Jack grew up on the family dairy farm in the area east of Hubbard, Oregon, known as Whiskey Hill. Later in his life, he would go on to develop the property across the road from the dairy into Lenhardt Airpark.
His first love was flying. At the age of 16, Jack soloed under the instruction of Bryce Piper in Mulino, Oregon. On August 28, 1955, at the age of 18, Jack married the love of his life, Elaine, and purchased a crop dusting business on the same day. Jack crop dusted over 20 years. When his son, Glenn, was old enough, he crop dusted with his Dad, while daughter Kim did the bookkeeping.
Restoring antique military aircraft was one of Jack’s many projects located at Lenhardt Airpark. Those restored aircraft are on display at museums stretching from Pensacola, Florida, to the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon.
During his lifetime, Jack had owned and flown over 85 aircraft including a DC-3 and a replica of a 1909 French Bleriot.
In the year 2001, Jack started building hangars on his airport to accommodate other pilots and called it “AirHaven”. Some of the aircraft hangars are rented to other pilots, and some are purchased by them. As of January, 2010, over 100 aircraft are based at AirHaven, located at Lenhardt Airpark. Jack’s son, Glenn, and daughter, Terri, now operate the airport.
During the last few years of his lifetime, Jack wrote and published a book, “Living out the Dream: A Life in Aviation”. Jack had copies of his book made for his family and friends. The Lenhardt family is considering publishing additional copies of his book to sell at a future date. In the meantime, “Living out the Dream: A Life in Aviation” will be a family heirloom. Jack Lenhardt’s memory will be cherished by all who knew him.
