WEBVTT 00:00:00.960 --> 00:00:03.259 On today's episode of attention ALVA we'll be 00:00:03.259 --> 00:00:06.299 speaking with a great leader and part of US military 00:00:06.299 --> 00:00:08.359 history stay tuned You won't want to miss this 00:00:08.359 --> 00:00:23.460 episode Hello everyone and thanks for tuning 00:00:23.460 --> 00:00:25.480 into attention ALVA the podcast for the American 00:00:25.480 --> 00:00:28.120 Latino Veterans Association We're super excited 00:00:28.120 --> 00:00:30.570 to have you join us today I'm your host Danny 00:00:30.570 --> 00:00:32.990 Vargas chairman and CEO of Alva in addition to 00:00:32.990 --> 00:00:34.929 these podcasts where you get to hear from inspiring 00:00:34.929 --> 00:00:37.789 guests We also have a series of webinars will 00:00:37.789 --> 00:00:39.850 get to learn really important information on 00:00:39.850 --> 00:00:42.670 significant topics and keep an eye out for our 00:00:42.670 --> 00:00:45.049 future events by visiting our website Alva vets 00:00:45.049 --> 00:00:49.310 org and Follow us on social media on at Alva 00:00:49.310 --> 00:00:52.090 vets We want to thank our sponsors for these 00:00:52.090 --> 00:00:55.350 podcasts and webinars JP Morgan Chase PMI Wells 00:00:55.350 --> 00:00:59.229 Fargo AT &T and T -Mobile The one thing I asked 00:00:59.229 --> 00:01:02.210 is please like share comment and subscribe. It 00:01:02.210 --> 00:01:04.909 really helps with the algorithm So if you can 00:01:04.909 --> 00:01:06.790 hit that subscribe button, we really would appreciate 00:01:06.790 --> 00:01:10.049 it Now it's my pleasure to introduce our special 00:01:10.049 --> 00:01:12.849 guest for today Olga custodio Olga. Welcome 00:01:12.849 --> 00:01:16.010 Thank you for having me. Good to see you. My 00:01:16.010 --> 00:01:17.969 pleasure I'm gonna read you by a real quick so 00:01:17.969 --> 00:01:20.250 people know who it is that we're speaking with 00:01:20.599 --> 00:01:23.359 Olga Custodio is a Latina military and commercial 00:01:23.359 --> 00:01:26.239 airline aviation pioneer with over 40 years in 00:01:26.239 --> 00:01:28.739 aviation. As the first Latina to complete US 00:01:28.739 --> 00:01:31.219 Air Force undergraduate pilot training, she served 00:01:31.219 --> 00:01:34.319 for 24 years and retired as a lieutenant colonel. 00:01:34.519 --> 00:01:36.859 Olga was also the first American Airlines Latina 00:01:36.859 --> 00:01:39.359 commercial airline pilot and retired as a captain 00:01:39.359 --> 00:01:42.900 with a 20 -year career. Now a STEM advocate, 00:01:43.099 --> 00:01:45.819 speaker, author, and community leader, she advocates 00:01:45.819 --> 00:01:48.439 for inspiring and empowering students, especially 00:01:48.439 --> 00:01:51.549 underserved communities. to pursue STEM careers 00:01:51.549 --> 00:01:54.549 in aviation and aerospace. Olga continues to 00:01:54.549 --> 00:01:57.090 fly in general aviation. She lives in San Antonio, 00:01:57.090 --> 00:02:00.250 Texas, military city, with her husband Edwin 00:02:00.250 --> 00:02:05.109 of 51 years and has two adult children, Marcia 00:02:05.109 --> 00:02:08.509 and Edwin, and one grandson Jedi. Congratulations. 00:02:09.129 --> 00:02:12.490 Thank you. Thank you so much. I would also add 00:02:12.490 --> 00:02:14.849 that Olga is a founding member of the Alva Advisory 00:02:14.849 --> 00:02:17.530 Council. Thank you, Olga, for serving. Absolutely. 00:02:17.789 --> 00:02:20.189 My honor. Appreciate it. And thank you for joining 00:02:20.189 --> 00:02:23.889 us today. There is one other thing that we'll 00:02:23.889 --> 00:02:26.770 get into later, but she's also a published author 00:02:26.770 --> 00:02:29.789 that has a book coming out soon. So when it comes 00:02:29.789 --> 00:02:32.169 to that time, I would love to hear more about 00:02:32.169 --> 00:02:33.710 the book and the experience and where people 00:02:33.710 --> 00:02:36.789 can get it. But why don't we start, Olga, by 00:02:36.789 --> 00:02:38.810 taking a step back in time. And by the way, I 00:02:38.810 --> 00:02:42.150 can't believe the numbers that I just read. Because 00:02:42.150 --> 00:02:45.469 you look so young, my god. Well, thank you. What's 00:02:45.469 --> 00:02:50.030 your secret? It's DNA. You have great genes, 00:02:50.169 --> 00:02:55.610 yes. Your dad is 99, is that right? 99, and Borinqueneer, 00:02:55.750 --> 00:02:59.310 still around with us. Phenomenal. I'll get into 00:02:59.310 --> 00:03:02.949 that later about Borinqueneers. But I did want 00:03:02.949 --> 00:03:06.610 to start by talking about your personal journey 00:03:06.610 --> 00:03:10.009 growing up in Puerto Rico before you joined the 00:03:10.009 --> 00:03:11.610 military and your school and all that stuff. 00:03:11.870 --> 00:03:14.389 So let's take a trip back in time and get to 00:03:14.389 --> 00:03:17.360 learn more about your upbringing. Right. No, 00:03:17.500 --> 00:03:23.620 absolutely, absolutely. So I'll just get right 00:03:23.620 --> 00:03:27.479 to it, I guess. So I was born in Puerto Rico. 00:03:28.180 --> 00:03:31.199 My mom and dad, they're both from a small town 00:03:31.199 --> 00:03:36.939 up in the hills called Corozal. And that's where 00:03:36.939 --> 00:03:40.840 they met. And so my dad went off. He was in the 00:03:40.840 --> 00:03:44.960 latter part of World War II and in the Korean 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:49.870 War. got married, mom and dad, and then had me. 00:03:49.909 --> 00:03:52.909 I was born on the island. And about three months 00:03:52.909 --> 00:03:57.189 after I left, and mom and I followed dad, and 00:03:57.189 --> 00:03:59.610 we were with him the whole time until my brother 00:03:59.610 --> 00:04:02.469 was born. He was the addition to the family. 