Atlantic Cape Presents Free Lecture by Tuskegee Airman

Atlantic Cape Presents Free Lecture by Tuskegee Airman
March 27 at Atlantic City Campus
 ATLANTIC CITY—Atlantic Cape Community College invites the public to attend a free presentation by Dr. Eugene J. Richardson Jr., chairman of the Greater Philadelphia Chapter Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. Sponsored by Atlantic Cape’s Community Affairs Program, the lecture begins at 11:30 a.m., Tuesday, March 27, at the Charles D. Worthington Atlantic City Campus, 1535 Bacharach Blvd.
Dr. Richardson became interested in flight as a young boy in 1930. Driven by pure interest to fly, he decided to join the Army Air Corps in order to become a pilot. At 18, he was sent to Keesler Field in Mississippi for basic training. From there he went to Tuskegee Army Air Field for 40 weeks of training, where trainees were separated by race.
He completed flight training in March 1945, and he never saw combat, as World War II came to an end shortly after. He was discharged in 1946 and returned to Philadelphia where he finished his high school degree and went to Temple University and later received a Doctor of Education from Penn State University.  He pursued a career in education in the Philadelphia school system because, “there was nowhere for a black aviator to go in the United States—only Tuskegee,” at the time he was discharged.
Dr. Richardson will speak about the history of the Tuskegee Airmen, African Americans in aviation, civil rights and the importance of education for youth.
For more information, contact Patricia Gandy at (609) 343-4827.