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The Foundation's Mission

The Richard A. Henson Foundation, Inc., was established to provide for and to assure the continuation of the philanthropic spirit, objectives, and ideals of Richard A. Henson, to enrich the quality of life primarily, but not exclusively, in the Greater Salisbury area, and to provide challenging opportunities and act as a catalyst for the betterment of the community.

In order to reach and assure these goals, Richard A. Henson provided direction and leadership of the Foundation during his lifetime. Today, it is managed and governed by people who share his attitudes, beliefs, and ideals as to the purposes and goals of community philanthropy.

The Richard A. Henson Foundation is a charitable, private foundation and is a nonprofit organization as defined by the Internal Revenue Service's 501(c)(3) code. To review the Foundation's most recent financial statements in PDF format, click here.

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The Philanthropic Philosophy of Richard A. Henson

Richard Henson believed the following Christian principles, when applied to decisionmaking at the Henson Foundation, would impact the quality of life in the local community, and the country, in a very positive way:

* Educating and building good character in our youth through leadership and example.

*Developing entrepreneurial spirit by building an awarenes of our free enterprise system.

*Promoting excellence in all endeavors no matter how simple or insignificant the cause.

*Giving the needy, underprivileged, and disadvantaged a hand to help themselves.

*Being a role model and encouraging other to give of their time, talen and personal resources to develop community projects which enhance the well-being of our citizens.

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Mr. Henson created an endowment to support the maintenance and improvement of the Henson Scout Reservation in Sharptown, Md. The endowment also provides scholarships for Eagle Scouts and professional leadership training for scouts and volunteers.

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The Board of Trustees of the Richard A. Henson Foundation

The Richard A. Henson Foundation is governed by seven trustees:

• Thomas H. Evans - President, Felton Bank
• Gordon D. Gladden - Retired, President, Avery Hall Insurance
• Thomas L. Trice, IV - Partner, Trice, Geary & Myers, LLC
• Thomas F. McCarthy - Retired, Vice President, Hecht's (not shown)
• Davis R. Ruark - State's Attorney, Wicomico County, Md.
• Jon P. Sherwell, Senior Vice President, M&T Bank
• Stephen R. Farrow, President/CEO, Piedmont Airlines

The Foundation's daily operations are managed by Donna Ashby, the Foundation's executive director.

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About Mr. Henson: The Founding Father of the Commuter Airline Business

Richard A. Henson was born in 1910 in Hagerstown, Md., and was raised in the village of Paramount by Frank and Ora Belle Henson -- both of whom were business owners. Their influence upon their third child stayed with him throughout his lifetime. From Ora Belle, who owned a ladies hat and dress shop, he learned to appreciate fine clothing and the art and value of dressing well. From Frank, who ran a coal and ice business and applied his accounting education to bookkeeping for the dress shop, he learned to put all of his talents to good use and to work hard. From both parents, he learned deep and abiding religious beliefs and to practice these in his daily life.

By the time young Mr. Henson was 17, he knew he wanted to pursue a career in aviation. After completing advanced mechanical training at Mountain Park Institute in North Carolina, he returned to Hagerstown. Although the Kreider-Reisner plant he had planned to work at had ceased production, the factory later began selling some used aircraft at "very reasonable prices."

Although this was during the Depression, Mr. Henson convinced two friends to go in with him on a C-Z Challenger plane for $1,500. For his part, he had to obtain a loan, co-signed by his mother, to raise the $375 he needed. Immediately after the sale, he begain taking pilot lessons. After soloing in 1930, he acquired a commercial license a year later, which allowed him to fly passengers for hire.

The Kreider-Reisner plant was sold, shortly thereafter, to Fairchild Aircraft Corporation, and began manufacturing planes again. Mr. Henson, with his pilot's license and mechanical training, was hired as a test pilot for $40 per week -- a vast sum, during the Great Depression. Meanwhile, he offered occasional charter flights and sight-seeing flights, as well as managing the Hagerstown Airport's grass field, as sideline businesses.

By 1932, he purchased the Blue Ridge Flying Service and renamed it Henson Flying Service, managing hi operations from the airport while continuing test flights for Fairchild. As his flying business increased, Mr. Henson began adding planes to his stable: a used Brunner Winkle Bird biplane in 1934 and an Aeronca C-3 just a short time later. Combined with his lengthy flight hours at Fairchild, Mr. Henson quickly earned the governement's top rating of an Airline Transport Pilot.

In the following years, he established a major Civilian Pilot Training Program in response to the need for pilot training brought on by the war, and continued flight testing for Fairchild, which was also responding to the war.

In 1936, he became a member of "The Caterpillar Club," an exclusive pilot's club reserved for those who are forced to eject from an aircraft. It was a dubious "badge of honor" -- he later rued that he had not tried harder to save the plane. Throughout the following years, however, Henson accumulated great numbers of awards for his accomplishments in aviation, business, and philanthropy, and earned a stellar reputation for running a safety-oriented, well-maintained fleet of aircraft.

By 1955, Mr. Henson had begun selling Beechcraft Aircraft, in addition to piloting, being a fixed base operator, executive aircraft fleet manager and chief of flight test operations for Fairchild. At the time, Mr. Henson also operated a 230-acre cattle farm with more than 100 white-faced Herefords on a farm near Smithsburg, Md.

By 1962, Henson started the Hagerstown Communter airline, providing air service between Hagerstown, Md., and Washington, D.C., some 70 miles south. It was the first time anyone had applied the idea of "commuting" prices for repetitive travel. And even with just very basic amenities and service levels, the Hagerstown Commuter soon outsold competitors providing fancier -- and more expensive -- flights on the same route.

In time, the Hagertown Commuter joined with Allegheny Airlines to create the Allegheny Commuter operation. At this point, service to Salisbury, Md., was added, and in later years, Henson's network of cities served expanded to include Baltimore, Pittsburgh and New York.

Through mergers, Allegheny had become the new USAir, and was associated with several smaller, commuter-type airlines which still operated under the "communal" name "Allegheny Commuter." The lack of independent status in operating his airline bothered Mr. Henson, and in 1983, he took his airline business to Piedmont Aviation.

The new alliance allowed Mr. Henson to update his aircraft with de Havilland Canada DHC-7s and DHC-8 turboprops, and expand service throughout the southeast U.S. as "Henson, the Piedmont Regional Airline."

On July 1, 1989, USAir bought Piedmont, and by 1993, the Henson logo was phased out. At age 80, Mr. Henson wasn't quite ready to retire, but was ready to "move on." In 1990 had established the Richard A. Henson Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, to facilitate his philanthropic endeavors and to create a legacy which would reach beyond his lifetime.

Mr. Henson died at age 92, on June 12, 2002. At his funeral, Henson Foundation Trustee Davis Ruark read the following poem, composed by Henson Scholar and Salisbury University student Amanda Wilson in 2001 as a tribute to Mr. Henson:

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