Wright Brothers Day, 2014

Proclamation 9222 of December 16, 2014

Wright Brothers Day, 2014

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

The United States has always been a land of exploration
and innovation. Determined to build a Nation where all
things were possible, our country's Founders crossed a
vast ocean and launched an improbable experiment in
democracy. Early pioneers pushed west across sweeping
plains. Dreamers toiled with hearts and hands to build
cities, lay railroads, and power an automobile
revolution. And on December 17, 1903, two brothers from
Dayton, Ohio, would write their own chapter in
America's long history of discovery and achievement.

After years of painstaking research and careful
engineering, Orville and Wilbur Wright accomplished
what was once unthinkable: the world's first powered
flight. Above the sand dunes of Kitty Hawk, North
Carolina, they revolutionized modern transportation and
extended the reach of humanity. Their inspiring feat
opened the door to more than a century of progress and
helped spark a new era of economic growth and
prosperity. Today, we celebrate those 12 seconds of
flight that changed the course of human events, and the
determination and perseverance that made that moment
possible.

America has always succeeded because as a Nation, we
refuse to stand still. As heirs to this proud legacy of
risk takers and dreamers who imagined the world as it
could be, we must constantly work to empower the next
generation of inventors and entrepreneurs. That is why
my Administration is investing in programs that
encourage science, technology, engineering, and math
education, especially for traditionally
underrepresented groups. And we are fighting to ensure
that innovators and startups have the resources and
opportunities they need to build the future they seek.

Our Nation brought the world everything from the light
bulb to the Internet, and today--in laboratories and
classrooms across America--our scientists and students
carry forward this tradition as they work to develop
new sources of energy and code the computer programs of
tomorrow. Less than seven decades after Orville and
Wilbur's flying machine lifted into the air, American
ingenuity brought us to Tranquility Base--and as the
lunar module touched down on the surface of the Moon,
it carried with it pieces of the brothers' historic
airplane. Today, the Wright brothers' spirit lives on
in the aspirations of a resolute people--to cure
disease, walk on distant planets, and solve the biggest
challenges of our time.

On Wright Brothers Day, we lift up the scientists,
entrepreneurs, inventors, builders, and doers of today,
and all those who reach for the future. Let us recommit
to harnessing the passion and creativity of every
person who works hard in America and leading the world
through another century of discovery.

The Congress, by a joint resolution approved December
17, 1963, as amended (77 Stat. 402; 36 U.S.C. 143), has
designated December 17 of each year as ``Wright
Brothers Day'' and has authorized and requested the
President to issue annually a proclamation inviting the
people of the United States to observe that day with
appropriate ceremonies and activities.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, do hereby proclaim December
17, 2014, as Wright Brothers Day.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
sixteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord two
thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
ninth.