"The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change or control your life. And the procedure, the process is it's own reward."-Amelia Earhart.

Just a Girl From Kansas

One of the most inspiring women in history started out as just some girl from Kansas. Born in an era when girls were expected to be "girls" and it was frowned upon if they did anything considered to be "unfeminine", Amelia Earhart not only touched the artificial glass ceiling, she smashed through it-breaking stupid stereotypes pursuing her dreams of flight.She was not inhibited by the unspoken "rules" that women could not like sports, they could not be mechanics, or anything other than arm ornaments for their men. She was always a stand out character from early childhood, keeping a scrapbook of accomplished women who were in predominantly male dominated roles like film, law, advertising, and more.

In 1918, Amelia volunteered at a Canadian military hospital as a nurse's aide  for the Red Cross, and it was there she attended her first flying exhibition.In 1919 she took an auto repair class in Massachusetts, and in 1920 she took a flight in California for the first time and it was then she knew she was meant to fly. One year later she was taking flying lessons and purchased her own airplane. To pay for her lessons, she worked for a Telephone company clerk and photographer. Interestingly, her first flight instructor was also a female pilot named Anita Snook. In her career as a pilot, she became the first female vice president of the National Aeronautics Association and pushed for more legislation to help other female pilots. She formed a group called the "Ninety Nines" just for women pilots as well. Earhart was Assistant to the General Traffic Manager for TWA to attract female passengers, she wrote three books, "20 Hours and 40 Minutes, The Fun of It, and Last Flight" and eventually became a consultant at Purdue University regarding aeronautical jobs for women. She never stopped improving, she never stopped moving forward and broke numerous records even in the face of those who thought a woman could do none of those things. She faced the world with a can do attitude and she wanted others to know they could do the same. Amelia Earhart did more in her 40 years of life than most do in their lifetime.

Her organization, "The Ninety-Nines" still exists and thrives today long after she disappeared seventy seven years ago this June. For more information on becoming a pilot or joining the Ninety Nines see the links below: 

https://www.ninety-nines.org/

http://www.aopa.org/

http://www.eaa.org/