The Winner Is...

By ANN Special Contributor Rose M. Dorcey

Marjorie "Maggie" Flood, from Waukesha (WI), a student in the Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) program at Milwaukee Area Technical College is the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame's 2003 recipient of the Carl Guell Memorial Scholarship. The organization annually awards a $1000 scholarship to a student enrolled in an aviation program at one of Wisconsin's technical colleges.

The 43-year-old mother of two enrolled in the program after experiencing the loss of her husband in 2002. At that point, Maggie said, "I needed to start my life over again. I began to think of careers I would enjoy and decided on a mechanical line of work. A friend suggested A&P School, and after some research I decided that of all the different mechanical lines of work, being an A&P offered the most diverse opportunities for me."

Indeed, Flood had a lifelong interest in things mechanical; her parents said that her favorite thing to do once she could walk was to sneak into her dad's machine shed to play with his tools.  
 
Flood's first year of A&P School has had its challenges and rewards. The sole woman in her class, she has found only encouragement and support from her classmates. The challenges have been on a personal level, losing her husband in 2002, and her father in January 2003. Her sons, Ben, 13 and Jack, 15, are adjusting to mom's busy new schedule but continue to encourage their mom in her goals.

"I continue to hear how proud my sons are of me," she said.

Amid personal hardship, Flood holds a 3.76 GPA and is respected by her fellow students and instructors alike. Instructor Ken Mischka said of Flood, "Her dedication and desire to succeed is of the highest caliber. When assigned tasks which require diligence and perseverance, she always rises to the occasion and exceeds our goals." Instructor Jon Pribyl said, "Her quality of work and dependability sets a standard that can be used to measure others by. Maggie would be a great asset to any aviation company she decides to work for." 

Rose Dorsie is an IFR pilot, uphill motorcycle racer and, in her spare time, a board member of the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame. She's an author and edits the organization's newsletter.

FMI: www.aviationhalloffamewisconsin.com/