Denny Garner     The Aviator - - - The Man - - - The Model

The Aviator:
There, beside his trusty Stearman, was a dapper aviator.  He was magnificent in his jodhpurs, boots, pressed shirt and tie.  The leather skull cap and goggles completed the picture. A smile that would brighten any thunderstorm, the manners of a saint and the soft spoken voice of a friend willing to help.  It was Denny Garner.  Whether it was entertaining you with his famous “Garner Arrivals & Departures”  in his Stearman, or sharing his wisdom and experience with you in private, Denny was the consumate Southern Gentleman and a ‘Pilots’ pilot.

The Man:
To really appreciate Denny you would have to have met his family.  Denny always seemed to have that quiet self-assuredness that comes with experience, personal peace, confidence and the love of friends and family. The more time you spent with Denny and Miss Ann, however brief or infrequent, you came to better understand what “A Class Act” meant.  Denny was truly ahead of his time. The things he has done with an airplane, the fine family he has raised, his un-matched generosity & caring and the legacy of his memory are the things that set one apart or ahead.

The Model:
Denny once apologized to a young lady because he had come to the airport and was in the presence of a lady without a tie. (I think he was most worried about what Miss Ann would think.) He was that kind of person.  Ahead of his time.  He inspired people. He, while not knowing it, became a model for many a young aviator and set the bar. Something to aspire to in life, a standard to live up to.  And it was easy.  Just do the right thing, and do things right.

It’s not how much is said, or what a person does that is the measure of a man.  Rather it is how the rest of the world and his peers perceive him, how often he is thought of and how we remember him that establish your place in the higher aspect of life. If that is the measure, then Denny’s cup runneth over.

Denny will always be in our hearts. We don’t consider Denny to be gone, he just got to the next stage, as always, a little ahead of his time.