For the 14th consecutive year, the CSS Neuse Foundation will hold its annual “Wings Over the Neuse” fundraiser. “Wings” began in 2009 to raise the money needed to erect a memorial to Alton “Doc” Stapleford for supervising and doing a great deal of the work in constructing the CSS Neuse II. A marker honoring Doc still stands near the stern of the Neuse II on the Gordon Street side.

Through the years, “Wings” has become the single most significant fundraiser for the Neuse Foundation, the caretakers of the Neuse II. The bulk of the money needed to operate and maintain the vessel comes in through the sponsorships of “Wings” and sales of chicken wing plates.

“Wings” is a massive undertaking. We must have enough grills, boiling pots, and people to do the actual cooking. Then we need those who put together the plates of wings, celery and carrot sticks, and ranch dressing. Next, we need those who take care of sales and another crew to deliver plates to sponsors and customers who purchased in advance. Each year, “Wings” produces between 1,000 to 1,200 wing plates. My wife Sandra worked several years helping to make plates and described the hectic pace as “Busy Times 10.”

The CSS Neuse II has always been a community project. From the time the first workers laid the keel until this year’s “Wings,” volunteers have been the lifeblood of efforts to build, maintain, and display the CSS Neuse II. Visitors to the gunboat are amazed when we tell them the Neuse II was constructed over seven years by hundreds of volunteers who worked under the supervision of volunteer master shipbuilder Alton “Doc” Stapleford.

Every person who serves as a docent on the Neuse II or as a member of the foundation’s board is directors is a volunteer. The Galley Crew members that cook for “Wings” and for each “Breakfast on the Boat” are all volunteers. More than 100 sponsors have contributed to the “Wings” fundraiser this year.

The first plates should be ready around 10:30 a.m. I have no idea when the last plate of wings will fly away. Wing plates are still just five dollars – the same price when the “Wings” first took flight in 2009.

Several of my friends … um … missed the boat last year. By the time they entered the drive-thru, all the wings had flown the coup. Please come early this year.

The CSS Neuse II is a genuine attraction that brings visitors to our community. For three years before COVID, our replica gunboat drew more than 5,000 visitors yearly. With one-third of the year remaining, the Neuse II has already had more than 3,000 visitors. Please remember that the Neuse II is open to the public only one day a week – from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. Volunteers have already opened the gunboat for 17 private showings this year.

Our fundraiser enables the foundation to make improvements, pay utility and insurance costs, and fund repairs. Supporters, whether sponsors or those who purchase plates, make the work we are doing possible. Those of you who visit the Neuse II regularly can easily see the progress the foundation is making.

Your support makes progress possible.

See you Friday.

Mike Parker, who serves on the CSS Neuse Foundation board of directors, is a columnist for the Neuse News. You can reach him at mparker16@gmail.com.