Retired colonel still serves by inspiring

Published Nov. 6, 2008
By Brandice J. Armstrong
Tinker Public Affairs

TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla., -- "Good enough" is not good enough. Just ask retired Civil Air Patrol Col. Mary Feik. The 84-year young colonel, who does not consider herself retired, spoke at Tinker's senior leader forum Oct. 30. In front of a packed Anaconda Room, in Bldg. 3001, she briefed attendees about her career, recalling several memories including when her mentor told her "Good enough is not good enough."

Colonel Feik (pronounced Fike) was the first woman research and development engineer in the Air Technical Service Command's Engineering Division at Wright Field, now Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. She had been trained by five military instructor pilots in their off-duty time. In her career, Colonel Feik has more than 6,000 flying hours on the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, North American Aviation P-51 Mustang, Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, and Bell P-63s Kingcobra. In 1994 the colonel was inducted into the Women in Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame. In 2003, CAP named an achievement ribbon in her honor.

"I think we in this room should find the Mary Feiks ... someone who is passionate and an expert in their career field, and who is waiting for an opportunity. We need to put them in positions and train them, and give them opportunities for what we think they could be," said Maj. Gen. Loren Reno, Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center commander.

Colonel Feik, a native of upstate New York, was raised in what she said was "the dirtiest old mill town in the entire world" during the Depression era. Though she had dreams and aspirations of her own, many careers were not available to her, because of her gender. At age 11, Colonel Feik started working in her father's automobile repair shop. By 13, she overhauled her first engine.

When she graduated high school, the colonel said she was not accepted into engineering school because of her gender even though she was a straight-A student in an accelerated program. But, at 18 years old, the colonel taught Army Air Force aircraft maintenance personnel, crew chiefs and mechanics about aircraft and their engines.

These days, the colonel still flies and maintains a Piper PA-24 Comanche, her own plane.

Despite all of her accomplishments, Colonel Feik said it's the people she worked with who made her career memorable, like a sergeant she simply referred to as "Sergeant Sprague."

The colonel said Sergeant Sprague was one of her maintenance instructors. During a particular lesson early in her military career, he asked to her to fabric a B-17 elevator. She was given the necessary materials and was even shown a model. When she finished and thought she had done a decent job, he examined her work and tore it apart. It was not "good enough."

"He told me he wanted us to be proud of everything we did, not just do it to get it done," the colonel said. "Whatever it is, how little it is, how big it is, be proud of what you do." Colonel Feik relayed that message to forum attendees, while adding humorous tidbits to her biography. Most importantly, the colonel said her career was fun and it was a matter of taking advantage of opportunities.

"I had the most adventurous career that a girl could ever have hoped for," the colonel said.