Airlift History in Motion
Dear {{contact.first_name}},
Before I head off to Berlin tomorrow, I wanted to send some updates.
Lately, the story of the Airlift has been showing up in so many places: a Veterans Breakfast Club podcast conversation, the very first Voices of the Berlin Airlift stories now live on the website, a wonderful article about Tim Chopp keeping history in the air, and students in Berlin carrying Gail Halvorsen's legacy forward.
And then, recently in Washington, I spent a couple of days with author and airlift child Wolfgang W. E. Samuel, listening to his story and recording it for future generations.
Moments like these remind us that this chapter of history isn’t finished. It’s still connecting people, still shaping lives.
On wings of inspiration,
Bibi LeBlanc
🔔 Voices of the Airlift Updates 🔔
Veterans Breakfast Club Podcast
In this Veterans Breakfast Club interview, I talk about why I started the Voices of the Berlin Airlift project and why it feels so urgent to collect these stories now.
What stays with me most are the personal memories — how it felt to be a child watching planes overhead, the sound of engines, the cold winters, the kindness of strangers, and the sense that someone out there cared.
That’s what my project Voices of the Berlin Airlift is about. Not just dates and numbers but lived experiences. The people who carry these memories are getting older. Their voices, their stories matter.
If you or someone in your family has a connection to the Berlin Airlift, as a Berliner, a veteran, a crew member, or someone who grew up with these stories, I’d love to hear from you.
Thank you to the Veterans Breakfast Club USA for creating space for conversations like this, and for helping keep these stories alive.
VETERANS BREAKFAST CLUB INTERVIEW
First Stories are on the Website
I’ve begun publishing some of the stories I’m collecting on the website. I decided to do this for a few reasons.
First, I want participants to see their memories honored in a thoughtful way, and to have something they can easily share with children, grandchildren, and friends.
Second, it gives others who are considering participating a clearer picture of what this project looks like and how their own story might live on.
And third, publishing the stories as they come in allows the project to grow organically. Each shared memory helps the next one surface. It keeps the conversation alive, and reminds us that these stories still matter, right now.
🌎 News from Around the Globe 🌎
Tim Chopp and
The Berlin Airlift Historical Foundation
When History Still Takes Flight
Some people don’t just tell history. They live it, carry it, and keep it moving. Tim Chopp is one of those people.
"Commemorating the story of the Berlin Airlift is the life's mission for this long-time propliner pilot, and despite all the challenges he's pressing on with undimmed optimism. ..."
This month's Aeroplane article shares Tim’s journey, his dedication to honoring the Berlin Airlift, and why keeping these stories alive still matters deeply to him today.
For more info about the foundation:
http://www.spiritoffreedom.org/
Gail Halvorsen School &
The Candy bomber Foundation
Berlin, Germany & Provo, Utah
A Sweet Tribute Across the Ocean
Two schools - one in Utah and one in Berlin - have been busy honoring Gail Halvorsen in the most fitting way imaginable: with chocolate.
Students at West Hills Middle School in South Jordan, Utah, and the Gail S. Halvorsen School in Berlin each held their own competition to design an original chocolate bar recipe and wrapper in tribute to the Berlin Candy Bomber. From each school, winners were selected.
The five winning students in Berlin will travel to Utah for a special Berlin Airlift Memorial celebration on May 12, 2026. And here’s the sweetest part: a local chocolatier will actually produce the winning candy bars.
I love this so much. It’s creative. It’s joyful. And it builds bridges — quite literally — between students across the ocean.
What a beautiful way to keep history alive: not only by remembering it, but by collaborating, imagining, and celebrating it together.
For more info about the school:
http://www.halvorsen-schule.de/
For more info about the foundation:
https://www.thecandybomber.org/
📝 Airlift Authors 📝
A Life Shaped by the Airlift
One of the true highlights of recent weeks was spending a couple of days in Washington with Wolfgang W. E. Samuel.
I had the privilege of sitting with him, recording his Airlift story, and then hearing so many more stories unfold beyond the camera.
Conversations that stretched across decades, across continents, across a life shaped by history.
As a boy in postwar Germany during the Berlin Airlift, Wolfgang watched
the American aircraft overhead. He had no heroes of his own in those difficult years, and he decided he wanted to be like the men in those planes. Little did he know that this childhood dream, “I want to be like them,” would one day lead him to the United States and to a 30-year career in the U.S. Air Force.
His life is a testament to how a single moment of inspiration can redirect
an entire future.
What struck me most during my visit was not only the remarkable arc of his story, but his kindness and generosity. He welcomed me with warmth, shared his memories openly, and reminded me that history is not abstract. It is lived. It shapes real people in real ways.
I’ll be sharing a short video from our time together in a future newsletter.
He has written many wonderful books. You can check them out here:
Meet Me at Tempelhof
If you’re in Berlin, I’d love to see you at the Erzählcafé (storytelling café) in the tower at the former Tempelhof Airport on March 5th, 4-6 pm.
The Tempelhof Erzählcaféis a place where memories are shared, stories resurface, and history feels close enough to touch.
Before I go ...
What continues to move me is this: the Berlin Airlift is not confined to 1948–49.
As someone who grew up in West Berlin during the Cold War, I experienced firsthand the lasting impact of this pivotal chapter of history. If it weren't for the men and women of the airlift, our world today would likely look very different.
I want to carry this story forward so it isn't forgotten. I want it to live on in conversations, in classrooms, and in our shared history. If we keep talking about it, it won't be.
Thank you for reading, listening, sharing, and remembering.
With heartfelt gratitude,
