Tailhook ’25: Hoist a Mug for the Tailhook Educational Foundation ✈️

This weekend, Reno is full of jet noise, sea stories, and the unmistakable sound of old aviators trying to out-brag each other. Welcome to Tailhook 2025 at the Grand Sierra Resort. For Naval Aviation, this is the Super Bowl, Fleet Week, and high school reunion rolled into one. But beneath the roar of afterburners and the clink of mugs, there’s a mission that deserves a thunderous salute: the work of the Tailhook Educational Foundation (TEF). 🚀

What is TEF? 🎓

Founded in 1992, the Tailhook Educational Foundation (a proud 501(c)(3)) has two clear missions:

1. Educate the public on the vital role of carrier aviation.

2. Provide scholarships to the sons, daughters, and grandchildren of Naval Aviators, Flight Officers, and Aircrewmen from the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.

Each year, TEF hands out over 100 scholarships—typically about $2,000 each—to launch the next generation of leaders (2025 awardees list here). That’s a lot of tuition paid and a lot of dreams fueled by the legacy of naval aviation.

Think of it this way: college tuition is harder to dodge than a SAM locked on your six. 🎯 These scholarships are the flares that keep our kids flying.

Why It Matters 🛫

Scholarships aren’t just about keeping debt collectors off the flight line. They carry forward a tradition. Every awardee is another link in the chain, tying the courage of yesterday’s aviators to tomorrow’s leaders.

Want proof? Just scroll thru the Tailhook Association's Instagram and see some of the smiles of TEF awardees. Those kids are fired up. They’re chasing STEM degrees, chasing wings, and chasing big dreams. And TEF is the wind beneath their wings. 🌬️

Old Salt Coffee + TEF = Brown Shoes + Strong Brew ☕👢

At Old Salt Coffee, we like our coffee like we like our aviators: bold, fearless, and just a little bit unhinged. That’s why we built Brown Shoe Blend—a tribute to Naval Aviation that donates $1 per bag to the Tailhook Educational Foundation.

Brown Shoe is engineered for those who’ve:

• Cursed the LSO while sweating out a night trap. 🌙

• Slept under their desk between double hops. 💤

• Drank bad wardroom coffee and lived to tell the tale. 😬

When you hoist a mug of Brown Shoe, you’re not just fueling your next sea story—you’re fueling scholarships for future aviators. That’s a mission worth every sip.

Tailhook ’25: Where Tradition Meets Tomorrow 🌟

This weekend in Reno, TEF is front and center at Hook ’25:

• Recognizing scholarship winners who represent the future of aviation.

• Connecting salty old aviators with students chasing their dreams.

• Celebrating community—because naval aviation isn’t just a career, it’s a family.

Curious how you can get involved? Take a look at the TEF Scholarship Program and see how you can contribute. Or, if you’re like us, just keep buying Brown Shoe Blend and let your coffee habit do the heavy lifting. 😉

Final Thoughts ⚓

Tailhook ’25 is about aircraft, tactics, and war stories that somehow get more dramatic every year. But it’s also about the future. The Tailhook Educational Foundation ensures the next generation of aviators gets airborne—whether in the cockpit, in the classroom, or in life.

So as you hoist your glass—or better yet, your mug—remember:

• Hoist a mug.

• Fund a scholarship.

• Keep naval aviation soaring. ✈️☕

#HoistAMug #BrownShoeBlend #Tailhook2025 #MaritimeHeritage #VeteranOperated #GivingBack