Women
Soar helps girls’ career options take flight
By Barbara A. Schmitz
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Women Soar speaker
and journalist/author Martha Ackmann speaks to the group about
her book The Mercury 13. Photo by Phil Weston |
In 1971, a Connecticut
judge said that athletic competitions build character for boys. But you
don’t need that character in girls.
That type of thinking is
the reason behind Women Soar, a two-day program meant to get teenage
girls interested in aviation and related occupations.
Held Sunday night and
Monday at the EAA AirVenture Museum, the program paired 26 mentors of
various aviation backgrounds with 90 young women interested in aviation
and other science-related careers. The overlaying theme: Anything is
possible if you dream.
"Aviation is a
motivation that plants seeds that become memories for decisions of the
future," said Elissa Lines, EAA vice president of development.
"But your path is made easier because of their efforts," she
told the girls about the mentors.
The event included
opportunities for the girls to meet in small groups with mentors to
learn more about careers and a chance to hear Women Airforce Service
Pilots talk about their role in World War II. They also spoke via
telephone with Anousheh Ansari, a member of the X Prize Foundation’s
Vision Circle; she is in Moscow training to be an astronaut and fly to
the International Space Station.
Suzanne Darcy-Hennemann,
a 777 senior test pilot for Boeing Engineering Flight Test and the first
woman to be named a Boeing production test pilot, said she agreed to be
a mentor because she felt a need to give back. Her main message to young
women was simple: "Whatever you can dream you can do. It doesn’t
matter if it’s aviation or another field, but if it makes you
passionate, do it."
Amy Laboda, Editor in
Chief of Aviation for Women, said she enjoys talking to the young
women and answering questions. And one thing she stresses—careers
often morph into other careers so you need to keep your options open.
And while this was Laboda’s
second year as a mentor, it was a special one because her 14-year-old
daughter, Leah Marz, was a participant.
Leah, of Fort Meyers,
Florida, said she came to Women Soar for a very simple reason:
"Because my mom signed me up." But she was excited about
coming so she could meet some females in the engineering track. "I
take engineering classes in school, but I’m with a bunch of boys. We
build machines and make them fly. We build bridges and crash them."
"They really like
crashing them," Laboda adds. "She hasn’t brought anything
home yet."
Leah, who just returned
from a weeklong soaring camp, said she enjoys aviation simply because of
tradition. "It’s like the farm boy who grows up on the farm and
decides to be a farmer. It’s part of my life."
"Whatever you can dream you can do. It
doesn’t matter if it’s aviation or another field, but if it
makes you passionate, do it."
– Suzanne Darcy-Hennemann
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Kara Swensen, founder and
president of Alaris Aviation, one of the leading aircraft brokerage
companies in the country, said she agreed to be a mentor, knowing there
are few female mentors in aviation. "Every single role model I had
growing up was a guy. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it is
important for girls to also have some females that they can look up
to."
Swensen encouraged the
girls to think outside the box. "There are many more jobs in
aviation other than just being a pilot," she says. You need to find
your passion and turn that into a career."
Chelsey Hintze, 16, of
Oshkosh, was back for her second year at Women Soar, this year bringing
along two friends. She says she signed up to meet motivational woman.
"It’s a great way to see opportunities you have when you’re
interested in science," she says.
That’s exactly why
Karly Schmidt, 15, of Knox, Indiana, signed up for Women Soar. "I
wanted to learn more about my options," she says.
Michelle DeVillers, 12,
of Kalamazoo, Michigan, says she wanted to learn about jobs that are
normally done by men. She plans to pursue aviation as a hobby, and is
thinking she’ll become a marine biologist.
Darcy-Hennemann told the
girls they are all in the right place. "We all welcome you. All the
women here have worked really hard so you have this opportunity."
She gave the girls some
simple rules for success. Set your goals. If you can dream it, you can
do it. Write your goals down. Take one step at a time. If someone
criticizes you, listen. If there is truth in the criticism apply it and
move forward.
But the most important may be the last
piece of advice. "When you reach your goal, you are not done,"
she says. "You need to reach out your hand and help someone else
who is coming your way."
