Jerry Wilhelm | Courtesy
President’s Club member Jerry Wilhelm built a gyrocopter in 2011 , an he now flies frequently in Traverse City, Michigan, and Florida.
President’s Club member and Hillsdale supporter Jerry Wilhelm has a biannual tradition of attending a Center for Constructive Alternatives seminar in the fall and graduation in the spring — bringing his one-ton, red gyrocopter to campus for both occasions.
“I think the thing that fascinates me the most about the gyrocopter is people’s reactions to it,” Wilhelm said. “Sometimes I’ll be driving it around and find people ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ or taking pictures of it. Little kids get a kick out of it. I’ll draw a pretty good crowd when it’s around.”
Wilhelm times his seasonal travel between his Florida and Michigan homes around Hillsdale’s fall CCA lecture and graduation, using Hillsdale as a pit stop. The former lawyer and recreational pilot hauls his gyrocopter, a unique class of aircraft which takes elements from a car, airplane, and helicopter, on a flatbed trailer and parks it in Hillsdale’s Fowler Maintenance Building.
Wilhelm has piloted as a hobby for more than 40 years, amassing more than 750 hours flying gyrocopters and airplanes. When he sold his single-engine plane several years back, he was looking for other modes of flying that would pique his interest. After a trip to Costa Rica, he discovered gyrocopters.
“One day I was outside, and I saw this weird thing flying over,” Wilhelm said. “So I called my buddy who was associated with the airstrip and asked what it was. He encouraged me to come check it out. Eventually I got my gyrocopter license in Costa Rica, and flew around the coutry in the course of nine days.”
In 2011, Wilhelm bought his own gyrocopter kit and after a week of intense labor assembling hundreds of pieces, he completed his vehicle. Although he hasn’t had the opportunity to fly it in Hillsdale, he has flown it frequently around Traverse City, Michigan and Florida.
Wilhelm said he and his wife, Jennifer Weil, have advocated for Hillsdale College since the late 1970s. They eventually became President’s club members and today provide a scholarship each year for students.
“Many years ago, when I lived in California, a neighbor handed me a copy of Imprimis, and we fell in love with the mission of the college,” Wilhelm said. “We kept an eye on it, and 10 years ago became Presidents club members. My wife and I also started the Robert and Evelyn Weil Memorial Scholarship Fund in memory of her parents.”
A freshman recipient of the scholarship said Wilhelm’s dedication to Hillsdale has impacted her life substantially.
“All I can say is that I am incredibly thankful for his hard work,” the recipient said. “I am incredibly thankful for his hard work and generosity in helping me have such a wonderful education. It was so comforting to feel such a personal interest and care in my life from these two wonderful people.”