00:04:03.090 --> 00:04:06.449 But I wish I could have grown up in Puerto Rico, 00:04:06.629 --> 00:04:10.469 but I did not. Being an army brat, I grew up 00:04:10.469 --> 00:04:15.770 everywhere. in the U .S. as a small child. And 00:04:15.770 --> 00:04:18.949 around, I guess, four or five years old, we moved 00:04:18.949 --> 00:04:22.850 to Taiwan. From Taiwan, came back to the States 00:04:22.850 --> 00:04:26.350 for a year or so, and then went to Iran, and 00:04:26.350 --> 00:04:29.709 then we went to Paraguay. So I consider myself 00:04:29.709 --> 00:04:34.529 a world citizen, if you will, because I was able 00:04:34.529 --> 00:04:37.050 to experience all those different countries and 00:04:37.050 --> 00:04:40.629 the cultures and the people. It was very hard. 00:04:40.680 --> 00:04:48.800 just being an army brat, if you will. But looking 00:04:48.800 --> 00:04:52.920 back, it was an experience that kind of made 00:04:52.920 --> 00:04:56.279 me who I am today and my views and my perspectives 00:04:56.279 --> 00:05:01.620 of so many things and the world itself. So yeah, 00:05:01.620 --> 00:05:06.500 I think that was very influential for me. And 00:05:06.500 --> 00:05:09.529 I'm grateful. even though at the time it was, 00:05:09.529 --> 00:05:11.850 like I said, it was very hard, you know, being 00:05:11.850 --> 00:05:20.069 an Army child and moving. But that taught me 00:05:20.069 --> 00:05:23.110 a lot of stuff, you know, on how to adapt, how 00:05:23.110 --> 00:05:25.850 to make the best of the situation at the moment 00:05:25.850 --> 00:05:31.310 and seeing different cultures and people and 00:05:31.310 --> 00:05:34.810 understanding what humanity is all about, I guess. 00:05:35.420 --> 00:05:37.480 Of those countries, what was your favorite country? 00:05:38.680 --> 00:05:42.879 I think Paraguay, only because I was older there. 00:05:43.879 --> 00:05:46.899 Spanish was my first language, and we spoke it 00:05:46.899 --> 00:05:50.279 at home all the time. But I think the fact that 00:05:50.279 --> 00:05:52.800 in Paraguay I was able to learn how to read and 00:05:52.800 --> 00:05:57.060 write it, which was great, because when dad retired 00:05:57.060 --> 00:05:59.560 and we moved back to Puerto Rico right after 00:05:59.560 --> 00:06:07.769 Paraguay, I went to school. I had never experienced 00:06:07.769 --> 00:06:11.649 a different language school. Everything was Department 00:06:11.649 --> 00:06:16.269 of Defense schools in English, which were fantastic. 00:06:17.769 --> 00:06:23.750 I have to say that having the textbooks in English 00:06:23.750 --> 00:06:27.110 in Puerto Rico, but having the class taught in 00:06:27.110 --> 00:06:30.990 Spanish really developed that double sense of 00:06:31.050 --> 00:06:33.949 being able to learn how to think in Spanish and 00:06:33.949 --> 00:06:35.990 speak it and how to think in English and speak 00:06:35.990 --> 00:06:39.269 it at the same time. So I wasn't, at first I 00:06:39.269 --> 00:06:41.930 was translating, you know, how that was, you're 00:06:41.930 --> 00:06:44.250 translating, okay, how's this word and that word. 00:06:44.670 --> 00:06:49.209 So, but I think Badawi was great because it was 00:06:49.209 --> 00:06:53.589 South America, Hispanic culture, and kind of 00:06:53.589 --> 00:06:58.550 similar to who we are and were at the time. And 00:06:58.550 --> 00:07:02.829 amazing stakes. Oh yeah, no, the food was great. 00:07:03.230 --> 00:07:07.149 I mean, we were so used to, this is a side note, 00:07:07.610 --> 00:07:13.149 to having these awesome cuts of meat, carnivorous 00:07:13.149 --> 00:07:17.230 person as myself, and potatoes and fresh vegetables 00:07:17.230 --> 00:07:19.430 and all. We get to Puerto Rico and there's a 00:07:19.430 --> 00:07:24.649 lot of rice and beans and a little chuleta. And 00:07:24.649 --> 00:07:29.329 I'm like, where's the meat? So it was a change. 00:07:29.329 --> 00:07:31.889 It was a change, but it was fine. And I was happy 00:07:31.889 --> 00:07:35.509 to go to Puerto Rico and learn about my culture. 00:07:35.670 --> 00:07:41.269 So that was a great opportunity for me. So where'd 00:07:41.269 --> 00:07:44.970 you end up going to school? In Puerto Rico. So 00:07:44.970 --> 00:07:47.529 university, yeah. Oh, I went to the University 00:07:47.529 --> 00:07:53.029 of Puerto Rico. So when we got there, I had one 00:07:53.029 --> 00:07:55.939 more year of high school. and I graduated high 00:07:55.939 --> 00:07:58.759 school at 16 because of the Department of Defense 00:07:58.759 --> 00:08:01.800 schools. I was able to have all my credits that 00:08:01.800 --> 00:08:04.800 I needed to graduate. And so I went ahead and 00:08:04.800 --> 00:08:10.360 went to college at that young age. So yeah, it 00:08:10.360 --> 00:08:14.139 was interesting. And I still remember that the 00:08:14.139 --> 00:08:19.519 college credit was $5. Wow. Not that nowadays. 00:08:19.800 --> 00:08:22.899 No, no, that was just a minute ago, right? You 00:08:22.899 --> 00:08:28.699 know, so a long time ago. So then after college 00:08:28.699 --> 00:08:33.460 came the Air Force. So no. So when I went to 00:08:33.460 --> 00:08:37.419 college, I had a plan. You know, I always tell 00:08:37.419 --> 00:08:40.100 my kids when they would come up to me and say, 00:08:40.159 --> 00:08:42.620 hey, I want to do this. I so so tell me your 00:08:42.620 --> 00:08:44.279 plan. What's your plan? How are you going to 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:49.389 execute this? Right. And. So I had a plan. I 00:08:49.389 --> 00:08:52.289 was going to get a degree in math, and then I 00:08:52.289 --> 00:08:55.649 was going to go to the ROTC, join the Air Force 00:08:55.649 --> 00:08:59.629 ROTC, and get my commission, and then serve my 00:08:59.629 --> 00:09:04.190 country in the Air Force. That was the big thing 00:09:04.190 --> 00:09:09.409 for me. But unbeknownst to me, I was rejected 00:09:09.409 --> 00:09:12.509 because, and the commander never told me this, 00:09:12.889 --> 00:09:17.789 women weren't allowed in the program. So that 00:09:17.789 --> 00:09:23.690 was my first denial, rejection. And I say that 00:09:23.690 --> 00:09:28.330 I was, I experienced discrimination without even 00:09:28.330 --> 00:09:31.350 knowing it, you know? It was like, well, he's 00:09:31.350 --> 00:09:35.470 an authority figure, right? The ROTC commander 00:09:35.470 --> 00:09:41.690 said, I'm sorry, but you don't qualify and you 00:09:41.690 --> 00:09:46.460 press on. So plan A becomes plan B. And I had 00:09:46.460 --> 00:09:49.320 to kind of look for what I was going to do. So 00:09:49.320 --> 00:09:55.279 I got into business, but I still did a minor 00:09:55.279 --> 00:09:58.559 in math. And then from there, I started working 00:09:58.559 --> 00:10:03.179 with, in my last year of college, working with 00:10:03.179 --> 00:10:05.679 the Puerto Rico International Airlines. That 00:10:05.679 --> 00:10:09.240 was the largest commuter airline in Puerto Rico 00:10:09.240 --> 00:10:14.360 and in the world at that moment. and I was in 00:10:14.360 --> 00:10:16.620 the accounting office. I worked for the controller 00:10:16.620 --> 00:10:21.379 there. And that's where I met my husband. Wow. 