, Holiday Inn, Fargo Air Museum, MeritCare, Roger Maris Cancer Center, Gate City Bank, Engraphix, J&L Sports, Mardon Nametag Company, Bobcat, Democratic-NPL State Party and The Sioux Shop at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.

If a local business has any interest in contributing to the Hooligans Helping Hooligans fund to support future Pilot for a Day events, contact Lt. Matt Aiken or Lt. Lee Teigen at 701-451-2577.

Captions of photos from a previous 119th Wing 'Pilot for a Day' event:

(A) Pilot for Day- 2006: Brig.Gen. Patrick L. Martin, deputy adjutant general and Colonel at the time, temporarily swears in pilot for the day Kristopher Young at the North Dakota Air National Guard, Fargo, N.D. June 2, 2006. The pilot for a day program gives children who have serious or chronic health conditions that have robbed them of some of the joys of their childhood a special day as an honorary pilot and unit member, as well as giving their family members a day away from the many medical tests and treatments that have taken over much of their lives. (U.S. Air Force photo by SMSgt. David H. Lipp)

(B) Pilot for Day- 2006: Capt. Joshua G. Carlson, 178th Fighter Squadron pilot, helps pilot for the day Kristopher Young operate an F-16 flight simulator at the North Dakota Air National Guard, Fargo, N.D. June 2, 2006. (U.S. Air Force photo by SMSgt. David H. Lipp)

-30-

What: Pilot for a day
Where: North Dakota Air National Guard, 1400 32nd Ave N, Fargo, ND
When: Tue. March 2nd, 9 am - 1:30 pm
Media: Contact Penny Ripperger at 451-2194 for specific schedule and to arrange a media escort on base. B-roll and high-resolution photos will be available upon request.

If you wish to comment, use the text box below. AF reserves the right to modify this policy at any time.

This is a moderated forum. That means all comments will be reviewed before posting. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We will not post comments that contain abusive or vulgar language, spam, hate speech, personal attacks, violate EEO policy, are offensive to other or similar content. We will not post comments that are spam, are clearly "off topic", promote services or products, infringe copyright protected material, or contain any links that don't contribute to the discussion. Comments that make unsupported accusations will also not be posted. The AF and the AF alone will make a determination as to which comments will be posted. Any references to commercial entities, products, services, or other non-governmental organizations or individuals that remain on the site are provided solely for the information of individuals using this page. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the AF, DoD, the United States, or its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority, or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service, or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying AF endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

Any comments that report criminal activity including: suicidal behaviour or sexual assault will be reported to appropriate authorities including OSI. This forum is not:

This forum is not to be used to report criminal activity. If you have information for law enforcement, please contact OSI or your local police agency.
Do not submit unsolicited proposals, or other business ideas or inquiries to this forum. This site is not to be used for contracting or commercial business.
This forum may not be used for the submission of any claim, demand, informal or formal complaint, or any other form of legal and/or administrative notice or process, or for the exhaustion of any legal and/or administrative remedy.

AF does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by individuals on this forum is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. AF may not be able to verify, does not warrant or guarantee, and assumes no liability for anything posted on this website by any other person. AF does not endorse, support or otherwise promote any private or commercial entity or the information, products or services contained on those websites that may be reached through links on our website.

Members of the media are asked to send questions to the public affairs through their normal channels and to refrain from submitting questions here as comments. Reporter questions will not be posted. We recognize that the Web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to manage federal resources, moderating and posting of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be read and posted as early as possible; in most cases, this means the next business day.

For the benefit of robust discussion, we ask that comments remain "on-topic." This means that comments will be posted only as it relates to the topic that is being discussed within the blog post. The views expressed on the site by non-federal commentators do not necessarily reflect the official views of the AF or the Federal Government.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, DoD ID number, OSI Case number, phone numbers or email addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include personally identifiable information in your comment, such as your name, that comment may or may not be posted on the page. If your comment is posted, your name will not be redacted or removed. In no circumstances will comments be posted that contain Social Security numbers, DoD ID numbers, OSI case numbers, addresses, email address or phone numbers. The default for the posting of comments is "anonymous", but if you opt not to, any information, including your login name, may be displayed on our site.

Thank you for taking the time to read this comment policy. We encourage your participation in our discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.