Two weeks into my internship and I have learned so much about what I will be doing in my career one day. Being able to apply the methods I’ve learned in class to real-world applications is like a sigh of relief. I have paid A LOT for my education, and it is finally paying me back. It’s comforting to know my education will allow me to not only support myself, but to support the things I have wanted to check off my bucketlist.

This week was only three days long! It started off with Memorial Day. I celebrated it by going to this area called Cabrillo National Monument with my roommate Laura, her friend, and her brother Robert. We took a bus down past my workplace and down to a monument surrounded by the gravestones of fallen soldiers. The area surrounding the monument is called Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery and had over 100,000 graves lined along the rolling hills that protrude San Diego bay and the Pacific. They had a service celebrating the lives of those who died in service. I was particularly comforted when the address was given by someone close to home. Major General Steven Busby was introduced as an alumni of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. I was very proud to share the same alma mater with  the distinguished guest speaker who stood before this crowd of thousands of people. Embry-Riddle students are going places!

After the service, we all walked amongst the gravestones. The three people I had joined that day had either served or were still enlisted. I used the holiday to ask them about the many great experiences they had in the military, a lot of it applying to what I do my research in. We went out to a great restaurant near the beach and talked about plans for the three day weekend coming up. It was a relaxing day to start my three-day work week.

Tuesday morning I was in charge of creating a questionnaire to send out to employees at SPAWAR. The employees will be using a new online system and I was tasked with asking them what functions are most important in their line of work. I was also using that same system to test with people who are visually impaired. There are people employed by SPAWAR who are completely/partially blind, and this company strives to comply with ADA standards. Everyone here is seen as equal and should be allowed the same employment opportunities. My boss is tasked with ensuring they are being treated equally. I was very proud to work on a project that is intended to help those with a disability.

Aside from work tasks, I am also working on a project with a team at Embry-Riddle. We are working on changing the voting system so as to make it less of a “burden” and more of an enjoyable experience. For this system, it is pertinent that everyone eligible to vote can do it and can do it easily. In this project, I was able to use what I learned at work with the project I’m doing for school. Ensuring the visually impaired are considered in the design of our new voting system will keep us a step above the other competitors in this project.

Although it was a short week, it was certainly a busy one. Because my employer abides by the rotating work week, every other Friday is taken off. So, on my “empty” work day I woke up to the smell of bacon and pancakes. That’s right my roommates are awesome. Sharelle, who’s room is just above mine had made breakfast for Laura and I. I stumbled upstairs in a sleepy stupor to find pancakes covered in bananas, strawberries, and drenched in syrup. Sharelle had made me a plate of pancakes, eggs, and bacon. I don’t think I will ever wake up happier in my life. I never want to move back, I never want another roommate, I just want to stay here forever!

As if that weren’t enough free food for the day, Laura’s brother Robert invited us over for a barbecue that night. So I made a bowl of macaroni salad and was welcomed there with ribs and delicious sides. I have never been this spoiled in my life. I slept like a fat baby that night. Getting up on Saturday morning was an overwhelming struggle. But I woke up so that I could join a co-worker in an area called Balboa Park. There was an introductory class on archery that I just had to join. And I didn’t do half bad. After a half hour of practice, there was a competition to get the arrow closer and closer to the target. You had to keep all of your arrows within a certain ring around the target, and I made it to the 7^th round! I dropped out when we had to make it in the third surrounding ring. To celebrate we all got balloons, pinned them to the target and had to pop them. I made it on the first try! It looks like I’m going to the hunger games. Afterwards, we walked around the park area. There were so many different museums, gardens, art galleries, restaurants, and performance halls. It was a great side of San Diego I hope to explore in the future.

Keep coming back!

All of the work I’ve done up to now has finally payed off. This weekend, the Special Olympic Summer Games is going on in Wichita, Kansas at Cessna Stadium. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to attend the opening ceremonies, but I’m still getting a lot of enjoyment from all the photos taken prior to. All this weekend, residents of the five different regions have carried their torches to the next region, ultimately arriving at Wichita for the Summer Games to commence.

For me, the highlight of all this is seeing the athlete profiles I wrote on the Hall of Fame inductees inside the actual program that EVERYONE received! Of course I had to get a copy of it for myself to keep, but that is freakin’ awesome!!!!

