It was a banner day for NCAI Scholar Recipients, Destiny Johnston and Lily Spires. Hot off the tarmac, they no sooner placed their bags down than headed out to the Women In Aviation International Conference for the afternoon and well into the evening. Lily Spires jumped into the fray in the Exhibit Hall and started making a name for herself with her well-written and practiced elevator pitch. At the same time, Destiny volunteered to register many of the thousands of professionals in attendance. They have made positive impressions, gained advice, and opened doors for future opportunities. Just one of those impressions was with Dr. Sian Proctor, the first black female to pilot a spacecraft, and the first female Commercial spacecraft pilot. We got to chat with her for about ten minutes. We also got to chat with Cecilia Aragon, a world-champion barnstormer known for being the first female member of the US Aerobatic team. The girls asked her about overcoming fear and discouragement and developing resilience and perseverance.
Throughout all of the day's activities, the girls never lost their smiles. It was a long, fulfilling day, giving way to expectations of bright futures.
Oh, and delivering her first-ever elevator pitch wouldn't be complete without also making her first-ever Starbucks order -- congratulations, Lily!