New Associate Editor Will Cover Weekend Duties

As most of you know, we've been actively seeking new recruits at Aero-News HQ, as we get serious about ramping up operations heading towards ANN 10.0 -- also known by its unofficial nickname, Our Plan To Rule The Universe (er, the aviation universe. Yeah, that's what we meant -- Ed.)

It is our pleasure to introduce you to the latest crazed aero-head (er, new employee. Yeah, that's what we meant) to join our ranks -- Annette Kurman, who will be handling weekend story assignments in her new role.

It wouldn't be out of line to say Annette flat-out knocked our socks off during her first assignment with ANN, as a stringer during AirVenture 2006. We asked her back to help us cover AOPA Expo 2006 in November; not surprisingly, she was VERY eager to accept the trip to Palm Springs (she's from New Hampshire; have you seen the weather they're having lately???) and once again she proved her mettle. We knew then, it was only a matter of time before Annette joined the ANN staff.

Annette comes to aviation in a round-about way... never once having said as a youngster in Philadelphia looking up at the haze in the sky, "I want to fly." She attended Philadelphia's Temple University, where she met her future husband in a 500-student lecture hall, where they were both failing organic chemistry. Needless to say, Ms. Norwitz and Mr. Kurman later changed majors.

Having no desire to remain in Philadelphia, the couple graduated -- she in journalism, he in psychology/business -- married, and moved to New England. They have lived in the Granite State, New Hampshire, for more years than Annette will admit.

Armed with that degree in journalism, Annette's first job was as a 90-word-per-minute typist... but later she became an award-winning newspaper reporter, winning the New England Press Association's award for Investigative Reporting in the '90s. Looking for a full-time job that had benefits, now that her two little cherubs were in college, she went into the non-profit/higher education public relations arena. For the past four years, Annette has worked as director of public relations at Daniel Webster College, Nashua, NH.

It was at Daniel Webster -- which has been offering aviation programs for more than 40 years -- that she got the aviation bug. Having been involved in the College's "Aviation Heritage Festival" and the FAA's regional Aviation Expo, her hand first touched a throttle while riding a demo Cirrus SR22. That, together with doing stories and press releases about Daniel Webster's undergraduate aviation flight operations and other programs, led her to believe that she might have what it takes to be an ANN stringer at AirVenture 2006.

Annette has spent the past year learning about the many aspects of aviation... especially sport aviation, in which Annette has decided to become certificated (she notes with pride she passed her FAA written test in December.) Both daughters, and their respective college dorms, think it's cool that Mom wants to fly.

We feel her personality and energy level mesh very nicely with the wacky folks at ANN. Welcome, Annette!

FMI: www.aero-news.net