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http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Readers Choice 2006 Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Our Valley Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend October 12, 2006 Mercy Flights founder honored Induction into Hall of Honor at Aviation Museum will include three others, as well By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune The founder of Medford-based Mercy Flights, the nation's first nonprofit air ambulance service, will be honored for his contributions to aviation in Oregon. George Milligan will be inducted into the Hall of Honor this month at the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, along with four others, the museum announced. The honor for Milligan, who died in 1985, and three of the other honorees is posthumous. The group, which includes two others with Southern Oregon ties, will be inducted in a ceremony Oct. 22 at the museum. Milligan was an air-traffic controller for the Federal Aviation Administration in Medford when he saw the need for polio patients to get to hospitals quickly for medical care. He was inspired after a local businessman died after a long ambulance drive to Portland for treatment. In 1949, Milligan founded Mercy Flights Inc., the first nonprofit air ambulance service. He served as the company's board chairman, chief pilot and spokesman until he died in a plane crash in Medford in February 1985 while transporting a patient. Advertisement "He was a guy who lived and breathed Mercy Flights," said Mike Burrill Sr., chairman of the state aviation board and chairman on the Hall of Honor committee. "He was a full-time controller in the tower, but when an ambulance call got made, he would make sure the job got done." Burrill was a pilot with Mercy Flights and flew with Milligan, who served as a mentor to young pilots. As chairman of the honor selection committee, Burrill said he wanted to recognize people who had strong Oregon roots and had made a major contribution to aviation. The hall has inducted people each year since 2003 and this year, Burrill said he wanted to honor civilian aviators along with military pilots inducted in past years. The others honored this year include: Vern Gorst, a Coos Bay resident and Medford businessman whose mail-hauling service merged into the company that eventually would become United Airlines. He is sometimes called "grandfather of United Airlines." Myron "Buz" Buswell, of Lakeview, whose lifelong interest in aviation spanned model building, service during World War II at a B-24 pilot and work with the Experimental Aircraft Association, as well as a role in Lakeview's Mercy Flights operation. Elrey Borge Jeppesen, of O'Dell, who developed and sold navigational charts that became staples for pilots. Delford Smith, of Dundee, the founder and chief executive officer of Evergreen International Aviation, a company that help spark McMinnville as an aviation center. Smith is the only honoree still living. Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485 or at [email protected] Would you like to respond to this story? If so Click Here to visit our forums. Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Windermere Van Vleet Men's Clothing Southern Oregon Loans --> GMAT Prep Fundraisers Send Flowers Texas Electric Choice Entertainment Guide --> Casinos Canada Trunks, Footlocker Online Casino Reviews Online poker at AbsolutePoker.com