When things go bad, they’re here to help at the AirVenture First Aid Center, as was the case for Stan Schroeder, of South Africa, when he needed medical attention from volunteers Dr. Bob Braun of Philadelphia, and nurse Barbera Nerroth of Gurnee, Illinois. Photo by Dave Higdon

The staff at the First Aid Center at EAA AirVenture sees "pretty much everything that a normal emergency room would see," said Mary Jeanne Trosky, who manages the center. A registered nurse from McHenry, Illinois, Trosky has been coming to Oshkosh and working in the First Aid Center for 25 years. The First Aid Center is located just north of the control tower.

On the front porch, nurses dispense sunscreen and over-the-counter medications, plus lots of advice and comfort. "They handle the sore throats, blisters, and headaches," said Trosky, and free up the rest of the staff and the center’s three examination rooms for more serious complaints. Those might include coronary problems, sinus infections, tooth abscesses, injuries, and a possible case of malaria.

Heat exhaustion and heat injuries are common at AirVenture, and the First Aid Center has a "cool room" where patients can rest, cool off, and rehydrate. Trosky noted one other common problem she and her staff have been treating: "Don’t put sunscreen on your forehead," she cautions. "You sweat and it runs into your eyes. It’s very painful, and we’ve been treating a lot of it."

Nurse Nancy Conradt sees a patient at the First Aid Center north of the control tower. Photo by Dave Higdon

Relatively simple or minor problems can be treated at the First Aid Center. Patients with more serious problems are transported by car to the local hospital Mercy Medical Center. The First Aid Center has two volunteer drivers who can drive patients to the hospital and bring them back to the convention grounds.

For very serious or life-threatening problems, the Oshkosh Fire Department keeps an ambulance on duty at AirVenture.

The AirVenture First Aid staff works in two shifts, with two or three doctors and four or five nurses on duty for each shift. All are volunteers, and many come back year after year.

The center provides care free of charge, and it runs on donations. There are donation cans, and "some people are very generous," said Trosky. They are very grateful that, because of the First Aid Center, an injury or illness didn’t ruin their trip to Oshkosh.

If you’d like to donate money, materials, or supplies, stop by the center or contact EAA.