It all started with someone posting a quick reply to a post on Facebook I made in March, “Jenn, I have an opportunity for you, I’ll be in touch soon.” My friend and I connected and he shared his idea – I called Carrie and she said: “let’s do it- let’s have a booth at the Air Force’s largest Air Show in May!!” Holy smokes! I thought to myself. We are doing this!
There was a lot of planning involved- how would we present ourselves, what would we share with the kids? It was a STEM event that we were being asked to support – we had to do something interesting but within our budget. We thought of bringing some VR gear, but after some discussion, we realized that putting a kid in Virtual Reality would not give us the engagement we were seeking – plus we aren’t Virtual Reality salespeople. So Carrie came up with “Hoop Airplanes“, bottle rockets and coloring. We bought the stores out of straws, index cards, crayons, paper and 35mm film containers (remember those?) and headed to Washington DC. And thanks to the financial support of many of our friends and family, we pulled it off.
We had an absolutely amazing time at the Joint Base Andrews Airshow that took place that weekend, May 10-12 2019. We engaged with over 5000 children and adults throughout the event spreading the word about women in aviation and the possibilities available for everyone. It was fun promoting Preflight Aviation Camp, Legacy Flight Academy, and Sisters of the Skies as we built hoop airplanes that looked like they shouldn’t fly and rockets with the little ones.
We also met many interesting people. Next to our booth was a Civil Air Patrol (CAP) booth where kids were introduced to some of their fascinating STEM projects. Behind our booth was the NavSea Seaperch booth, highlighting underwater robots, and across from our booth was the Smithsonian Mars Map and Mars Tour bus – the first unveiling of it ever. As well as many many more.
The whole event was educational and fun, we were grateful to be a part of it all. The best part was meeting Mae Krier, one of the original Rosie the Riveters – an energetic 93-year-old who continues to inspire women to do the extraordinary through her iconic bicep curl. If it wasn’t for the patriotic women of the riveters (one in four married women in 1943), the United States would not have been able to maintain its manufacturing dominance during the war.
Altogether, the weekend was a humbling and exciting event. We were so grateful to our photographer, @Laylasnapz (on Instagram) for her amazing eye, K. Zimmerman for his encouragement and connections, and Ryan V. for all of the opportunities he provided us. The Milieux Project is starting to catch on and we can’t wait to see what’s next!
If you like what you see here, please contact us for your next event. We love engaging and sharing our stories. Also, please show your support where ever you go with a Milieux Patch or sticker which can be purchased on our home page. Thanks so much for reading and being a part of the change! #changethemilieux #aviatrix #rosietheriveter #womeninhistory
************************************************************************************The Rosies Need your Help! See below for an opportunity to help recognize these iconic women at the National Level. All it takes is your signature and note to your congressman.
Support S.892 The Rosie the Riveter Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2019.
Also support H.R. 1773 The Rosie the Riveter Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2019.
The Milieux Project, Inc. 
Congratulations, this is wonderful!
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Thank you!!
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