(gentle music) - [Announcer] This is a production of PBS Charlotte.

- Just ahead on "Carolina Impact," find out how Charlotte students soar, landing big opportunities in a growing industry.

Plus, with America's 250th birthday approaching, discover how one local artist brings history to life in a bold new way.

And we take you to church camps, where faith, fun, and community traditions continue to thrive.

It all starts right now, on "Carolina Impact."

(upbeat music) Good evening.

Thanks so much for joining us.

I'm Amy Burkett.

Air travel keeps growing.

Especially at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, which is the sixth busiest in the world.

But behind the scenes, there's a looming problem that could ground future flights.

A nationwide shortage of aircraft technicians.

Experts say the US will be short more than 20,000 skilled mechanics in the next three years.

"Carolina Impact's" Dara Khaalid and videographer Russ Hunsinger show us how one area school helps students prepare to fill some of those most in-demand jobs.

(screen whooshing) (upbeat music) - [Agent] Boarding pass please.

- [Dara] Depending on who you ask, air travel causes different emotions.

It can be exciting for some, frustrating for others, or just flat out scary.

Chances are, as you buckle up, you're not thinking about the internal workings of the plane.

You're just ready to make it to your destination.

(tires screeching) Thanks to aircraft maintenance technicians like Diego Sanchez, you don't have to think about the mechanical stuff, because that's his job.

- Checking the gauge, and then I just check around a little bit, but make sure we're just checking the accumulative pre-charge, see if it's in the right PSI range.

- [Dara] Throughout his shift at Victory Lane Aviation at the Charlotte Douglas Airport, you'll find him on ladders with tools, inspecting engines for corrosion and squeezing into small places using a volt meter to make sure the voltage is up to par in different circuits.

(upbeat music) It can be tedious, and definitely requires a lot of precision, but you won't hear Diego complaining, because he's waited for an opportunity like this for a long time.

- Ever since I was a kid, this is a dream that I've always wanted to do.

Work on airplanes, be close to them.

This is something I always wanted to do.

- [Dara] The 20-year-old remembers his parents taking him to the airport overlook to watch planes when he was little.

His fascination grew into passion with each passing plane.

Then one day his middle school class visited Victory Lane.

What started as an unforgettable moment is now a full circle moment.

- Coming here and touring this exact hangar, and now that I'm actually working here and this is where I'm getting most of my experience, and actually be being able to be up close to these aircraft, it's a very, very sensational feeling, and it's lovely.

(upbeat music) - [Dara] But before he got the job, he was a student here, at the Aviation Institute of Maintenance.

- Get off nice and easy.

- [Dara] Where he learned from instructors like Roger Miller how to troubleshoot inside an avionics bay like this one, which is vital, because this is where the communication and navigation equipment is.

- Their real training starts when they leave here.

So when they leave here, they have that basic fundamental knowledge of how these systems on these aircraft work, and what does what and why.

So they already have a little bit of a headstart.

- [Dara] The school offers a 21-month program that teaches students the skills and knowledge needed to get their Airframe and Powerplant certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration.

- [Instructor] Keep turning.

- They learn everything top to bottom when it comes to all aircraft, whether it be planes or helicopters.

They learn about the engines, which we call power plants, and they learn about the rest of the aircraft, which is called the airframe.

- [Dara] This certificate opens doors for students.

It gives them the authorization needed to work on aircraft as soon as they're hired.

And right now, companies are desperate for new technicians.

Boeing's latest report shows why.

Many mechanics are retiring or leaving the field.

Over the next 20 years, the industry will need more than 710,000 new technicians to keep up.

- We get reached out by a lot of these partners, specifically saying, "Hey, do you have anybody?

Five guys are leaving in the next 30 days."

We'll take somebody who's right outta school, just because we can have these guys help train 'em before they leave.

So a lot of companies are hiring in advance of those retirements.

(upbeat music) - [Dara] Which is great news for those like Diego, who just walked the stage a few months ago.