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:24.580 Nice guy, by the way, madam. He's a great guy. 00:10:25.179 --> 00:10:28.480 Thank you. Thank you. I like him too. You're 00:10:28.480 --> 00:10:31.279 like, I think I'll keep him. Yeah, he's a keeper. 00:10:31.519 --> 00:10:40.360 He's a keeper. But the interesting part is that 00:10:40.360 --> 00:10:46.009 I had, I was in my fifth year of university because 00:10:46.009 --> 00:10:52.149 they had to close the college down because the 00:10:52.149 --> 00:10:58.529 students just had marches and all kinds of things 00:10:58.529 --> 00:11:00.529 that were going on and they had to close the 00:11:00.529 --> 00:11:04.110 university down for a semester. So it just pushed 00:11:04.110 --> 00:11:08.850 me back. And I took my last night classes at 00:11:08.850 --> 00:11:13.519 night and I was able to work full time. Fast 00:11:13.519 --> 00:11:16.600 forward, met my husband. Three months later, 00:11:16.659 --> 00:11:21.159 we're married, right? And I'm sure everybody 00:11:21.159 --> 00:11:23.500 on the side was taking bets. Let's see how long 00:11:23.500 --> 00:11:30.500 this lasts. But anyway, about two years in, we 00:11:30.500 --> 00:11:35.120 sat down, decided, hey, let's consider joining 00:11:35.120 --> 00:11:37.679 the military. My husband had three years of college 00:11:37.679 --> 00:11:40.700 and he was thinking maybe that could help him 00:11:40.700 --> 00:11:43.860 finish school. maybe a GI bill and that sort 00:11:43.860 --> 00:11:46.759 of thing, sure enough. So we went to a recruiter 00:11:46.759 --> 00:11:51.919 and I asked about both of us joining. Oh, they 00:11:51.919 --> 00:11:56.220 said, absolutely. We took the AFOQT, got the 00:11:56.220 --> 00:11:59.960 highest scores. And I knew that I was going to 00:11:59.960 --> 00:12:04.279 be able to apply for an officer training position 00:12:04.279 --> 00:12:08.059 because of my degree and the scores. But the 00:12:08.059 --> 00:12:12.480 recruiter said no. My second denial. So I said, 00:12:12.720 --> 00:12:16.360 fine. And he offered me to enlist, but that's 00:12:16.360 --> 00:12:20.740 not what the plan was or my goal. I go, no, I 00:12:20.740 --> 00:12:23.620 know I'm qualified for something more. I'm not 00:12:23.620 --> 00:12:26.419 going to accept something less. And then my father, 00:12:26.919 --> 00:12:30.600 while in the service, he tried as well to become 00:12:30.600 --> 00:12:33.539 a warrant officer. And he had shared a story 00:12:33.539 --> 00:12:36.899 with me that it was very hard once you're in, 00:12:36.899 --> 00:12:43.779 to kind of break rank. And step up. So I remember 00:12:43.779 --> 00:12:48.100 that. And I said, no, once I'm in that this officer 00:12:48.100 --> 00:12:50.000 training school is never going to happen. So 00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:54.379 I said no. But my husband joined. And I figured 00:12:54.379 --> 00:12:59.100 I'd be just like my mom, military spouse, serving 00:12:59.100 --> 00:13:03.000 as well and supporting him. And then off we went. 00:13:03.220 --> 00:13:06.740 So he joined the Air Force first. Can I ask, 00:13:06.740 --> 00:13:09.320 going back, why the Air Force? Your father was 00:13:09.320 --> 00:13:14.820 Army. Right. Well, when we went on the assignments 00:13:14.820 --> 00:13:18.340 and he was able to take us at every assignment 00:13:18.340 --> 00:13:24.500 that he had, I saw the difference. Unbeknownst 00:13:24.500 --> 00:13:29.179 to me, but I realized Army versus Air Force versus 00:13:29.179 --> 00:13:33.259 Marine, Navy, I could see the difference of of 00:13:33.259 --> 00:13:37.440 service and people and what they did and what 00:13:37.440 --> 00:13:40.500 the mission was and I figured that the Air Force 00:13:40.500 --> 00:13:44.279 would be a good fit for me. As an Air Force veteran, 00:13:44.379 --> 00:13:51.200 I can tell you it's true and my Army, Navy, Marine 00:13:51.200 --> 00:13:55.700 Corps friends are just jealous. Yeah, yeah, yeah. 00:13:56.059 --> 00:14:01.539 So yeah, they joke around like they We would 00:14:01.539 --> 00:14:03.460 get everything and then it would trickle down 00:14:03.460 --> 00:14:05.519 to the army and then it would trickle down to 00:14:05.519 --> 00:14:12.740 the Navy and then the Marines would get So I 00:14:12.740 --> 00:14:14.519 do want to get into your Air Force career But 00:14:14.519 --> 00:14:16.360 I promised we'd go to talk about the boating 00:14:16.360 --> 00:14:17.860 can ears and your father was a boating engineer 00:14:17.860 --> 00:14:21.120 I'll share with you and I think I may have mentioned 00:14:21.120 --> 00:14:23.879 this to you. We did a an awards event in New 00:14:23.879 --> 00:14:28.480 York City in December of 2024 in Central Park 00:14:28.480 --> 00:14:31.759 fantastic event, but One of the most moving moments 00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:35.899 was we had a 94 year old Bronze star recipient 00:14:35.899 --> 00:14:39.340 Korean War veteran Bonnie Kennear who we gave 00:14:39.340 --> 00:14:44.440 an award to at the event and He had been prepared 00:14:44.440 --> 00:14:46.980 to say a few words on receiving the award But 00:14:46.980 --> 00:14:50.700 when I read his his bio and and his award nomination, 00:14:50.700 --> 00:14:55.000 he got so emotional that he couldn't speak so 00:14:56.110 --> 00:14:57.929 He started tearing up. I had to take him in my 00:14:57.929 --> 00:15:01.090 arms. And it just led me to think that there 00:15:01.090 --> 00:15:04.690 were so many of these folks that didn't get the 00:15:04.690 --> 00:15:06.789 recognition that they deserved for the service 00:15:06.789 --> 00:15:10.250 and sacrifice that they made. And so many of 00:15:10.250 --> 00:15:13.769 them are passing away over time. So the least 00:15:13.769 --> 00:15:16.350 we can do is to honor and recognize their service. 