Another update from Lisa, GWW Private Pilot Scholarship Winner!

This is the third journal entry provided to us by Lisa Kienholz, who was selected for a  Private Pilot Scholarship from Girls With Wings. The Girls With Wings 2014 Scholarship Program includes the Private Pilot Scholarship, to help defray the cost of flight training lessons in pursuit of a private pilot certificate. This scholarship targets those individuals who have soloed but have not completed the Private Pilot Course.  The Private Pilot Scholarship is in the amount of $1000.00, funded by the generous donations from supporters of Girls With Wings, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Lisa's application essay is published here and her first essay here. The second is here.

Girls with Wings 2014 Scholarship Winner – Final Journal Entry – Lisa Kienholz 

I am so pleased to announce that I passed my checkride on July 13th! It is super exciting to now be able to say that I’m a Private Pilot, no longer a Student Pilot. Thanks to the help and encouragement of Girls with Wings, my flight instructors, the 99s and my pilot friends I did it! I am so grateful for the assistance that I have received from others over these past 10 months. The Girls with Wings scholarship went a long way in helping me reach my goal. 

Now I can concentrate on learning the fine art of the taildragger in my own Luscombe. I so look forward to discovering all the little airports in the area and then beyond. I’ll start with Southern California, then head for Northern California before aiming for the rest of the West Coast and South West. I can’t wait to be able to take family, friends and others interested in flight up for a flight in my beautiful little airplane. 

The examiner said that I did so well explaining the systems and such that I should be an instructor. So who knows, maybe after I get my tailwheel endorsement I’ll continue my education by studying to be a ground instructor. I would enjoy sharing my knowledge and using it to help others pursue their dreams of flight. Studying to be a ground instructor would certainly strengthen my understanding of all aspects of flight. Provided that I can afford to do so, I want to continue my flight education. I believe the more I learn, and the more I fly, the better pilot I will be. As I mentioned in my last entry, I have learned so much on this journey to obtaining my PPL. So much that goes well beyond learning to fly. I have learned a lot about myself and about how I learn. I have learned how to graciously except assistance from others. I have truly learned the value of great community. I learned perseverance. And on top of it all, I learned to fly. Something that very few people, and even fewer woman, have the opportunity to do. I look forward to being a role model for others, sharing the joy of flight, encouraging others to reach for their dreams and finding an appropriate way to spread the message of Girls with Wings.