KidVenture offers children of all ages a chance to participate in hands-on activities during EAA AirVenture, July 25, 2024. PC: Fox 11 Online
OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Just north of the EAA Aviation Museum lies a special place where kids can play and learn about all things aviation.
For 25 years, KidVenture has been offering children of all ages a chance to participate in hands-on activities during the week-long EAA AirVenture event.
Dan Majka, chairman of EAA KidVenture and a member of the EAA Board of Directors, said KidVenture has blossomed since its inception a quarter century ago.
“We started KidVenture in a smaller tent and we had no concept of what was going to happen. I had 50 volunteers and we thought maybe 500 kids would show up, and 2,000 showed up the first year. Then, this is the 25th year and now we have 450 volunteers, and 20,000 kids and parents show up,” Majka said.
30 activities are available. Most are interactive and a few are virtual. Majka said KidVenture aims to help children appreciate the value of aviation in their lives, like what career opportunities exist in the industry and how a local airport boosts the local economy.
“The idea is to expose them to different aspects of aviation. Things that they might not have access to in their local areas, either because they don’t have the equipment to do it or they don’t have the expertise to do it,” Majka said. “What we’re trying to do here is show kids there’s more to aviation than just being a pilot, that there’s other career opportunities.”
Among the activities is a booth where kids can rivet a metal name badge with a set of wings on it. Majka said about 2,000 are made during the week of EAA AirVenture.
There’s also an exhibit where children can climb into full-size space capsule replicas and flip switches inside to experience the sounds and vibrations of a rocket launch.
Additionally, kids can enjoy activities like talking on a HAM radio, building model airplanes and launching air rockets. Older children are invited to fly radio-controlled planes and control line planes.
Majka said some children who attended KidVenture 25 years ago are now volunteering there themselves.
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