“Growing up in South Florida, as the youngest and only girl in a family of five, my early dreams were influenced by the women around me. Most of them were nurses, and I imagined following in their footsteps. But as I got older, I realized I had a love for writing and began dreaming of becoming a journalist. However, that dream faded as life went on.
By the time I was nearing high school graduation, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. All I knew was that I had to go to college. With parents from Jamaica who deeply valued education, my siblings and I were constantly reminded of the opportunities available to us here in the U.S. I decided to attend the University of Central Florida (UCF) in Orlando and earned my Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) degree. After graduation, I left UCF ready for the next chapter.
Fast forward a few years, I found myself living in Dallas, working a typical 9-to-5 job as a Customer Relationship Manager for a medical record retrieval company. It wasn’t fulfilling, and I longed to travel but couldn’t afford it. That’s when I made the decision to apply to become a flight attendant. I landed a position with SkyWest Airlines, which gave me the chance to see new places and experience life in the skies.
By my third year as a flight attendant, I started craving a bigger challenge. Spending so much time working with pilots, I began to realize that they weren’t much different from me—they just didn’t look like me. One day, I saw an email about SkyWest’s Professional Leave Program and decided to look into it. This program allows employees to transition to the cockpit as a professional pilot. After researching, I chose Skyborne, a flight academy that seemed like the best fit for me, especially since it was close to home in Florida.
My experience at Skyborne has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. It felt like I was stepping back into college, but this time in my 30s, and my brain wasn’t soaking up information as easily as it used to. Learning maneuvers was tough, and I found myself being far too hard on myself, especially after a bad flight. My roommates and I would often remind each other to give ourselves grace, something that became a crucial part of my journey. I am beyond grateful for those amazing roommates. We supported one another, shared the highs and lows, and truly matched each other’s energy.
I also built lasting friendships with some of the Ghanaian Military students at Skyborne, as well as many other incredible people I met along the way. These friendships, created in the shared experience of pursuing our aviation dreams, will likely last a lifetime.
As I near the end of my training, I can confidently say that my experience at Skyborne has been shaped by amazing instructors who genuinely love what they do. They were always approachable, making it easy to seek guidance whenever needed. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my experience at Skyborne so far. It’s excellent ground school and the convenience of being so close to both classes and the flight line being standout perks. Also, having instructors who’ve been through the same journey makes the end goal feel that much more attainable.
If there’s one piece of advice I could give to anyone walking a similar path, it would be to avoid comparing yourself to others. It’s easy to get caught up in the pace of someone else’s progress, but this journey is unique to each of us. Some may move faster than others, but that doesn’t make them smarter or better—it just means they caught on a little quicker. Your journey is your own, and it’s important to give yourself the grace and space to grow at your own pace.”
– Laurie W.
