There's not enough space in this column to list all of the honors and awards and tributes and hall-of-fame recognitions and the Congressional Gold Medal . . . . Well, the list goes on and on. And Milton Pitts Crenchaw deserved every one, even if he might have wanted to change the subject to fixing up old cars.
Milton Crenchaw knew from old engines. He was a pilot. Sorta like, say, Neil Armstrong or Charles Lindbergh were just pilots. That is, Milton Crenchaw was a pioneer.
The Father of Black Aviation in Arkansas, as he was known, died Nov. 17 near Atlanta at 96. And pilots everywhere saluted.
Milton Crenchaw was one of the original Tuskegee Airmen and an instructor of other pilots. Before 1940, if you can believe it, black folks were barred from flying for the United States military. That changed in 1941 with the creation of Mr. Crenchaw's squadron. He taught hundreds of cadets how to fly during World War II and beyond. And was said to be the catalyst of the flight program at Philander Smith College in Little Rock in the 1940s and '50s.
Then there were stints at Fort Sill, Fort Rucker, Fort Stewart, and he even joined the brass at the Department of Defense. There weren't many things that Milton Crenchaw tried that didn't turn out a success.
"The thing that I really respected about my father is he didn't see things in black and white," his daughter, Countess Crenchaw, told the press recently. "He never did. He said a man is a man is a man. It just depends on what position they're in."
Amen.
Milton Crenchaw will be missed. The country--the world!--could use more Milton Crenchaws today.
Editorial on 11/28/2015