Published in Midwest Flyer – October/November 2019 Issue
OSHKOSH, WIS. – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) General Aviation Awards were presented this year at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, July 22-28, 2019, to three entrepreneurs:
Gary Reeves, founder and owner of PilotSafety.org, was named Certificated Flight Instructor of the Year; Dave Monti, owner of Rebuilt Aircraft, was named Aviation Maintenance Technician of the Year; and Karen Ann Kalishek, an independent CFI, was named FAA Safety Team Representative of the Year.
Reeves, an airline transport pilot and master flight instructor, founded PilotSafety.org in 2012 as a training organization, offering free and low-cost educational programs nationally. He also provides intensive instruction courses in avionics systems from Avidyne, Garmin, ForeFlight, and Genesis, among others. He speaks at events across the country, including at many AOPA Regional Fly-Ins.
Monti, an A&P mechanic with inspection authorization, is an icon in the Beechcraft maintenance world, having participated in specialized training programs for Bonanzas and Barons for more than 30 years. Members of the Beech community with maintenance questions know that he is only a phone call away. His company, Rebuilt Aircraft in Minden, Nevada, stocks thousands of airframe parts for numerous models of aircraft, in addition to servicing Beechcraft aircraft.
Kalishek started KAL Consulting and Training in Green Bay, Wisconsin in 1995. She is an FAA Gold Seal Instructor, Master Instructor and holds a master’s degree in business administration with additional postgraduate education in intercultural management. She has been a FAASTeam representative since 2013 and was named Lead Representative in the Milwaukee region in 2015. Kalishek is a captain in the Civil Air Patrol, has mentored other FAASTeam representatives, and was recently named to a new position with the Wings Pro program. She also created a training program for aviation first responders.