MANKATO — On its surface, the gathering Thursday morning was a celebration of Nadine Sugden’s 99th birthday. But the gathering of just over a dozen women also made it a reminder of the power of women in aviation.
Presented by The 99s, an international organization of women pilots that promotes the advancement of aviation through education, scholarships and support, family members and other female pilots were well represented. The “99” represents the number of founders.
“All through my life, it meant enjoyment, and love of being up in the air and part of the wind,” Sugden said in between visits with others. “And I can see the lakes and the roads, and if the sun is right the lakes sparkle and everything is so beautiful.”
Her original intent was just to learn how to use the radio or land in case of an emergency with the pilot, her husband George. “However, I was hooked on that first day, unable to believe I was really in the sky ready to learn a whole lot more,” she wrote in a biography for The 99s.
Unlike today’s requirements, she soloed after just eight hours of instruction. “Things were very different in those days,” she wrote in her biography.
Along the way, she faced challenges because of her gender. This began when she was advised to always wear a skirt because then guys would help with the plane. When the skirt caught on the door knob, however, it was “jeans from then on,” she wrote.
After Sugden became a member of The 99s, she was active in chapter projects, including flying blood for the Red Cross and daffodils for the American Cancer Society. She was chapter chair of the Amelia Earhart scholarship, secretary for two years to the chapter chair, and attended section meetings. She and George both were honored to be named to the Forest of Friendship.
She also had the pleasure of flying acclaimed archeologist Margaret Mead. Mead was not feeling well, and Sugden remembers reading she died a few weeks later from cancer.
“She truly was ill, but once it was time for her to speak she was right there at the microphone and doing a masterful job of speaking there at the university,” Sugden said.
Elaine Morrow has held multiple positions with The 99, including as international president. Her story echoes Sugden’s. She now lives in Buffalo, Minnesota.
“I wanted to fly since I was a toddler, but I kept getting told girls don’t fly. So, I wanted to be a flight attendant. When I graduated from high school they said, ‘No, you can’t. You’re too short and you wear glasses,” Morrow said.
After raising a family, Morrow’s husband told her, “‘Now it’s our turn. Now I want to get my pilot’s license.’ And I said, ‘Not without me,’” she said. Unable to afford attending a school like Oshkosh, Wisconsin, she was told to check at her local airport where she could answer phones, stuff envelopes or do other tasks in exchange for lessons.
Also in attendance was Margaret “Marcy” Drescher, who lives near Albert Lea. A pilot friend of Sugden’s, she recently was honored as a Master Pilot, celebrating 50 years of safe flying.
Sugden was accompanied by her daughters, Marla Higginbotham and Janine Turbes, and Marla’s daughter, Shannon Stokes. Each has her reasons for being proud of Sugden.
Turbes, for example, pointed out that while the Sugdens have sponsored scholarships for years, her mother recently created the Sugden Aviation Endowment to support aviation students at Minnesota State University.
They could probably come up with at least 99 good reasons to do so.