SHUMWAY — Once a year, Jack Poff is up at 5:30 a.m. to brew the first urn of coffee for the annual pancake breakfast fundraiser at Shumway “Inner”national Airport.
A lot of coffee is needed for those who fly — or drive — in for the breakfast, which has become a tradition for many over the last decade.
Sunday, however, will be the last time the breakfast is held at the tiny airport. Poff is selling the hangar and 37-acre property it’s on because upkeep has become too much for him.
“I’m the one that has to get the place in shape, get it mowed, spray the driveway for weeds and do all the trimming, rolling the runway. There’s just so much involved. I’m ready to move on,” he said.
The retired business owner hopes the property, which includes a grass runway, can remain as it is and be developed into an airpark with 13 one-acre lots. However, if that does not happen, Poff said the property will be reverted to farm ground, which is what it was when he bought it nearly 20 years ago.
Poff became interested in flying long before he decided to develop an airport. He got his pilot’s license in 1970 as a student at Indiana State University, majoring in aerospace technology before switching to business.
He eventually got married and started a family. Those responsibilities and running a business meant flying would have to take a back seat.
“I just didn’t have time or really the inclination to do it,” he said.
Poff rekindled his passion for flying when his teenage son became interested in flying remote-controlled airplanes. The two took a trip to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, for the EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) AirVenture show. Instead of model planes, they became interested in full-scale aircraft.
“At that point, I decided I was going to get active again in flying full-scale aircraft and got started back,” he said.
Poff bought an RV-9A Van’s aircraft kit. He has always been interested in building, having worked as a contractor building boat houses and docks on Lake Sara.
“So, I always did things with my hands. I was always interested in the mechanical side of things,” he said.
Poff wanted the satisfaction of building his own plane and having an aircraft he felt would be superior to something he could buy from a manufacturer.
The project began taking up all the garage space of the Poffs’ Lake Sara home. So, Poff bought some property in Shumway and built a hangar. He eventually bought enough property to develop an airstrip.
Twenty years later, Poff is still working to complete the aircraft.
“It’s well over 90% complete,” he said.
Poff knew he would have to sell the airport to complete it, and he decided to do so a little over a year ago.
“I wasn’t getting it completed because I am just spending so much time out there” maintaining the airfield, he said.
Poff started the fly-in breakfast to raise funds for the Effingham-based EAA Chapter 16, which he is a member of.
“Since we had the place and had the runway, I said let’s start having fly-ins out there,” he said.
The breakfast has become popular among flying enthusiasts.
“They come out because everyone’s welcome. It’s a fly-in, but you can drive in too, and people like to come out because we let them walk around the airplanes, and a lot of the pilots will let the kids get up in their airplanes and look at the inside and answer questions. People who like airplanes just love to go out there, look at everything, and see them land and take off. It’s just a really cool experience for everybody,” he said.
Poff said people have come from as far as Indiana, Kentucky and Missouri. He estimates more than 60 planes were flown in at one of the breakfasts and 360 people served.
“I would say it’s probably the most successful fly-in in the central part of the state,” he said.
Poff believes one of the reasons the fly-ins are successful is the runway.
“People like to land on grass,” he said.
Another reason is its location in the country.
“It’s the kind of place you don’t really expect to find in Shumway, Illinois. It’s a great experience,” he said.
And then there’s food.
“We serve good food,” he said.
The Poffs also sponsor a pulled-pork lunch fundraiser every year for the EAA. Poff said his wife, Darlene, cooks 100 pounds of shredded barbecue pork for the event. She also makes the mix for the homemade ice cream at the luncheon, traditionally held on the last Sunday in August.
“She’s got several jobs. She’s also the one that ends up going out and buying all the supplies. It could not be done without her,” he said.
Poff said the fly-ins have gotten a lot of support from the local community, and he likes interacting with the people who come to his airport.
“Once I found out I like to fly, I got in it for flying, but I stayed in it because of the people,” he said.
Poff said he has enjoyed sponsoring the fly-ins and will miss that.
“Life goes on. It’s time to sell it and let somebody else have some fun,” he said.
The last Fly-In or Drive-In Pancake Breakfast will be Sunday, June 30, from 8 to 11 a.m. at Shumway Innernational Airport — IL05, 19260 N. 700th St., Shumway. This year, the proceeds will be given to EAA Chapter 814 in Shelbyville. It is a new club that was chartered in November.
The EAA promotes aviation, ranging from the Young Eagles program, which provides free plane rides to children, to handing out scholarships for aspiring young pilots.