Signage out front doesn’t say it exactly. Those flying in and walking up to the airport terminal will just see Elizabethtown, NC above the doors.

Most will have no idea they are at the new Mac’s Place.

But chances are they’ll like what they find inside, much the way everybody found a lot to like about Mac.

This is quite the showpiece.

The original Mac’s Place helped fuel cars and trucks of the late 1930s. But Dallas McQueen Campbell Sr. loved the Wright brothers’ creation of just a couple decades earlier. A pillar of Elizabethtown through much of the last century, Campbell gave many in this community their first airplane ride in a time when leaving the ground for travel or pleasure was rare.

It is a fitting tribute that he was honored in the naming ceremony — it’s the Mac Campbell Sr. Terminal Building, officially — and we believe he would have been proud and humbled Friday by the turnout and words spoken by those who share love for him and a family that carries on his legacy today.

The original Mac’s Place was a service station, opened in the wake of the Great Depression and before the onset of World War II. It was destroyed by fire in early 1941. Mac later became the first North Carolinian drafted into the war.

He returned home after service for his country and in 1948 founded Campbell Oil Company to deliver petroleum products to customers in and around Bladen County. He grew the business, adding agriculture accounts and lubricant offerings. With son Mac Jr. alongside, they survived the 1973 oil crisis and set the foundation for a line of convenience stores.

He died in 1981, only 64 years old, and just before the first of those stores opened.

The company is now run by a third generation of grandsons, with major influence still offered by Mac Jr. It remains synonymous with Elizabethtown and Bladen County, and those convenience stores are everywhere.

The terminal that bears Mac Sr.’s name has a modern professional look, with amenities for pilots and executives alike. Office space, conference room, pilot’s lounge, classroom space, restroom and shower facilities, kitchen and storage — this is a fine 21st century addition.

Anyone coming here to do business has the convenience of never leaving the field named for one of Elizabethtown’s favorite sons, beloved astronaut and retired Col. Curtis L. Brown Jr.

The field is home to about two dozen aircraft, mostly single-engine airplanes. It averages about 40 operations a day and offers a 5,000-foot runway.

Our airport is a significant contributor to the economy. The upgrade is another step toward positioning for the future, no matter what that may hold.

Whether those coming through Mac’s Place are famous or just here to do business, there’s one chance to make a first impression. The old beach song is right, too — it’ll be lasting.

We think our guests will like it. We sure do.