By Ziggy Santa Maria
I am excited to share the story of Lisa and Jim, two members of our kite community whose generosity is helping bring a wonderful collection of kites into the San Diego Kite Club.
In late October of 2026, Lisa reached out to the San Diego Kite Club by way of email. She expressed a desire to find a new home for her and Jim’s kite collection, a collection that had grown over the years and traveled with them through many adventures. Shortly afterward I made a phone call to connect with the pair and learn more about their intentions for the donation. We discussed what they had available, how the San Diego Kite Club would manage the equipment being donated, and how we could arrange for everything to be picked up, dropped off, or shipped.
Luckily, Jim had a business trip planned to Los Angeles, which gave us an opportunity to arrange a pickup date and time. On November 1, 2026, I met with Lisa and Jim to collect their donation. What began as a conversation about finding a new home for a collection of kites quickly became something much more meaningful. It was an opportunity to learn about two people who had spent years enjoying the art of kite flying, supporting the kite community, and sharing their passion with others.
Lisa and Jim have been married for 42 years and have been together for 44. Both were born in the early 1960s, and their journey into kite flying began in 2011 while living in Texas. Over the years, they developed a love for flying kites along the Texas Gulf Coast, particularly around Port Aransas.
Like many of us in the kite community, Jim has a way of getting into something he enjoys and going all the way with it. What began as an interest in kite flying eventually grew into a collection, countless trips to the coast, participation in festivals, and some memorable adventures along the way.
Finding Their Way Into The Kite Community
Jim’s connection to kites goes back much further than 2011. His father had purchased him his first box kite when he was a child while living in Ontario. However, it wasn’t until adulthood that Jim and Lisa found themselves immersed in the world of kite flying.
While living in Texas, they discovered Fly – It! kite shop, owned by Suanne and Ralph Pyle’s. Eventually they became an important part of their kite-flying journey. Ralph was a wealth of knowledge and encouraged them as they continued to explore their interest in kites. He would sell them kites here and there, and over time, he began to notice just how much they were flying.
Jim and Lisa would regularly make their way to the coast, spending time flying and enjoying the surroundings. Ralph began taking notice of their dedication, eventually inviting them to kite festivals and encouraging them to participate in more activities within the community. What started with occasional purchases and conversations at a kite shop turned into friendships, festival participation, and a growing connection to the kite-flying community.
They would go on to live in Texas for approximately 16 years before moving to Arizona in 2019. During this time they both became members of the American Kitefliers Association (AKA).
Adventures Along The Texas Coast
One of the things that stood out when hearing about Jim and Lisa’s experiences was how much they enjoyed setting up their kites and watching everything around them. They weren’t necessarily looking for the spotlight. They enjoyed creating displays, seeing the kites fly, and watching the reactions of those who stopped to take it all in.
People would often approach them to thank them for the display they had put together. For Jim and Lisa, those moments were part of what made kite flying so special. Seeing others fascinated by the kites they had brought out to fly was just as rewarding as the experience of flying them.
Their adventures along the Texas coast included some memorable experiences at Malquite Beach on North Padre Island. During one visit, they attended a kite festival while also participating in a National Parks on the Air event, a nationwide amateur radio event. Jim found a way to combine his two interests by using a kite to raise his radio antenna into the air. While others participating in the event were having difficulty getting a signal, Jim used a heavy-lifter kite to hoist his antenna approximately 100 feet into the air. The setup allowed him to make radio contacts across the country and some bragging rights around the site area.
It was a great example of how kites can be used for more than just flying. Whether for recreation, science, utility, or simply finding a creative way to solve a problem, kites have a way of bringing different interests together.
Another story shared during our conversation took place at Port Aransas State Park. Jim and Lisa had hauled everything out to the park, setting up their BBQ, kites, and all the equipment needed for a full day of flying and enjoying the outdoors. They had everything ready and were alrady flying when all of the sudden, a park ranger approached them to let them know the park would be closing in 30 minutes. After all the work of hauling everything out and setting up, it was a reminder that sometimes the best-laid plans don’t always work out the way we expect. But for Jim and Lisa, those experiences were part of the adventure.
Jim’s favorite kite is a large, checker-colored delta. Lisa’s favorite kite is the famous Martin Lester “Legs” kite. It’s easy to understand why someone who has spent so much time flying along the coast would have a particular fondness for a kite that can put on a great display in the sky. They know what they like and both have their place in the sky.
Finding A New Home For Their Collection
As we sat down and talked about their collection, it became clear that these kites were more than just equipment. They were a part of Jim and Lisa’s lives, each one having its own story and having traveled with them through their kite-flying adventures.
The joy that kite flying brought them was something they wanted to continue sharing. Having the collection sit in a storage unit would not bring either of them the same happiness as seeing those kites out in the sky. When they reached out to the San Diego Kite Club, they were looking for a way to make sure their collection could continue to be enjoyed and put to good use.
Today, we celebrate Lisa and Jim, their kite-flying adventures, the love they have put into their interests, their support of the AKA, and their willingness to share this special art form with others.
On November 1, 2026, Lisa and Jim made a donation of their entire kite collection to the San Diego Kite Club. Along with the kites, the donation includes the line sets, line laundry, and other gear that has been part of their flying over the years.
The San Diego Kite Club plans to take the time to inventory everything, organize the equipment, and place it into our club inventory space for our Equipment Manager, Erin Quinn, to oversee. From there, our goal is to make good use of the collection and ensure that these kites continue doing what they were meant to do.
Some of the kites may be made available to club members, allowing others to experience flying equipment they may not otherwise have access to. Others may be used for fundraising, donated to neighboring clubs or fliers, or included in future auctions. There are many ways we can put this collection to good use, and we look forward to seeing how it contributes to the continued growth of our club.
More than anything, we want to make sure these kites continue to fly. The San Diego Kite Club is grateful to Lisa and Jim for their generosity and for trusting our organization to manage their collection. Donations like this are not simply about acquiring equipment. They are about the people, the memories, and the experiences that come with them. We will talk about Jim and Lisa for many years to come as our members will be sure to own and fly a piece of them. And while Lisa and Jim may have found a new home for their collection, the stories behind these kites will continue to be part of the journey.
Thank you, Lisa and Jim, for sharing your collection and a little piece of your kite-flying adventure with the San Diego Kite Club.