John and Carol Sims Aviation Scholarship

In 1977, a wide-eyed 5-year-old accompanied his mother on his first commercial airline flight. After visiting the flight deck, experiencing the roar of the takeoff and the marveling at the earthly view from above, the dream began, and I never looked back. However, a dream is just a dream unless it becomes a reality. That reality was made possible due to the unceasing love and support from my parents, John and Carol Sims.

From summer afternoons watching airplanes at O’Hare decades ago to the financial assistance in attending Southern Illinois University in the Aviation Flight and Management program, John and Carol were always there, always supporting, always encouraging.

I attended Southern Illinois University from 1990-1994, interned at United Airlines in 1993, hired by United Airlines in 1995 and am currently a 737 Captain based out of Chicago-O’Hare.

Now it is time to pay it forward, to provide assistance to those aspiring pilots who are following their dreams.
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• Scholarship for a full-time student majoring in Aviation Flight or Aviation Management with a minimum GPA of 2.5.
• Applicants must have attained their private pilot license and must be actively involved in at least one aviation registered student organization (RSO).
• Applicants must submit a one-page statement responding to the following prompt: Describe the day, moment, or event when you realized you wanted to pursue a career flying airplanes.