And now they're walking into full-time jobs that have a median salary just shy of $80,000 a year.

- They would really push safety wiring, so I really know how to safety wire, manufacture my own hydraulic hoses.

AIM did prepare me to go into this career field.

- The manual wants us to bring the landing gear up.

- So we have to have it on jacks?

- [Dara] And the preparation he had walking into Victory Lane means it's less that his Chief Inspector, Michael Ruggiano has to teach.

- He's one of our go-getters.

He has a lot of heart.

He's been a tremendous asset to our night shift team, and he's shown that he can navigate the aircraft.

He's very familiar with most aircraft systems, and so that helps us get ahead and support our customers.

- [Dara] The future of air travel will depend on dedicated technicians like Diego.

And thanks to programs like this, students from his alma mater are ready to keep us all flying safely.

For "Carolina Impact," I'm Dara Khaalid.

- Thanks so much, Dara.

AIM has a partnership with CMS and Union County school districts that allows juniors and seniors to take courses.

When they graduate high school, they're two steps closer to employment.

Well, from soaring above the city, to diving deep into its history, Charlotte is filled with entertainment choices, especially when it comes to museums.

"Carolina Impact's" Jason Terzis tells us about one local attraction currently in limbo.

- Looking for a museum?

Charlotte certainly has a lot of them.

There's the Museum of History, the Carolina Raptor Center, Discovery Place, ImaginOn, the Sullengerber Aviation Museum, the Harvey Gantt Center for African American Arts and Culture, the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, The MIT Museum actually has two locations.

There's Uptown and Randolph.

And there's also the Levine Museum of the New South, which is temporarily off the grid.

(screen whooshing) - So these are some of our artifacts that document Charlotte's banking history.

(gentle music) - [Jason] Senior Director of History and Exhibitions, Keri Petersen shows us just some of the artifacts the Levine Museum of the New South has in its collection.

- [Keri] His wife Billy Graham and Ruth Graham.

This was a congressional gold medal that was awarded to them in 1996.

- [Jason] But it's a collection the public can't see in person.

Not now at least, because the museum, well, doesn't currently have a home.

- Home is community.

And so even though we don't have a formal building, because we are rooted in community, we are home.

- [Jason] Since May, all of the museum's possessions have been in storage, leaving it in a temporary state of limbo.

- I would say, we're operating just like we normally would be in a building.

- [Jason] Ironically enough, Levine was not originally intended to be a traditional collections museum.

- We started as a museum without walls, where we were out in the community, and fully engaging.

- [Jason] During its first few years, what was then known simply as the Museum of the New South hosted pop-up mini exhibits in places like bank lobbies.

- So we're coming up on our 35th anniversary.

So we were incorporated in 1991, started by an incredible group of civic leaders here.

- [Jason] In 2001, it transitioned into more of a traditional museum, with the opening of its Uptown Seventh Street location and renamed in honor of museum patron and Family Dollar founder, Leon Levine.

The goal, tell the stories of the diverse people who helped shape the region.

One of its more popular exhibits was called Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers.

- So what makes our museum different than the other museums in town is, and I would say across the nation, this museum has always centered the stories of everyone and inclusion at the heart of the work we do.

- It represents Charlotte growing after the Civil War.

So from the agrarian times, all the way through industrial growth, and then into becoming a banking center that it is today, but it also represents personal stories.

- [Jason] But after two decades on Seventh Street, the winds of change came calling.

- Our original location on Seventh Street was an incredible experience for us.

Helped us really take the museum to the next level.

We made the decision, prior to COVID, and then really after COVID, to sell the building, which we felt as an organization was gonna give us the best opportunity to really become a hub.

(upbeat music) - [Jason] Selling its Seventh Street building for a reported 10.75 million, the museum moved to a donated space by Wells Fargo on South Tryon, where it had free admission and prioritized digital exhibits and walking tours.

- We've always been rooted in the idea that everyone that we want to engage with will not necessarily walk through our doors, but we have an opportunity and a responsibility to meet people where they are.

