Lily Gelb 1943- born Detroit, MI
I met Lily during the Centennial Celebration of the birth of Amelia Earhart. Teaching a sketching
class on the river bluff, across the street from the Birthplace Museum in Atchison, Kansas, I saw a
woman who looked like Amelia Earhart. It was an apparition. My students & I sat on the river bluff
across the street from Amelia’s grandparents home drawing the river and surrounding landscape
just as Amelia and her sister, Muriel, used to do. Lily walked up to me and asked if I would take a
picture of her with the bridge across the river in the background. She was wearing a vintage
1930s flight suit, leather helmet, goggles and a strand of pearls (Amelia always wore pearls).
The bridge had been re-named that morning: The Amelia Earhart Bridge. It is the only bridge in
Kansas named for a woman.
My students and I were so startled; she really did look for all the world like Amelia. Of course, I
obliged her and took her picture. She then introduced herself as Lily and asked if I would take
another photograph with the Birthplace Museum in the background. The young people from the
art class were fascinated, to say the least. Numerous photographs were taken; all the children
wanted a picture with "Amelia." What an experience for the young artists.... and for me. As we
later became friends I began to call her AmeLily; we still stay in touch and I never forget her
birthday, July 24th, the same as Amelia's.
I met Lily during the Centennial Celebration of the birth of Amelia Earhart. Teaching a sketching
class on the river bluff, across the street from the Birthplace Museum in Atchison, Kansas, I saw a
woman who looked like Amelia Earhart. It was an apparition. My students & I sat on the river bluff
across the street from Amelia’s grandparents home drawing the river and surrounding landscape
just as Amelia and her sister, Muriel, used to do. Lily walked up to me and asked if I would take a
picture of her with the bridge across the river in the background. She was wearing a vintage
1930s flight suit, leather helmet, goggles and a strand of pearls (Amelia always wore pearls).
The bridge had been re-named that morning: The Amelia Earhart Bridge. It is the only bridge in
Kansas named for a woman.
My students and I were so startled; she really did look for all the world like Amelia. Of course, I
obliged her and took her picture. She then introduced herself as Lily and asked if I would take
another photograph with the Birthplace Museum in the background. The young people from the
art class were fascinated, to say the least. Numerous photographs were taken; all the children
wanted a picture with "Amelia." What an experience for the young artists.... and for me. As we
later became friends I began to call her AmeLily; we still stay in touch and I never forget her
birthday, July 24th, the same as Amelia's.
Click the "back" arrow to return to previous page.