I just wish I would’ve gotten to see the opening ceremonies for myself, but I’m sure it was a great time.

You can also check out what’s going on via Facebook: @Special Olympics Kansas!

Local residents of Lansing, KS running the torch throughout the city.

CEO Chris Hahn (center) with an SO athlete and donor.

KC Torch Run. Olathe, KS was the first city this year to start the torch run.

Well hello fair readers, it’s been a while since I’ve updated you!

My Spring semester was one of the most challenging so far in my time here at Riddle, Primarily because of Physics II, but I passed, and we’re on to better things. I’m staying in Daytona beach this summer to finish CFI and CFII, I’m almost done with CFI and then I can apply to work here at Riddle as a Flight Instructor! that’s something I’ve been looking forward to since I got here in Fall of 2011 as just a student pilot with 17 hours. I’ve learned so much since then, and grown in my knowledge and experience.

I’m also here to start on my SENIOR YEAR. How wild is that? I could have sworn I was moving into Doolittle hall just a few weeks ago as a freshman

I’ll be taking AS408- Aviation Safety, and AS402-Airline Operations. They are both senior level courses teaching the higher level correlation of knowledge. In Safety we report on Aircraft accidents, our presentations analyze the accidents from a Crew-Resource-Management standpoint. It’s a sobering project, as we see the mistakes that led to a breakdown in control and the subsequent crash.

“A Smart man learns from his mistakes, but a wise man learns from the mistakes of others”

In Airline Ops we study the structure of  part 121 air carriers and management techniques. We answer questions like, How does an airline run? How does it make money? what makes an airline successful? why do airlines fail? It’s also a really fun class. I feel like these courses are pulling together all that I’ve learned over the past few years and testing it.

I got the chance to go flying in the Piper J3 Cub again the other day with my friend Michael Breshears. He’s the same guy that took me flying in my last blog post from Early April. We left from Deland Airport (KDED) and flew to our home airport at the Spruce Creek Fly-in (7FL6). I moved into the flyin at the beginning of May, and it’s like a dream come true. The Spruce Creek Fly-In is a community of homes built around a 4,000 x 150 foot runway. There’s also an 18-hole Championship Golf course too! too bad I’m not really a golf fan.

While flying we practiced some fun turns and maneuvers, as someday I’m gonna get my tail wheel endorsement. He let me take the controls and soar around. And boy, It’s a real airplane!  My days of being lazy with the Rudder in a 172 are over. It’s essential in a more basic plane like the Cub. We floated above swamps in the golden sunlight of a passing Florida Summer day. The air was cool, and the wings willing to take us wherever we wanted.  We then flew back to Deland as it was getting dark. The J3 can’t fly at night, as it has no lights and would violate 14 CFR 91.209!

I’ll also be working as the Editor-In-Chief of The Avion Newspaper this summer. I was the only one who was qualified and wanted to stick around for the summer. It allows me to bring a little bit more of my personal creativity (and lots of airplanes) into the Newspaper. I really enjoy writing, and I hope to include it in a career someday. The Avion has been instumental to my growth while here at ERAU, it’s given me real-world experience in dealing with organizations outside of school such as the Kennedy Space Center, United Launch Alliance, and the Daytona Beach Rotary Club. I’ve learned a lot of practical skills too such as professional photography, editing copy, and working with Adobe InDesign. More than that, I just love it! work hard to find multiple passions while here at ERAU, it’s not just about getting a degree, it’s about forming yourself into a well-rounded individual. A professional!

Does anyone know of any jobs from traveling Pilot journalists? ha, I guess I’ll dream on for now.

The Flight line is just about to get a replenished fleet, so I’ve spent a lot of time communicating with the head of the Flight Department about the arrival dates and information on the aircraft. I visited the hangar to get some photos of the new Piper Arrows! we’re getting 5 new Piper Arrows with Garmin G500 glass cockpits. We’re also getting 21 new Cessna 172 NavIIs with Garmin G1000’s. After the new planes arrive, the fleet will be all glass for the very first time.

If you’re coming to Embry-Riddle this fall, or soon, you have an amazing array of great experiences lined up for you. All you have to do is go after them! If you have any questions, feel free to email me at wilkinsz@my.erau.edu and i’ll help you out. This is truly the best university in the World!