Jerrie Mock

Jerrie Mock before her adventure in The Spirit of Columbus

I became aware of Jerrie Mock, my personal career hero, through the research I did to find a pilot that accomplished something astonishing. She was the first woman pilot to fly around the world solo. Mock also was the first woman to fly around the world in a single engine plane, first woman to fly U.S. - Africa via North Atlantic, first woman to fly the Pacific single-engine, first woman to fly the Pacific West to East, first woman to fly both the Atlantic and Pacific, and first woman to fly the Pacific both directions. Mock never gave up on her dream even when she thought she never would be able to fly. She accomplished all of her firsts after she had two kids and was married. This is one of the main reasons I chose her because she is a mom and she never gave up on her main goal of becoming a pilot. Like her, I always have wanted to become a pilot who would be remembered forever.

Jennie receiving the Federal Aviation Agency Gold Medal from President Lyndon B. Johnson while surrounded by her family.

When, you are a pilot there are many things you have to do to become an official pilot. You have to have 20/20 vision; if you don't you have to wear contacts or glasses that make you have 20/20 vision. To get your pilot's license, you have to go through pilot school. Firstly, you have to apply to get in to the academy. Once you get in, you go through 3 months of training and schooling. After, you have to pass a test to get a pilot's permit. After a year of having your permit you take a test to become a fully licensed pilot, after 100 hours of flying. According to Phoenix East Aviation, a first year pilot earns $50,000 per year. While a 10 year captain earns, $204,636 per year. If you can't become a pilot, you can become an air traffic controller. They control where and when a plane can fly in the air or land on the ground.

As a young girl, Jerrie Mock never wanted to play with dolls or go to knitting classes. Mock wanted to do woodshop and play outside with the boys and play tag. Mock was always defining women's roles in Ohio, where she grew up. Said by Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, when she went to high school, Mock acted more like a boy than a girl. She never cared how she looked, only to have fun and not be inside with the other girls. When Mock was four, she went on a plane ride with her family, which created her ambition to become a pilot. The first major accomplishment she made was being the first woman to fly around the world solo and the fastest. Despite this, she never became super famous as Amelia Earhart. Mock is still amazing even though she didn't get the recognition she deserved.

Jennie Mock

Jerrie Mock was never rich and famous, but she was a great role model for thousands of young women around the world. With her courage and brilliance she brought girls to follow their dreams and never gave up. Mock thought she never became a pilot because she was a mom and didn't have a lot of money to follow her dreams. She never gave up. Mock raised money to follow her dreams and to buy a plane. She taught people everywhere with her actions and her accomplishments to follow your dreams and to never give up in what you believe in.

In high school I want to earn my pilot's license to be ahead of the game. I will join the aviation club and try to earn a mentorship with a pilot. To earn my pilot's license, I want to try to get an internship at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California. I also want to join the aviation club in San Clemente to get hours flying. Once I graduate high school, I want to get into Perdue University, which has one of the best aviation academies in the country. I will major in professional aviation and minor in aviation mechanics. I will always try to become a role model, just like Jerrie Mock, for everyone around the world to try to pursue way people to follow their dreams and never give up. I want to devote my life to aviation because I want to be part of the technology growth of our civilization and I feel that is where it will be at.