By Carol L. MacCabe, EAA Lifetime 365032, Young Eagles Field Representative
Congratulations to Ed Jeziorny, EAA 31825, of Omro, Wisconsin! On August 19, 2023, Ed flew his 1,000th Young Eagle at Chicago Executive Airport in Wheeling, Illinois. With this accomplishment, Ed became the 51st Young Eagles pilot to achieve this goal. Ten-year-old Parker Gouss of Wilmette, Illinois, was the lucky 1,000th Young Eagle to have his first flight in Ed’s Piper PA-28.
Growing up in rural Wisconsin, Ed enjoyed watching Sky King and Twelve O’Clock High and riding his bike to watch airplanes take off and land at a grass airstrip not too far from his home. At one point in his life, he reached a low. So, he decided to do something that made him feel better about himself and rebuild his self-confidence. “Learning to fly boosted my confidence and attitude,” he said.
Ed is no stranger to the Young Eagles program; he was part of the strategical sessions which formed the program and began flying Young Eagles in 1992, the first year of the program. Ed said that he flies Young Eagles because he wants to share his passion and experiences with others.
When asked how he felt about reaching such a milestone, Ed quickly responded, “It became a bucket list item. Back in 2012, I was involved in a very serious accident. So, I had to stop flying for a while. Giving these flights is the highlight of my flying avocation. I so enjoy the look on their faces and expressions during and after the flights.”
After all these years of flying Young Eagles, does Ed have a favorite memory of flight?
“All my Young Eagles flights are memorable. And a day does not go by that one of those flights [doesn’t] pop up in my memory. From the efforts of the Young Eagles program, I have seen airline pilots, military pilots, officers in the military, controllers, maintenance personnel, airport management, medical personnel all come from taking one of the Young Eagles flights,” replied Ed. “The thrill comes when someone comes up to you and hands you their combat wings because you gave them a flight and encouraged them to get involved and become active in aviation.”
When young Parker was asked what he thought about his first flight, he grinned and replied, “It was the best thing in my whole life!”
Ed echoed that thought by saying, “I could not fathom my life without aviation.”