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Officials at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport welcomed students from the Hazelwood School District to its rededication of the Black Americans in Flight mural, which included guests involved with the creation of the mural and Tuskegee Airman Christopher Newman, DFC.

Nearly 50 students and three teachers from Hazelwood Central, Hazelwood East and Hazelwood West high schools attended the ceremony, as well as students from Saint Louis Public Schools, Riverview Gardens and Ferguson-Florissant districts. The mural is a tribute to the achievements of African-Americans in aviation from 1917 to the present. It features 75 figures from pilots to grounds crew to politicians and was dedicated in August 1990 after five years of fundraising, researching, planning and creativity.

The history and significance of the mural was shared by panelists Judith Pruitt, the daughter of Vesta Pruitt, who initiated the mural and the fundraising; Solomon Thurman, one of two artists who created the mural, and Newman.

The five-panel mural includes notables such as Bessie Coleman, the first African-American licensed pilot in the United States; Harry S. Truman, who as president, issued an executive order to integrate the Armed Forces; Eleanor Roosevelt, who generated positive publicity for African-American programs; and Lena Horne, an idol to servicemen during World War II. It includes pilots from St. Louis such as Newman, Wendell Pruitt, DFC, who was considered one of the most daring pilots, and Hugh White, DFC, who was shot down and a prisoner of war.

Newman spoke about his experiences as a Tuskegee Airman. He flew 84 missions in his career and he was the only pilot to survive being shot down over the Adriatic Sea. His portrait is in Panel 3.

“We had to prove that we could do it,” said Newman, in response to a question about the Tuskegee program. “The training was intense.”

“It was the first thing in my life that I really wanted to do,” he continued. “I was destined to finish.”

Thurman gave insight into the creation of the mural and the challenge of completing the research. He worked with Spencer Taylor, who was commissioned by project leaders. Thurman explained that they set criteria to decide who to depict, and that actual photos were hard to come by because they belonged to private citizens. The artists spent more than two years sketching and painting the mural in a two-car garage in Spanish Lake.

Pruitt shared her mother’s involvement, from the initial idea and beyond. She said the mural is the story of America and of the human experience. She spoke of her memories of her uncle, Wendell Pruitt, and the stories she remembered of his time of service.

After the presentation, the panelists answered questions from the audience, ranging from Newman’s experience as a pilot, racism, integration and his life after the military. The panelists signed autographs briefly after the ceremony.

Participants from HSD included students involved in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines, such as Project Lead The Way’s Aerospace Engineering, Advanced Placement Physics and FIRST Robotics, as well as those selected to participate because of their interest in the opportunity.

Story provided by the Hazelwood School District Communication Department