A chance encounter at her local library with an aviation article in American Girl magazine first sparked Jodie Gawthrop’s interest in flying as a teen. While taking flight lessons as a Civil Air Patrol cadet, she quickly became more curious as to the inner-workings of the airplane’s systems, especially every time a trainer aircraft had a maintenance issue. Fouled spark plugs and mushy brakes left her constantly asking “why” and “how,” growing her hunger for knowledge. 

After becoming a private pilot, Jodie altered her flight path and enrolled in aviation maintenance classes despite having never picked up a wrench in her life. She became enamored with the problem solving aspects and detail-oriented nature of aviation maintenance, earned her Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) certificates, and went right to work in general aviation, later earning her Inspection Authorization (IA). With years of field experience ranging from warbirds to business jets, Jodie has learned so much along the way and continued to foster her passion for flying, taking to the skies recreationally whenever she could between shifts at the maintenance shop. Aviation’s community aspect is why Jodie loves this industry, and she is reminded of it every day, remaining active in her local EAA and WAI chapters, and dedicated to helping others find their future in aviation too. In 2024, she jumped in and continued flying for the rest of her ratings, with the intention of someday flying the types of Citations she is currently working on. She is incredibly grateful for this scholarship, which is granting her the opportunity to take the next step in her flight training journey and pursue the commercial multi-engine add-on.