Emphasis Preaching Journal

Born on Charles Lindbergh's fourteenth birthday, Neal Loving entered into a caring family living in Detroit, Michigan. As a ten-year-old, he watched a silver-winged de Havilland DH-4 biplane fly over his home and his love for aviation was born. He read everything he could find about airplanes and pilots. Soon, he became interested in designing and flying gliders. Actually, he wanted to be a military pilot, but often his attempts to become part of flight clubs and schools were frustrated because of his race: African American. Nevertheless, he persisted and soon had his own flight school and self-designed glider in which he trained other young pilots. However, on one of his early demonstration flights, he suffered a tragic crash which eventually led to the amputation of both of his legs. Fortunately, the crash did not diminish his commitment to aviation. Only six years later, he became the only black double amputee to design, build and qualify a racing airplane. The plane, called "Loving's Love," is on permanent display at the Experimental Aircraft Association's Air Education Museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Overcoming racism, the depression and his disabilities to become a successful designer, pilot and engineer, Neal Loving obviously understands when the Lord says, "Take courage for I am with you." -- Thompson