AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2022 - 47

EVENTS /
'If she can do it, I can too'
Festival celebrates Latinas in aviation
BY LILLIAN GEIL
THE SECOND ANNUAL Latinas in Aviation
Global Festival was forced inside because
of rain, but attendees were in good spirits
with opportunities to speak directly
to aviation industry professionals and listen
to their unique experiences as Latinas
in aviation.
The event coincided with the launch
of Latinas in Aviation, Maryland edition.
The second volume of the book focuses
on Latina voices from Washington, D.C.,
Maryland, and Virginia. Luz Beattie,
AOPA's director of flight operations,
was a contributing author along with
air traffic controllers, pilots, engineers,
mechanics, and more who told " stories
of passion, power, and breaking into the
aviation industry. "
Both the original Latinas in Aviation
and Latinas in Aviation, Maryland edition
are available for purchase on Amazon,
with 100 percent of the original book
proceeds going toward the #PILOTINA
Scholarship, which awards young Latinas
who are interested in pursuing a career in
the aviation or aerospace industries.
Contributors from both Latinas in
Aviation books were in attendance on
October 1, along with the author who
compiled the books, Jacqueline Ruiz.
Ruiz is a sport pilot, author of 29
books, and founder of Fig Factor Media.
She's passionate about expanding
opportunities for Latinas in the aviation
industry.
" My mission, my purpose in life is to
elevate women, " Ruiz said, before introducing
the contributing authors of the two
books, mentioning that this event was to
" create a space in time, a micro moment in
our history, to take a pause and celebrate
our stories. "
The event was a combination of
book signing opportunities, contributor
author panel discussions, museum
exploration, and mentorship circles.
Sponsors and vendors also attended,
including the AOPA You Can Fly team,
Women in Aviation International, and
The Ninety-Nines.
In the beautiful College Park Aviation
Museum at College Park Airport in
Maryland, the oldest continually operating
airport in the United States, visitors
were able to view historic aircraft and
explore exhibits. The most recent exhibit
was the corner dedicated to memorabilia
and stories from Latinas in Aviation.
Kevin Cabrera, executive director
of College Park Aviation Museum,
expressed his passion for continuing to
tell stories at the museum of underrepresented
communities in the aviation and
aerospace industry. " The museum
is going to continue to do our inclusive
interpretation, we're going to
be highlighting stories of women,
of our Black aviators, our Latinas,
and we're going to do more community
programs, " he said. Cabrera
also emphasized that connecting
youth to opportunities is an important
project of the museum.
" For me growing up, I did not
Jacqueline Ruiz speaks to fellow aviators at the Latinas in Aviation Global Festival held at College Park Airport
in Maryland.
see anyone that looked like me in
any kind of career that I would've
been interested in, " said Karen
Perez, an aerospace engineer
and a contributing author of the
Maryland edition of Latinas in
Aviation. " So, I am very honored
to have been part of this project
so that hopefully somebody that
looks like me, or has hair like me,
can say 'If she can do it, I can do it
too.' " lillian.geil@aopa.org
AOPA PILOT / December 2022
47
PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2022

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