00:15:17.580 --> 00:15:20.460 and make sure that everyone understands that 00:15:20.460 --> 00:15:23.279 that was a period of time where that segregated 00:15:23.279 --> 00:15:27.299 unit was discriminated against both in the military 00:15:27.299 --> 00:15:31.039 and in broader society. So thank you to you and 00:15:31.039 --> 00:15:34.779 your dad and your family service, because a sacrifice 00:15:34.779 --> 00:15:36.820 like that is not just an individual sacrifice, 00:15:36.899 --> 00:15:41.419 it's a family sacrifice. Yes, yes. And I think 00:15:41.419 --> 00:15:45.159 everything they did and I was able to see the 00:15:45.159 --> 00:15:48.399 documentary, which is Oh my God, you know, it 00:15:48.399 --> 00:15:52.740 just overwhelms you sometimes to find out everything 00:15:52.740 --> 00:15:56.759 that they went through. But I had the honor to 00:15:56.759 --> 00:15:59.500 go with my dad to DC when they actually gave 00:15:59.500 --> 00:16:02.480 out the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor. And 00:16:02.480 --> 00:16:06.840 to me, that was the best experience to experience 00:16:06.840 --> 00:16:11.029 it with my mom. my dad and my husband went as 00:16:11.029 --> 00:16:13.789 well as a family because he, you know, having 00:16:13.789 --> 00:16:17.309 my husband served as well. So we were all very 00:16:17.309 --> 00:16:22.669 proud of that moment, proud of the 65th and everyone 00:16:22.669 --> 00:16:25.289 that was able to go and the families that were 00:16:25.289 --> 00:16:28.850 there to support those veterans. But yes, you 00:16:28.850 --> 00:16:32.990 know, and dad had the opportunity to travel to 00:16:32.990 --> 00:16:36.779 Korea where they really appreciated you know, 00:16:36.860 --> 00:16:41.879 everything that they did for that country. And 00:16:41.879 --> 00:16:45.019 it brought my dad full circle. He kept saying 00:16:45.019 --> 00:16:48.340 when I was there, everything was just dirt. And 00:16:48.340 --> 00:16:51.200 when he went and he saw the metropolis that, 00:16:51.200 --> 00:16:57.440 that is there, and it made him feel that everything 00:16:57.440 --> 00:17:04.480 he did was not in vain, you know. Right. Exactly. 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:09.359 Wow. So, let's get back to you. Let's talk about 00:17:09.359 --> 00:17:11.960 your service in the Air Force, which is such 00:17:11.960 --> 00:17:15.440 an exemplary record and everything that you do 00:17:15.440 --> 00:17:18.920 as the first Latina. Let's talk about how you 00:17:18.920 --> 00:17:22.900 accomplished that. How did you cut through the 00:17:22.900 --> 00:17:24.660 barriers and the obstacles to make that happen? 00:17:25.680 --> 00:17:31.640 Well, I was in Panama on the canal zone with 00:17:31.640 --> 00:17:36.299 my husband. He had got an assignment there. It 00:17:36.299 --> 00:17:39.980 was just at that time, I worked for the Canal 00:17:39.980 --> 00:17:47.440 Zone government and the Panama Canal Company 00:17:47.440 --> 00:17:52.819 and in their equal opportunity office of all 00:17:52.819 --> 00:17:57.839 offices to talk about, right? And so I learned 00:17:57.839 --> 00:18:01.400 a whole bunch there and I started to figure out 00:18:01.400 --> 00:18:05.589 what I was gonna do as a career. always knew 00:18:05.589 --> 00:18:08.250 I would work outside the home. That was not an 00:18:08.250 --> 00:18:12.250 option for me. I was a mom at the time. We had 00:18:12.250 --> 00:18:17.309 a two -year -old when we moved to Panama. So 00:18:17.309 --> 00:18:21.450 I was working outside the home. And I wanted 00:18:21.450 --> 00:18:26.230 to see if I followed Edwin, where we would go. 00:18:26.269 --> 00:18:29.690 I would still have some type of continuity for 00:18:29.690 --> 00:18:32.289 career progression. And so I applied for the 00:18:32.289 --> 00:18:35.109 Department of Defense. got a civil service job. 00:18:35.430 --> 00:18:37.809 And I figured that that would be the best way 00:18:37.809 --> 00:18:42.089 for me, you know, to serve and to have a career 00:18:42.089 --> 00:18:46.690 so I could transfer to any other position wherever 00:18:46.690 --> 00:18:53.410 they assigned him. So one summer, about a year 00:18:53.410 --> 00:18:57.190 or so later, they had an open house. And here 00:18:57.190 --> 00:19:01.759 is a booth. a guy in a flight suit standing behind, 00:19:01.960 --> 00:19:04.460 had pamphlets and everything, and I'm trying 00:19:04.460 --> 00:19:06.940 to inquire what he was trying to sell, right? 00:19:07.460 --> 00:19:09.880 And sure enough, the Air Force was looking for 00:19:09.880 --> 00:19:15.059 female pilot candidates. Right time, right place, 00:19:15.579 --> 00:19:19.500 you know, me, I was like, that's it, that is 00:19:19.500 --> 00:19:23.559 what I'm going for. And so the best thing is 00:19:23.559 --> 00:19:26.559 I had already gotten a Department of Defense 00:19:26.559 --> 00:19:30.319 job. and I had access to all the regulations. 00:19:31.000 --> 00:19:34.099 And that is something I think that made a huge 00:19:34.099 --> 00:19:38.079 difference for me because now I wanted to make 00:19:38.079 --> 00:19:41.200 sure that I had all the information straight 00:19:41.200 --> 00:19:44.700 from the regulations, black and white, that nobody 00:19:44.700 --> 00:19:48.500 was gonna tell me otherwise that I couldn't, 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:52.279 I didn't qualify and what have you. So I went 00:19:52.279 --> 00:19:57.299 ahead and researched all that. found a staff 00:19:57.299 --> 00:20:00.039 sergeant whose additional duty was to recruit 00:20:00.039 --> 00:20:03.160 high school students. He had never recruited 00:20:03.160 --> 00:20:07.740 anyone for an officer slot. And so I told him, 00:20:07.779 --> 00:20:11.140 no worries, let me help you help me. And we're 00:20:11.140 --> 00:20:14.359 going to do this together. And that's exactly 00:20:14.359 --> 00:20:16.660 what happened. He ordered all the tests, everything 00:20:16.660 --> 00:20:20.079 I needed. I knew my minimum scores, what kind 00:20:20.079 --> 00:20:26.390 of medical exams I needed. ratings as far as, 00:20:26.390 --> 00:20:31.450 you know, physical that wouldn't qualify me to 00:20:31.450 --> 00:20:35.150 to apply for a pilot position. And by that time 00:20:35.150 --> 00:20:37.109 I was just determined, you know, if I'm going 00:20:37.109 --> 00:20:39.930 to serve, that's what I want to be. I want to 00:20:39.930 --> 00:20:42.470 be a pilot. You know, we had friends that were 00:20:42.470 --> 00:20:46.329 pilots, navigators, Edwin worked at base operations, 00:20:46.490 --> 00:20:48.869 airfield management. So we were around them all 00:20:48.869 --> 00:20:51.930 the time. And I and I had a good sense of what 00:20:51.930 --> 00:20:57.960 what that was about. Plus, my supervisor, where 00:20:57.960 --> 00:21:01.299 I worked for the Department of Defense, it was 00:21:01.299 --> 00:21:06.460 at the Howard Air Force Base, which is no longer, 00:21:06.680 --> 00:21:09.619 right? That's where I was stationed. Oh, really? 