- [Jason] During this time, the museum went to more of an online experience, introducing things like augmented reality.

With the app, KnowCLT, users can go to certain spots around uptown Second Ward and see what used to be there in the old historic Brooklyn neighborhood.

- And this one's really incredible, because you can see the preexisting buildings here.

- [Jason] But with their lease up this past spring, and a new location yet to be identified, the museum had no choice, but to box up all 3000-plus artifacts, and put it all into storage.

- People know to look for us, but they don't always know where to find us.

And so we have to do a really intentional job of letting people know where to find us.

- So just 'cause you can't come in and look at our in-person exhibitions, you can still go online.

We have a lot of great information about the city.

- Although we don't have a physical building, we do have things for people to see and engage with and we're working diligently to figure out ways to bring these stories to life.

- [Jason] Instead of viewing this time and situation as a negative, employees at Levine are trying to take advantage of it.

- So in some ways it broke down the barriers of thinking inside four walls, and really allowed for us to think that the community is our playground.

- We've been working really hard on the collection since we moved into this storage space.

We've had a lot of time to really go through every single artifact, paper, photo that the museum owns.

We've been able to update our database, and all of our records.

- This transition allowed for us to remember to get back to our roots, to engaging with the community.

But it also really allowed us to think more broadly about what the potential was for our 21st modern day museum.

- [Jason] So what's next for the Levine Museum of the New South?

And how much longer will it technically be homeless?

- We are in the process of finishing due diligence on a, we're honing in on a specific property and opportunity.

We are continuing to evaluate different locations around the city.

What I can promise is that this is going to be a space that the community is going to be excited about.

- Okay, Jason, what's the timetable for the new location?

- Well, it's coming soon.

Officials representing Levine tell me they are making progress on a new building, but they likely won't have anything to share publicly until sometime next month in November.

But they're excited, so they're just, they've been taking advantage of this time and they're ready, looking forward to the future.

- They do such good work, and I loved when they had their permanent exhibit.

So I look forward to seeing the new permanent exhibit.

- Absolutely.

Should be good.

- Thanks, Jason.

Well, when it comes to history, America's preparing to celebrate its 250th anniversary.

Mecklenburg County residents hit that milestone back in May.

This summer, Mecklenburg Park and Recreation teamed up with Charlotte is Creative to commission a local artist for a special mural in Independence Park.

Producer John Branscum shares the details with us.

(screen whooshing) (bright music) - It's gonna be hot out here today.

I get a lot of requests for Charlotte related things, skylines and like South End stuff.

So this was a nice change of pace.

So I'm just buffing in my background color over top of the one I didn't care for.

We're trying to create something that's kind of celebrated historic Charlotte, like true historic Charlotte.

Trying to fill all of these holes.

The texture on this is pretty gnarly.

In collaboration with Parks and Rec, and assisted by a Charlotte is Creative, they reached out to me to create a piece that would celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence.

I'll have to get my actual ladder out here before it's over and do the tippy top.

One of the more research heavy projects I've done, this is just exterior latex paint, like you would paint your house with.

But I primed it with a concrete primer sealer that will help keep the moisture from coming through.

I had heard of the Meck Dec before, but honestly didn't know anything about it.

I grew up in South Carolina schools, so we didn't learn about this part.

Did like a nod to farming, the Alexander home site, then we move on to the wagon wheel, which is kind of a tribute to Trade and Tryon/the Great Wagon Road, that would've been major trade routes coming through here at the time.

And then you have Captain Jack, a nod to the statue, and the gentleman that took the document.

Everyone knows the hornet's nest, that's the easy one.

And the hand signing the document.

Just a tribute to the day we're celebrating.

On this side, we have First in Freedom, we'll go in, and then the date, May 20th.

And then on this side Independence is a tribute to the park and hornet's nest of rebellion.

I've had several people come through already and just gimme comments about like, "Thank you for contributing and beautifying the park," and just sharing my talent.

So I'm glad people appreciate it like that.

- It's super cool 'cause we have a diverse city now.

