Celebrate San Antonio's Aerospace Legacy and Support the Next Generation of Innovators
Be a changemaker! Join us September 12 for a celebration of our community’s longstanding aviation and aerospace heritage and help grow programs that have already provided thousands of young people across our community exciting hands-on learning experiences in aviation, aerospace and an array of related advanced technologies. With your support, we will reach even greater heights in the year ahead!
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) announcement that led to the end of operations at Kelly Air Force Base. It was a pivotal moment that reshaped our region’s industry and workforce development. The 2025 Hall of Fame ceremony celebrates the team who led San Antonio through that historic transition and transformed it into a national model for redevelopment. The honorees also include an inspiring educator and an industry advocate whose work to expand student access to aerospace careers reflects the lasting impact of that transformation.
2025 San Antonio Aviation and Aerospace Hall of Fame Luncheon
September 12, 2025 | 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The Boeing Center at Tech Port – San Antonio, Texas
2025 Hall of Fame Inductees
At the luncheon, we will honor five leaders who have helped build and strengthen San Antonio’s standing as a global center of aerospace and aviation innovation excellence, and a member of the next generation of leaders blazing trails here on Earth... and beyond.
LEGACY AWARD
Joseph R. Krier
INDUSTRY IMPACT AWARD
Juan Solis III, José Villarreal and Tullos Wells
“When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade,” noted then-U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in the aftermath of the Base Realignment and Closure Commission’s 1995 decision to shutter Kelly Air Force Base.
The four leaders we’re honoring heeded that adage, rolled up their sleeves and got to work.
Joseph Krier, then President and CEO of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, played a central role in marshaling the community’s resources and bringing together the brightest minds to respond to the BRAC decision.
Among them were then-city councilmember and subsequent state representative Juan Solis III, joined by business and community leaders José Villarreal and Tullos Wells. The three served as tri-chairs of the Initial Base Adjustment Strategy Committee, working tirelessly alongside Joe, advocating for the necessary public-private partnerships to develop and execute on a thoughtful transition plan that safeguarded thousands of jobs while developing a framework for the future.
That plan not only guided the transition, it informed the redevelopment to follow—the very blueprint that created Port San Antonio, home to almost 19,000 jobs, yielding a $9 billion annual economic impact, and a place where every single day, thousands of people are connecting with life-changing opportunities in their careers, educational pathways and as entrepreneurs.
Hope for the Future Award
Kathryn “Kat” Bolish
Mathematician, technologist and passionate educator: Kat Bolish is one of our community’s most energetic and leading voices in inspiring and connecting young people to the many different career pathways in space exploration.
As program manager at the WEX Foundation, she has introduced hundreds of middle and high school students to space exploration. From testing model lunar rovers in caves deep in the heart of Texas to orchestrating model rocket builds and student-led high altitude balloon launches, Kat serves as a model of Concurrent with her many responsibilities at the WEX Foundation, she is also a valued team member of Astroport Technologies—the San Antonio-based startup that works with NASA and other partners to chart new courses for humankind in the space frontier: construction of lunar and Martian habitation, space-based power generation, exploring our solar system and beyond, and much more.
Chairman's Award
Wayne Fagan
Wayne is the founding force behind The Dee Howard Foundation and a tireless advocate for aerospace education and career access across our community.
Rooted in and informed by his many years of service as chief legal counsel for one of San Antonio’s iconic enterprises—aircraft manufacturer The Dee Howard Company—Wayne has a first-hand appreciation for the many different career and entrepreneurial opportunities created by the aviation and aerospace industries, both here in San Antonio and around the world.
Never missing a beat, retirement from his professional career meant that Wayne could fully devote himself to envisioning, creating, and growing the organization that today enriches the lives of students by introducing them to one of San Antonio’s longstanding and iconic industries.
Along the way, Wayne built a coalition of educators, industry professionals, the defense community, and public officials with a clear vision: Honor San Antonio’s first 100 years of aviation and aerospace history and inspire the next generation of talent to chart a course in the century ahead.
2025 San Antonio Aviation and Aerospace Hall of Fame Luncheon
September 12, 2025 | 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The Boeing Center at Tech Port – San Antonio, Texas
"This year’s honorees embody what it means to lead with purpose, passion, and vision,” said Tyler Schroeder, Chair of The Dee Howard Foundation. “Their impact on students, industry, and our community is undeniable, and it is a privilege to recognize their contributions."
"San Antonio’s aerospace legacy is built by people like this year’s honorees, people who aren’t just making a difference today but laying the foundation for the next generation,” said Jim Perschbach, Chair of the Hall of Fame Nomination Committee and President & CEO of Port San Antonio.
"At the heart of this event is our commitment to inspiring the future,” said Christopher Mammen, Executive Director of The Dee Howard Foundation. “By honoring these leaders, we’re also reaffirming our mission to connect students with the opportunities, skills, and mentors that will shape their futures in aerospace and beyond."