00:21:09.980 --> 00:21:12.500 Yeah, I was there for almost five years in the 00:21:12.500 --> 00:21:17.500 80s. In the 80s? Yep. Right. Well, see, we were 00:21:17.500 --> 00:21:25.930 there right before, like 78, 79? And I have to 00:21:25.930 --> 00:21:32.250 say, the best food ever. Fresh seafood, all of 00:21:32.250 --> 00:21:43.430 that. But anyway, I made sure that all the exams 00:21:43.430 --> 00:21:48.369 and tests that I took, I was able to get, you 00:21:48.369 --> 00:21:52.819 know, with the staff sergeant, everything together, 00:21:53.140 --> 00:21:56.740 build a good package to send up to headquarters 00:21:56.740 --> 00:22:03.619 personnel so it could meet the board. And working 00:22:03.619 --> 00:22:13.059 at the air terminal, the DO was able to write 00:22:13.059 --> 00:22:16.259 a letter and get a general endorsement for me. 00:22:16.279 --> 00:22:21.980 And so it worked out. Little hiccup. We got word 00:22:21.980 --> 00:22:27.759 that my package somehow had gotten ruined. And 00:22:27.759 --> 00:22:34.220 so a call to the staff sergeant, he calls me 00:22:34.220 --> 00:22:36.960 and says, hey, your package isn't going to meet 00:22:36.960 --> 00:22:39.319 the board. I don't know what happened to it. 00:22:39.619 --> 00:22:42.440 We didn't ask questions. What do we need to do 00:22:42.440 --> 00:22:47.759 to make sure? So we had to redo a bunch of paperwork. 00:22:48.440 --> 00:22:52.559 And it had to be there, like, within four or 00:22:52.559 --> 00:22:56.819 five days. Wow. And from Panama. So luckily, 00:22:56.980 --> 00:22:59.460 my husband working at base operations, he had 00:22:59.460 --> 00:23:01.779 connections with the air crews that came in and 00:23:01.779 --> 00:23:05.819 out. And he goes, hey, I need a favor. My wife's 00:23:05.819 --> 00:23:08.480 package is supposed to meet the board. Anyway, 00:23:08.480 --> 00:23:11.380 we can get this up there. And so one of the guys 00:23:11.380 --> 00:23:15.559 that he would help out all the time, aircraft 00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:18.980 commander, said, sure, what do you need? So they 00:23:18.980 --> 00:23:23.059 called somebody at headquarters personnel said 00:23:23.059 --> 00:23:25.519 you meet this aircraft at Kelly Air Force Base. 00:23:25.700 --> 00:23:27.240 They're going to hand you a package and you're 00:23:27.240 --> 00:23:29.940 going to take it up and it's gotta meet the board. 00:23:30.359 --> 00:23:33.720 And so you know stars aligned everything. I met 00:23:33.720 --> 00:23:37.200 the board and that December I got the letter 00:23:37.200 --> 00:23:41.799 that I was accepted as a pilot candidate for 00:23:41.799 --> 00:23:45.240 for the Air Force. Wow, that is huge. What an 00:23:45.240 --> 00:23:49.809 incredible story so. Is the moral of the story, 00:23:49.990 --> 00:23:51.930 you know, luck is one thing, but preparation 00:23:51.930 --> 00:23:56.789 is at least as important as luck? How would I 00:23:56.789 --> 00:23:59.650 say? You always have to be prepared. Always. 00:23:59.849 --> 00:24:03.049 No matter what. And you just wait for that. How 00:24:03.049 --> 00:24:05.470 would I say? Look for the possibilities and you'll 00:24:05.470 --> 00:24:09.069 find your opportunity. That's right. There you 00:24:09.069 --> 00:24:14.170 go. So that meant then OTS? OTS. So actually, 00:24:14.190 --> 00:24:17.079 first I went to the flight screening program. 00:24:17.500 --> 00:24:23.160 It's a program that you have to fly for about 00:24:23.160 --> 00:24:27.920 20, you get 20 hours and it's a two -way interview. 00:24:28.480 --> 00:24:30.619 The candidates get to see what the Air Force 00:24:30.619 --> 00:24:33.519 is all about and the Air Force get to see what 00:24:33.519 --> 00:24:37.819 the candidate's potential is to go through flight 00:24:37.819 --> 00:24:43.519 training. And it's a really fast -paced program, 00:24:43.539 --> 00:24:47.160 so if you can't keep up. you know a lot of people 00:24:47.160 --> 00:24:50.279 don't make it or they don't like what they see 00:24:50.279 --> 00:24:55.279 or the the training and how training pilot training 00:24:55.279 --> 00:24:59.359 could be like so they um they say no they say 00:24:59.359 --> 00:25:02.660 that um this is not for me and the candidate 00:25:02.660 --> 00:25:08.819 has the option to um just say goodbye i'm out 00:25:08.819 --> 00:25:15.519 of here i'm not gonna do this so So you did that? 00:25:15.900 --> 00:25:20.400 Right. And then OTS? And then Officer Training 00:25:20.400 --> 00:25:27.119 School, correct. So being one of the only females 00:25:27.119 --> 00:25:30.700 at Officer Training School who was a pilot candidate, 00:25:32.460 --> 00:25:34.839 during the flight screening, we got to wear flight 00:25:34.839 --> 00:25:36.960 suits, right? So everybody kind of looked down 00:25:36.960 --> 00:25:40.819 on us, like, who are these people? Right? And 00:25:40.819 --> 00:25:44.319 so that was unique. at officer training school, 00:25:44.460 --> 00:25:47.640 we got to wear these little wings that identified 00:25:47.640 --> 00:25:54.380 us as pilot candidates. So it was good, but I 00:25:54.380 --> 00:25:58.500 was able to find leadership positions within 00:25:58.500 --> 00:26:08.240 the cadet program. And so the best thing was 00:26:08.240 --> 00:26:14.380 once you became a cadet leader, you left the 00:26:14.380 --> 00:26:17.539 normal dorm and you were able to go and hang 00:26:17.539 --> 00:26:22.259 out with all the cadet officers, commanders. 00:26:22.539 --> 00:26:27.240 We had a special dorm. So we kind of helped each 00:26:27.240 --> 00:26:30.200 other and hung out like that. But it was a great 00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:33.500 experience. I got my commission. And from there, 00:26:33.500 --> 00:26:37.839 I went to Laughlin Air Force Base to start undergraduate 00:26:37.839 --> 00:26:42.839 pilot training. My husband stayed behind. And 00:26:42.839 --> 00:26:47.400 luckily, he was able to get a joint assignment 00:26:47.400 --> 00:26:50.940 with me at Laughlin Air Force Base, him being 00:26:50.940 --> 00:26:53.259 in airfield management. So that kind of worked 00:26:53.259 --> 00:26:56.240 out for for that. That's perfect. So tell me 00:26:56.240 --> 00:26:58.900 about that experience, the the flight training. 00:26:59.420 --> 00:27:05.700 Well, the flight training for for me, you start 00:27:05.700 --> 00:27:09.039 this was a year long program. You know, now pilot 00:27:09.039 --> 00:27:12.539 training has definitely changed. They're trying 00:27:12.539 --> 00:27:16.900 to shrink it down to six months and even further. 