GOAA CEO Lance Lyttle, holding ribbon-cutting scissors, is joined by Virgin Atlantic Vice President of Airports Justin McDonald, right, and GOAA Board Chair Stephanie Kopelousos during the opening of Terminal C’s new wing expansion. Virgin Atlantic crew members, GOAA contractors, and staff were on hand to celebrate.

ORLANDO, Fla. - Orlando International Airport (MCO) marked a major milestone in its ongoing effort to elevate the passenger experience with the opening of a new wing supporting gate expansion in Terminal C and the relocation of Virgin Atlantic operations to the terminal.

A flag-waving crowd cheers during a celebration of America’s 250th birthday during Liberty Weekend at MCO.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Stars, stripes, and spectacle dawned Orlando International Airport (MCO) for this year’s Liberty Weekend celebration, bringing together aviation heritage, patriotism, and recognition of military service, during a special year marking America’s 250th birthday.

An audience of more than 250 and dozens of veterans attended Saturday’s event, paying tribute to MCO’s unique history and military roots and reflecting on generations of service members who have helped shape America.

The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra took centerstage in lineup of selections that celebrated the American spirit and created a memorable soundtrack for the occasion.

Liberty Weekend also included a presentation of the prestigious Colonel Joe Kittinger Award, which recognizes a local veteran whose service and contributions embody the values represented by the legendary aviator and veteran.

This year’s award was presented to Chief Master Sergeant Melvin “Mel” Jenner, a 103-year-old veteran whose lifetime of service and dedication exemplifies courage, commitment, and patriotism.

“Liberty Weekend is more than a celebration, it is an opportunity to honor the history that shaped this airport and recognize the people who shaped our nation,” said Lance Lyttle, Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA), which operates MCO. “Once home to the McCoy Air Force Base, MCO’s heritage is deeply connected to service, sacrifice, and America’s aviation story. Events like Liberty Weekend allow us to preserve that legacy, celebrate our contributions to the nation, and recognize extraordinary veterans like Mr. Jenner.”

Chief Master Sgt Melvin “Mel” Jenner accepts the Col Joe Kittinger Award during Liberty Weekend at MCO. Maestro Chris Confessore and the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra are in the background.

A veteran of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, Mr. Jenner flew 46 combat missions over Nazi-occupied Europe as a radio operator and gunner aboard a B-17 bomber. His final wartime mission took place on D-Day, June 6, 1944, as Allied forces advanced across Normandy. Mr. Jenner’s highly decorated military career includes service in the U.S. Chief Master Sgt Melvin “Mel” Jenner accepts the Col Joe Kittinger Award during Liberty Weekend at MCO. Maestro Chris Confessore and the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra are in the background.

Army Air Corps and the U.S. Air Force, where he contributed to major aviation milestones, including support roles during the early era of supersonic flight alongside renowned pilot Chuck Yeager. He also flew missions during the Berlin Airlift, helping deliver critical supplies to a blockaded city.

His final duty station was McCoy Air Force Base, now home to Orlando International Airport, where he supported B-52 bomber operations and rose to become one of the first Chief Master Sergeants in the U.S. Air Force. This achievement reflected both technical excellence and exceptional leadership. Throughout his distinguished career, he received numerous honors, including the Distinguished Flying Cross and the French Legion of Honor.

Mr. Jenner is the 12th recipient of the Col. Joe Kittinger Award. Col. Joe Kittinger (1928 – 2022) of Orlando is renowned for his pioneering high-altitude parachute jump from 102,800 feet in 1960, a record that stood for more than 50 years, and marked a milestone in aerospace exploration.

Artist Margaret Ross Tolbert expands her original installation with new large-scale paintings.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Gainesville-based artist Margaret Ross Tolbert is devoted to sharing the magic and mystery of the freshwater springs of the Floridan Aquifer, the state’s geographically unique underground water system, in an expansion of “Orlando Springs” at Terminal C.

In 2011, hundreds of her mosaic paintings were commissioned for “Orlando Springs” in the international arrivals area in Terminal A, Airside 1. The dense arrangement of blue-hued paintings, many painted on-site at Orlando-area springs, welcomed travelers for more than 10 years until international arrivals moved to Terminal C. Now, a fresh vision brings the relocation, reinstallation, and expansion of this imaginative work to a new space.

Tolbert’s artwork engages viewers on a springs journey across two levels in the Terminal C space. As travelers depart the airside via the domestic bridge, an escalator ride takes them up through the mosaics conceptualized to suggest passage through a water line, as if entering the springs. Once ascended, passengers are flanked by two new 30-foot-long paintings on Level 6 that evoke immersion in the underwater world the artist knows so well.

“The paint marks on the canvas are at once testament and code for the drama, perplexity, surprise, and delight I feel and see when underwater,” says Tolbert. “There’s a part of me that wants to say, ‘I didn’t make this up!’”

Indeed, Tolbert’s artistic process and lifestyle involve countless hours spent at Florida springs,observing, experiencing, and documenting from above and within. One of the new paintings is based on Cannon Springs, a small springs on the Ocklawaha River that is only visible during the drawdowns on the Rodman Dam, when the water level drops enough to reveal the aquifer activity.

“It reveals frenzied and jubilant activity when the light hits it. Jets of sand and silt flow up from the force of the water pumping out of cave vents,” says Tolbert. “Bubbles of dissolved oxygen course through the springs. Long strands of vegetation lean in the current. We are all propelled by this current, the soundless force that we sense in this spring.”

The other large-scale addition captures a variety of underwater garden activity, Tolbert explains. “Long strands of eelgrass drift into the center panels of the painting, linking them together. Hints of the dark form of a manatee trawling underwater meadows are superseded by the turquoise of the water’s eye of the springs. Above, cypress seedlings and flower blossoms crowd to the surface. The warm colors of the karst rocks, which hold and transmit the water in the craters and pores, appear intermittently in the painting.”

Completing the installation, a colorful acrylic map on Level 4 highlights the Floridan Aquifer Springsheds & Springs water system and pinpoints locations of Central Florida springs.

“Margaret Tolbert’s expanded ‘Orlando Springs’ installation transforms Terminal C into a space that reflects the beauty, energy, and sense of place that make Central Florida so distinctive,” said Lance Lyttle, CEO, of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA), which operates Orlando International Airport. “As we continue to elevate the traveler experience, we are proud to showcase public art that welcomes our guests with a memorable connection to our region’s natural environment.”

Tolbert holds an MFA from the University of Florida and works primarily in oil and mixed media. Her work has appeared in the United States, Europe, and Asia as exhibits, installations, and commissions. She authored two books: Proje-SU (Water Project): Art Science Tradition and Myth from Ancient Water Cultures in Southwestern Turkey (2024) and AQUIFERious (2010).

In keeping with its foundational pillars of Customer Service, Community, Infrastructure, and People, GOAA continues its commitment to a model program of art in public spaces and values the enrichment that public art adds to the customer experience.