I think when people move here, a lot of people don't know Charlotte history, right?

Having something like this where they can kind of turn and be like, "Okay, what is that?"

Hopefully they Google it and look more into the history and the celebration of the 250th.

(bright music) - My brain just kind of goes on autopilot after I get it drawn out like this.

I mean, I'm just cooking now.

It's kind of a game, because I'm trying to fill all these holes with one stroke.

This is obviously something that is part of Charlotte's history.

It's something people talk about.

250 years, it's something to be celebrated so that it doesn't fade.

- [Crowd] Freedom!

(crowd applauding) - Even if people come by here and don't know what the Meck Dec is, maybe it gives them something to look into, research about.

I had a couple conversations with people that were like, "Oh, I didn't know about this.

I'm from out of town, or I just moved here, I'll have to research this, whatever."

So I think it's a good just commemorative piece and hopefully it gets people thinking.

(bright music) Sign painting in general is just kind of executing on either someone else's logo or lettering.

It's rather templated and structured.

And then the pieces like this that I do, that gets to be like my artwork, way more fluid.

I think public art is important for the community to kind of come around, have something to be proud of, of their city.

It creates culture.

I think Charlotte is really being supportive of public art.

Hopefully it makes people think a little bit about what we're celebrating, and just give people something to pause and be proud of as Charlotteans, or people who are learning about the history of Charlotte.

(bright music) It's like super rewarding.

Like not many people get to have something that's in such public view and to be proud of.

And people could reference this like, that's such a compliment to me.

- Thanks so much, John.

Stay tuned to PBS Charlotte this November for the premier of "Ken Burns: The American Revolution," followed by our own local companion documentary, "Freedom's Footsteps," which gives a Southern perspective to the American Revolution.

Well finally tonight, tucked away in our region are traditions that have stood the test of time.

The church camp meetings are one of them.

At Rock Springs and Tucker's Grove, they're not just about preaching and prayer.

They're about family tents that feel more like time machines, memories that echo through generations and plenty of laughs.

"Carolina Impact's" Chris Clark shows us why people keep coming back, year after year, rain or shine.

(screen whooshing) - [Chris] They look like a town straight outta the Old West.

Weathered wood, dirt paths, rows of tiny cabins.

- I always have to pull out my phone and show pictures 'cause I said, "I can't really explain it.

You won't believe it."

- [Chris] And he's right.

Some people thought it was a movie set.

- Movies have been made from the campground.

- [Chris] This isn't Hollywood, something much older.

Long before phones, cars, or even electric lights, families in North Carolina were gathering under the arbors.

They came to pray, to sing, and to be together.

Two camps, Rock Springs and Tucker's Grove.

They tell the story of faith that has lasted generations.

- It was circuit riders would come in, people would bring their wagons and stuff and their chickens and their cows, and everybody would camp out here and they'd have revival all week.

- [Chris] Rock Springs held its first camp meeting in 1794.

And by 1830, the first permanent wooden tents were built.

And it's believed to be the oldest continuous camp meeting in the United States.

Gatherings always come in August, the one time farm families could step away.

- This was the time of year that the farmers had laid their crops by.

They'd already harvested, so they was in between the harvesting and planting again.

So this was the only time that they actually could take a vacation.

- [Chris] Nearly a century later, in 1874, African American families built Tucker's Grove Camp.

Born in the years after emancipation, it became a sacred space where newly freed men and women could worship freely and build a community.

It was also about more than faith.

It was about independence.

- That freedom gave them opportunity to use their own minds, their own ability, their own organizational, managerial skills and structure.

- [Chris] Both campgrounds have a similar layout.

Rows of tents form a great square surrounding a center point.

At the very heart stands the arbor, a wooden shelter where generations have gathered to hear the word.

Its construction as remarkable as it is humble.

- They built an arbor like a shelter that was made out of trees.

And from what I understand, there's no nails in the making of the arbor.

There's only some wood pegs.

- [Chris] The arbor at Rock Springs was started in 1830, and finished in 1832.