00:27:17.460 --> 00:27:23.039 But I think they're realizing that some shortcuts 00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:26.980 aren't the best, you know, with the new technology 00:27:26.980 --> 00:27:29.440 and everything. But for me, it was a year -long 00:27:29.440 --> 00:27:34.720 program. By then, our daughter was, when I started, 00:27:34.980 --> 00:27:40.829 was four years old. And so we had that. and him 00:27:40.829 --> 00:27:45.470 full -time Air Force, me full -time pilot training 00:27:45.470 --> 00:27:50.950 student, my hours were pretty much 12 -hour days. 00:27:51.730 --> 00:27:55.369 So sometimes it was hard to balance all of that, 00:27:55.369 --> 00:27:57.769 but we made it work and we found our village. 00:27:59.890 --> 00:28:03.890 But the first couple of weeks of physiological 00:28:03.890 --> 00:28:07.579 training, taught us how to do parachute landing 00:28:07.579 --> 00:28:11.980 falls. They put us in a hyperbaric chamber just 00:28:11.980 --> 00:28:16.160 to make sure that, you know, we could with sand 00:28:16.160 --> 00:28:19.519 know what our symptoms are if we lost oxygen 00:28:19.519 --> 00:28:22.740 and that sort of thing. And then we started right 00:28:22.740 --> 00:28:28.559 into the T -37, which was a twin engine jet equivalent 00:28:28.559 --> 00:28:32.400 to the A -37 at the time is what they use as 00:28:32.400 --> 00:28:36.039 a fighter. And then from there, that first phase, 00:28:36.039 --> 00:28:40.359 we went to our second phase and they used T -38s, 00:28:40.359 --> 00:28:43.839 which was an equivalent to an F5 fighter for 00:28:43.839 --> 00:28:48.200 us to fly as well. That was my favorite airplane, 00:28:48.500 --> 00:28:52.880 still is and always will be, is the T -38, supersonic, 00:28:53.200 --> 00:28:56.420 you know, you have a G suit, you got your helmet, 00:28:56.599 --> 00:29:00.059 your parachute, all of that. And I have to say 00:29:00.059 --> 00:29:04.289 that parachute weighs a ton. But flying that 00:29:04.289 --> 00:29:07.869 airplane was amazing. And they still use it. 00:29:08.009 --> 00:29:10.269 They keep saying, we're going to retire the airplane, 00:29:10.269 --> 00:29:14.450 but it's still there. So I was airborne reconnaissance, 00:29:14.630 --> 00:29:17.190 right? I was a Spanish linguist. I spent most 00:29:17.190 --> 00:29:21.609 of my life on a C -130. But almost 3 ,000 hours 00:29:21.609 --> 00:29:25.089 on a C -130, but it's still one of the most capable, 00:29:25.150 --> 00:29:30.250 durable airframes that we have. It is. And we 00:29:30.250 --> 00:29:33.640 have our best friend, at that time when I was 00:29:33.640 --> 00:29:38.400 applying, he flew C -130s. And that's where Edwin 00:29:38.400 --> 00:29:40.960 was stationed. Before we went to Panama, it was 00:29:40.960 --> 00:29:43.000 Little Rock Air Force Base, and that's where 00:29:43.000 --> 00:29:46.599 they have the C -130s training. And I always 00:29:46.599 --> 00:29:49.640 loved that airplane. Those assault landings and 00:29:49.640 --> 00:29:55.380 takeoffs were amazing. And the flight deck alone, 00:29:55.500 --> 00:29:58.359 all those windows that you have from up here 00:29:58.359 --> 00:30:01.690 all the way down to your feet, just... I really 00:30:01.690 --> 00:30:04.690 enjoyed it. But of course, when I graduated, 00:30:05.150 --> 00:30:08.430 women weren't allowed to be in combat. So we 00:30:08.430 --> 00:30:15.089 had that combat exclusion. And the only aircraft 00:30:15.089 --> 00:30:19.690 that I could have flown was 141 and 135 and, 00:30:19.690 --> 00:30:27.140 you know, I guess a small Learjet that Blue generals 00:30:27.140 --> 00:30:32.180 around and and but I loved my t -38 and I did 00:30:32.180 --> 00:30:36.660 so well in pilot training I top top 5 % I say 00:30:36.660 --> 00:30:41.140 5 % I was like a top third in my class and I 00:30:41.140 --> 00:30:45.220 got my fighter reconnaissance Rating in order 00:30:45.220 --> 00:30:48.940 to fly the t -38 which is an equivalent of having 00:30:48.940 --> 00:30:52.680 a fighter rating to go on and get a fighter aircraft, 00:30:52.779 --> 00:30:56.390 but women weren't allowed at the time so I got 00:30:56.390 --> 00:30:59.109 the fastest aircraft that a female could fly 00:30:59.109 --> 00:31:02.109 at the time. So how many women were with you 00:31:02.109 --> 00:31:06.089 in that class? So in that class, there was one 00:31:06.089 --> 00:31:10.910 other female that was in the class, but on the 00:31:10.910 --> 00:31:13.789 second week, she washed out. So she did she didn't 00:31:13.789 --> 00:31:17.730 make it through the program. And and I always 00:31:17.730 --> 00:31:20.869 say, you know, because when I graduated, I got 00:31:20.869 --> 00:31:24.069 my rating. I became a T -38 instructor pilot. 00:31:24.380 --> 00:31:26.940 And I always looked at students, I said, look, 00:31:26.960 --> 00:31:31.680 you have to have at least 15 to 20 % of skills 00:31:31.680 --> 00:31:34.940 and ability to fly an airplane. But the other 00:31:34.940 --> 00:31:38.019 80 % is all motivation. If you're not motivated 00:31:38.019 --> 00:31:39.559 enough, you're not going to make it through the 00:31:39.559 --> 00:31:43.359 program. And that's what it was. So she wasn't 00:31:43.359 --> 00:31:45.759 motivated. She was like, well, I just got this, 00:31:45.759 --> 00:31:51.059 and this is fun. And I'm like, OK. So not only 00:31:51.059 --> 00:31:52.700 were you the first Latina, you were probably 00:31:52.700 --> 00:31:56.869 among the first. Females? Yes. Yes, absolutely. 00:31:57.150 --> 00:31:59.890 There weren't that many of us. In fact, I was 00:31:59.890 --> 00:32:03.450 the first T -38 instructor pilot female to go 00:32:03.450 --> 00:32:07.150 to Laughlin and teach at Laughlin. And at that 00:32:07.150 --> 00:32:10.569 moment, when I came back, they had just assigned 00:32:10.569 --> 00:32:15.230 a T -37 female instructor to the other squadron. 