MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- Just five years after Gen. and Mrs. Henry “Hap” Arnold created the Air Force Aid Society in 1942, the first then-named Arnold Society of Air Cadets, a college-level, honorary community service organization named in honor of Arnold and devoted to building stronger Air Force officers, was launched by AFROTC cadets at the University of Cincinnati.
Today, the Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings, an affiliated organization that builds civilian airpower advocates, represent 3,300 students participating in professional development programs and community service near 130 colleges and universities across the nation.
This year for the first time in nearly 70 years of shared history, AAS and SW students initiated a grass roots fundraising effort to support Airmen and their families through the Air Force Charity Ball in support of the Air Force Aid Society.
The effort included AFROTC cadets and dedicated civilians from Puerto Rico to Washington and New Hampshire to Hawaii, motivated by the common objective of providing a donation of at least $10,000 from those who will serve, to those who are serving.
Following thousands of hours of effort, the results were tabulated just before the charity ball, and more than $16,500 was raised. The donation was presented to the Air Force Aid Society at the ball, held April 2, 2016, in Springfield, Virginia.
“Today, the young men and women of AAS and SW who selflessly gave their time to make this donation a reality, have moved on to other challenges, strengthened in the knowledge that they have made the lives of some of our Airmen better in a time of need,” said retired Brig. Gen. Daniel Woodward, co-executive director of AAS and SW. “They will never forget the lessons they learned from their efforts, and it is safe to say that the Airmen they served will never forget them either.”