Fundraiser added to Airport Appreciation Days

GREENCASTLE -- An evening of fun, food and fundraising has been dialed up for Patriots Day, Sept. 11, as a "Command Performance" live radio hour is presented in the hangar at the Dixie Chopper Business Center at the Putnam County Airport on Greencastle's east side.

The show will recreate the famous national radio program popular on Armed Services Radio during World War II.

In the original "Command Performance," major entertainers took to the airwaves in response to requests from American soldiers stationed abroad.

The "Dixie Chopper Radio Hour" will feature local notables, including Putnam County favorites Larry Sutton, Amy and Andrew Hayes, Caroline Good, Barbara Pare, Keith Tonne, Susan Anthony, the Covered Bridge Chorus, along with DePauwcappella and other DePauw University talent.

Musical numbers will be interspersed with comedy sketches and classic radio shows -- all performed live.

Producing the show is G. Duane Skoog, technical director of the DePauw Performing Arts Center, who is also president of Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Chapter No. 1374.

Audience members are encouraged to come dressed in their best 1940s-era clothes and join in the fun. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., dinner begins at 6, and the show goes live at 7 p.m.

Tickets are available at the Dixie Chopper Business Center, 102 Ballard Lane, Greencastle, or by contacting Skoog at 363-2093. Advance tickets are $15 per adult, $5 per child under 12. On the day of the show, tickets will be $17 for adults and $7 for each child under age 12.

Net proceeds from the evening will be divided between the EAA Chapter No. 1374 Young Eagles Program and the USO for its ongoing efforts to entertain our troops.

The Command Performance is a new addition to the annual Putnam County Airport Appreciation Days, scheduled for Sept. 11-12.

Admission to the airport events is free of charge, and free Young Eagles airplane rides will be available to youngsters age 8-17 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 11 and 12-4 p.m. Sept. 12.

Meanwhile, airplane rides (for adults and children under 8) with Dixie Chopper Air and helicopter rides will be available for purchase both days.