00:32:15.349 --> 00:32:18.529 So there were two of us in the whole base. Wow. 00:32:18.730 --> 00:32:23.420 That's incredible. And being Latina, how did 00:32:23.420 --> 00:32:27.400 that sort of aspect of your background and so 00:32:27.400 --> 00:32:30.579 forth impact sort of the situation and the environment 00:32:30.579 --> 00:32:35.319 around you? Well, I think it's West Texas, you 00:32:35.319 --> 00:32:40.940 know, so very Hispanic. So to me, it was no big 00:32:40.940 --> 00:32:46.480 deal. And I guess to most people, or it was probably 00:32:46.480 --> 00:32:49.460 the way I. presented and projected myself. You 00:32:49.460 --> 00:32:51.680 know, I mean, I knew I was different because 00:32:51.680 --> 00:32:54.740 I was a female just because I was Latina. You 00:32:54.740 --> 00:32:58.819 know, it was not something that I would say. 00:32:59.640 --> 00:33:02.099 Oh my gosh, look at me. I'm Latina, but I was 00:33:02.099 --> 00:33:04.680 very proud of the fact and everybody knew I was 00:33:04.680 --> 00:33:08.019 and they knew I was from Puerto Rico and all 00:33:08.019 --> 00:33:14.799 of that. And so West Texas and in Del Rio, Texas, 00:33:14.900 --> 00:33:18.880 there were a lot of of Hispanics around. So it 00:33:18.880 --> 00:33:25.640 felt very comfortable to me. And I just considered 00:33:25.640 --> 00:33:31.259 myself one of, you know, of my peers, the same, 00:33:31.720 --> 00:33:34.599 the female versus the male. That would, to me, 00:33:34.680 --> 00:33:36.980 was the only difference because, you know, I 00:33:36.980 --> 00:33:42.559 mean, the way I saw culture and heritage was 00:33:43.450 --> 00:33:46.390 growing up in that, it's like, okay, you're Irish 00:33:46.390 --> 00:33:51.009 or you're whatever, you know, you're different, 00:33:51.130 --> 00:33:53.569 your culture is different, but we're all here 00:33:53.569 --> 00:33:56.109 for the same purpose. So we're all together. 00:33:56.890 --> 00:34:01.990 So that's how it was for me and anybody who tried 00:34:01.990 --> 00:34:07.789 and there were instructors that tried to make 00:34:07.789 --> 00:34:13.420 it very hard for me in training, even at the 00:34:13.420 --> 00:34:16.500 flight screening program. There was an instructor 00:34:16.500 --> 00:34:21.179 who did not give me all the tools that I needed 00:34:21.179 --> 00:34:26.699 to do a certain flight and he failed me. But 00:34:26.699 --> 00:34:30.699 I was much older then, you know, I was already 00:34:30.699 --> 00:34:36.239 26 years old. So it's very, if you will, wise, 00:34:36.239 --> 00:34:39.539 you know, and I knew how to advocate for myself. 00:34:39.849 --> 00:34:43.309 and stand up for myself. So I went up the chain 00:34:43.309 --> 00:34:45.510 of command and said, hey, this is what happened. 00:34:46.889 --> 00:34:49.550 And made sure that I went through the cadet chain 00:34:49.550 --> 00:34:52.050 of command and then the active duty chain of 00:34:52.050 --> 00:34:54.909 command. And anyway, so they set the instructor 00:34:54.909 --> 00:34:59.690 down with the contractor supervisor and everybody. 00:35:00.130 --> 00:35:02.130 And they asked him, did this really happen? He 00:35:02.130 --> 00:35:06.230 goes, yes. And he got fired. But I stood up for 00:35:06.230 --> 00:35:10.920 myself. because you just can't keep quiet. You 00:35:10.920 --> 00:35:16.280 can't people, you know, make you feel like you're 00:35:16.280 --> 00:35:20.320 wrong because I already knew what I had to do. 00:35:21.280 --> 00:35:25.500 So and then in pilot training, there was an instructor. 00:35:25.579 --> 00:35:28.139 I always remember this. He looked at me very 00:35:28.139 --> 00:35:29.900 early on. He says you're not going to make it 00:35:29.900 --> 00:35:33.420 through this program. And I guess he helped. 00:35:33.449 --> 00:35:36.250 light a fire under me, I'm like, oh yeah, I'm 00:35:36.250 --> 00:35:39.670 gonna prove you wrong. So he thought he was trying 00:35:39.670 --> 00:35:43.409 to get me to quit, but it was totally opposite 00:35:43.409 --> 00:35:46.190 of that. It was like, oh yeah, watch this, I'm 00:35:46.190 --> 00:35:52.110 gonna make it. Yeah, hold my beer. I love that, 00:35:52.289 --> 00:35:55.250 yeah, hold my beer. I'll be back in a second. 00:35:56.829 --> 00:36:01.150 So that's awesome. So that was, so 24 years in 00:36:01.150 --> 00:36:05.619 the Air Force? Almost, yeah, almost. So what 00:36:05.619 --> 00:36:09.960 were the highlights or lowlights? So I stayed 00:36:09.960 --> 00:36:15.579 there at Laughlin as an instructor pilot because 00:36:15.579 --> 00:36:19.260 I think because of my maturity and being a female, 00:36:19.679 --> 00:36:23.099 I was able to work with the students who weren't 00:36:23.099 --> 00:36:26.300 doing very well, the weaker students, and my 00:36:26.300 --> 00:36:32.769 supervisor saw that. I was had different techniques 00:36:32.769 --> 00:36:35.590 on how to get the students back up to standards 00:36:35.590 --> 00:36:40.369 for the syllabus. And they noticed that. So they 00:36:40.369 --> 00:36:43.889 recommended me to go to Randolph Air Force Base 00:36:43.889 --> 00:36:47.510 to become an instructor pilot at pilot instructor 00:36:47.510 --> 00:36:51.230 training. So I was teaching pilots to become 00:36:51.230 --> 00:36:56.650 instructors in a T -38. And so I was recommended, 00:36:57.429 --> 00:37:01.739 applied, and got assigned there being the first 00:37:01.739 --> 00:37:06.460 female in that squadron as well. Wow. So, yeah, 00:37:06.599 --> 00:37:10.119 and I really enjoyed that because, you know, 00:37:10.300 --> 00:37:13.639 here, at least the pilots aren't trying to kill 00:37:13.639 --> 00:37:18.380 you as a student, and they knew how to fly, you 00:37:18.380 --> 00:37:21.079 know, so I just needed to teach them how to talk 00:37:21.079 --> 00:37:24.820 and fly at the same time to be able to teach 00:37:24.820 --> 00:37:29.739 students. So I really enjoyed that. And then 00:37:29.739 --> 00:37:33.719 from there, I went back my last year and a half 00:37:33.719 --> 00:37:37.099 to the flight screening program and became an 00:37:37.099 --> 00:37:39.940 operations officer there overseeing the program 00:37:39.940 --> 00:37:43.380 because it was a contract and it was in Hondo, 00:37:43.380 --> 00:37:49.659 Texas. And we would supervise the contract, do 00:37:49.659 --> 00:37:54.000 check rides, check out the... their instructors 00:37:54.000 --> 00:37:58.460 and check out some of the students there. And 00:37:58.460 --> 00:38:02.099 I had an opportunity to stand up an operation 00:38:02.099 --> 00:38:05.780 at Emory Riddle in Daytona Beach, Florida for 00:38:05.780 --> 00:38:12.159 a summer. And so they selected five of us, not 00:38:12.159 --> 00:38:16.179 from Randolph, but from different training bases 00:38:16.179 --> 00:38:21.440 to make up this group to go out, check out the 00:38:21.440 --> 00:38:24.940 Emory Riddle instructor pilots that they had 00:38:24.940 --> 00:38:28.860 there on staff. So they could teach our syllabus 00:38:28.860 --> 00:38:32.280 and fly the ROTC students during the summer. 00:38:32.820 --> 00:38:36.980 So we'd get ROTC students coming in. We do flight 00:38:36.980 --> 00:38:39.940 training with them. And then I think we had three 00:38:39.940 --> 00:38:46.440 classes. So I went TDY from May to August to 00:38:46.440 --> 00:38:50.869 Daytona Beach. Rough assignment. Rough, right? 