Nearly two centuries later, it's the only original structure left.

Its survival came against some incredible odds.

- The Union Army camped here on their way to Salisbury.

And when they left, they burned the structures down.

Everything burned except for tent number one and the arbor area.

- [Chris] From the ashes, the camp was rebuilt.

The arbor remained at the center, a symbol of survival.

Around it, new wooden tents sprang up, two stories tall, built with rough hewn boards, concrete floors, and a small kitchen.

Simple, but surprisingly comfortable.

And in today's world, nearly impossible to come by unless you stumble across one at the right moment.

- We actually were sitting in the Tractor Supply parking lot of Denver.

It came up online that this tent was available.

My husband was inside shopping.

I went inside, grabbed him, left his cart of goods inside, and met the lady here and bought tent number one.

- [Chris] Tent number one is the crown jewel, but every tent holds its own memories.

For generations, they'd been the backdrop for worship, friendships and family stories that last a lifetime.

From the bugle call that signaled time for church.

- Mr.

Euless Whitener was his name.

And he would stand out there.

And when you heard that bugle blow, and all the kids knew either you had to go into your tents, or you had to go under the arbor.

- [Chris] To the late night laughter through cracks in the walls.

- Everybody didn't have a curfew.

We always had to have a curfew.

And my mama had nine children.

And we always had to go to bed.

And you see these cracks here?

We talked to people through the crack because we were the early birds!

- [Chris] And those same walls and gaps weren't just for whispers.

They became the playground for childhood adventures.

- People had walkways between.

Back in the day, we'd get in between them when they'd be sitting there as kids and we'd put their feet up against 'em and climb up high above everybody and have water balloons and drop water balloons on people.

- [Chris] Not every memory was fun.

Some were just plain chores.

- I hated that iceman.

I just didn't like to sat out there.

I felt like everybody was looking at me, when mama made me sit out there and wait on that darn ice man.

- [Chris] As those kids got older, the fun didn't stop.

Camp meeting wasn't only about sermons, it was also about music, laughter, and finding a place to let loose.

- It used to be a little dance place.

And it was right down there.

It's a little guy.

His name was Mr.

Red Smith.

We called him Mr.

Red Smith, but he had a jukebox in a building.

And honey, when church was out, it was time to kick up the dust!

- [Chris] The campgrounds became a backdrop for friendships, first dances, and even young love.

- When I was dating my husband, we came out to the campground and we would walk around.

We had pictures made.

- [Chris] Those early walks turned into lifetimes.

Couples who met here returned with children of their own.

And now, with grandchildren.

- We had two of our grandchildren up here.

The first week, the oldest grandson said, "Dad, we have to go home tomorrow."

- You don't see kids running around with iPads.

You don't see kids running around with cell phones.

- [Chris] Camp meeting is a time to put life on pause, to come together face to face with neighbors, with family, and with Jesus at the center of it all.

- This is their heritage.

This is where their family came, and they know that they can come back here.

And this is a big reunion for them to come back here and worship and to sit in the same pews, the same place that everybody their ancestors did.

- [Chris] From Rock Springs to Tucker's Grove, camp meetings are more than cabins and arbors.

They're living testaments of faith, family, and fellowship, where generations return year after year, keep the story alive.

For "Carolina Impact," I'm Chris Clark.

- Thank you so much, Chris.

In the end, Rock Springs and Tucker's Grove are more than gatherings.

The two are living reminders of fellowship and the joy of shared tradition remain a cherished part of our region's history.

So if you have a cool story like this one, please share it with us by emailing the details to stories@wtvi.org.

Well, before we leave tonight, I'd like to thank the folks from St.

Luke's Episcopal Church in Salisbury.

They were a beautiful studio audience today, and we had tons of fun.

Well, that's all the time we have this evening.

Thanks so much for joining us.

We always appreciate your time.

And I look forward to seeing you back here again next time on "Carolina Impact."

Goodnight, my friends.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) - [Announcer] This is a production of PBS Charlotte.