00:38:52.809 --> 00:38:56.670 So I rented an apartment and got my parents to 00:38:56.670 --> 00:38:59.190 bring the kids to spend the summer with me there. 00:38:59.230 --> 00:39:01.889 My husband came to visit once or twice because 00:39:01.889 --> 00:39:05.030 he was still working. And he had gotten out by 00:39:05.030 --> 00:39:08.929 that time. He had gotten out of active duty and 00:39:08.929 --> 00:39:13.050 worked civil service. So he was doing that. So 00:39:13.050 --> 00:39:16.929 in that trajectory of time, I assume you were 00:39:16.929 --> 00:39:19.789 able to see more and more women. getting into 00:39:19.789 --> 00:39:24.309 flight training. Right, but there still weren't 00:39:24.309 --> 00:39:31.110 enough of them. Even though aviation for women 00:39:31.110 --> 00:39:35.650 and Latinos is such a wonderful option for many 00:39:35.650 --> 00:39:38.070 of them that are interested in doing it, and 00:39:38.070 --> 00:39:41.630 I know you continue to advocate for that. So 00:39:41.630 --> 00:39:45.010 after 24 years in the Air Force, you made a change. 00:39:45.440 --> 00:39:49.199 Well, actually after eight years in the Air Force 00:39:49.199 --> 00:39:52.320 active duty, I made a change So I transitioned 00:39:52.320 --> 00:39:57.480 from active duty to the reserves, right? I Went 00:39:57.480 --> 00:40:01.000 to officer training school for a bit a year in 00:40:01.000 --> 00:40:04.139 the reserves and then I transitioned to headquarters 00:40:04.139 --> 00:40:07.199 personnel So I worked at headquarters personnel 00:40:07.199 --> 00:40:12.139 for the rest the remainder of the time 16 years 00:40:12.489 --> 00:40:16.489 I worked at the Accountability and Readiness 00:40:16.489 --> 00:40:23.489 Directorate there, which was incredible. At that 00:40:23.489 --> 00:40:31.570 job, I experienced, I had to stand up alongside 00:40:31.570 --> 00:40:38.809 the Red Cross when 9 -11 hit. That was something 00:40:38.809 --> 00:40:42.579 else. But we can talk about that later. But I 00:40:42.579 --> 00:40:44.679 was working for American Airlines. So I went 00:40:44.679 --> 00:40:49.719 and I applied to fly for American Airlines. Well, 00:40:50.239 --> 00:40:54.320 several airlines. But I settled for American 00:40:54.320 --> 00:40:57.960 Airlines because right place, right time, felt 00:40:57.960 --> 00:41:02.139 right, good fit. And it worked out. And I had 00:41:02.139 --> 00:41:08.309 a 20 -year career with them. I stayed in the 00:41:08.309 --> 00:41:10.769 reserves because my commitment was always to 00:41:10.769 --> 00:41:14.170 serve and I wanted to finish what I started and 00:41:14.170 --> 00:41:20.190 I did. So I was able to do that and anytime I 00:41:20.190 --> 00:41:25.610 had a reserve duty, I would get time off from 00:41:25.610 --> 00:41:31.449 work and be able to come back home and do my 00:41:31.449 --> 00:41:37.809 duty time. And your airline career, 20 years 00:41:37.809 --> 00:41:41.090 is such an impressive time to be a pilot. My 00:41:41.090 --> 00:41:43.969 niece's husband is a pilot as well for JetBlue 00:41:43.969 --> 00:41:47.590 after he got out of the Marine Corps. It's a 00:41:47.590 --> 00:41:50.510 big transition, but it's still similar skills. 00:41:52.349 --> 00:41:57.210 And it's just a different payload. Yes, it is. 00:41:57.849 --> 00:42:03.730 I mean, how would I say anybody on board an airplane 00:42:03.730 --> 00:42:08.329 aircraft is, and you know this, you know, safety, 00:42:08.530 --> 00:42:14.309 paramount, number one. The mission, of course, 00:42:14.409 --> 00:42:17.269 you know, Air Force versus commercial is you 00:42:17.269 --> 00:42:21.690 get your passengers to their destination on time, 00:42:22.349 --> 00:42:26.690 right? Depending on weather and any situation 00:42:26.690 --> 00:42:31.980 that might arise. So I really enjoyed seeing 00:42:31.980 --> 00:42:36.199 the people taking them on vacation or wherever 00:42:36.199 --> 00:42:40.440 their destination was. I know when I upgraded 00:42:40.440 --> 00:42:44.599 to captain, um, and when we still had time, because 00:42:44.599 --> 00:42:48.480 now the flight schedules are really crazy. You 00:42:48.480 --> 00:42:50.360 know, you jump into the flight deck, you get 00:42:50.360 --> 00:42:53.900 the airplane ready, everybody's boarding, you're 00:42:53.900 --> 00:42:57.079 doing your checklist, shut the door and off we 00:42:57.079 --> 00:43:01.380 go and you land and Sometimes you never see the 00:43:01.380 --> 00:43:04.300 pilot because they're picking up or doing whatever, 00:43:04.360 --> 00:43:06.539 getting ready for their next flight. So they 00:43:06.539 --> 00:43:09.500 don't say hello. They don't say goodbye. But 00:43:09.500 --> 00:43:12.360 luckily when I upgraded, we still had a little 00:43:12.360 --> 00:43:17.599 time to get passengers on board. So there was 00:43:17.599 --> 00:43:21.300 one story where a lady was boarding my aircraft. 00:43:21.420 --> 00:43:24.480 I was a captain at the time. And she looked very 00:43:24.480 --> 00:43:28.119 confused. And I approached her and tried to welcome 00:43:28.119 --> 00:43:32.369 her aboard. And I saw she was concerned. And 00:43:32.369 --> 00:43:35.610 I asked her if anything was wrong. And she looked 00:43:35.610 --> 00:43:38.369 at me and said, oh, you're the captain. And I 00:43:38.369 --> 00:43:40.409 confirmed that for her. Yes, ma 'am, I'm the 00:43:40.409 --> 00:43:45.070 captain. Welcome aboard. And I saw her concern. 00:43:45.110 --> 00:43:47.269 And I said, look, if you don't feel comfortable 00:43:47.269 --> 00:43:50.550 getting on this aircraft, you're more than welcome 00:43:50.550 --> 00:43:54.170 to go back up the jet bridge. and talk to the 00:43:54.170 --> 00:43:57.070 agent and see if they can rebook you on the next 00:43:57.070 --> 00:43:59.389 available flight, which will be in an hour or 00:43:59.389 --> 00:44:03.630 so to the same destination. But she just kind 00:44:03.630 --> 00:44:05.889 of lowered her eyes and walked down the aisle 00:44:05.889 --> 00:44:10.690 and went to sit down. But anyway, it was I'm 00:44:10.690 --> 00:44:12.210 sure on the inside you were thinking something 00:44:12.210 --> 00:44:16.630 else. No, I was like, wow, you know, I never 00:44:16.630 --> 00:44:20.489 expected that. And and from a female, you know, 00:44:20.489 --> 00:44:22.980 I could see that, you know, getting up. a man 00:44:22.980 --> 00:44:24.960 on board and going, hey, you're the captain. 00:44:25.480 --> 00:44:32.219 But it was like, come on, be proud. Cheer us 00:44:32.219 --> 00:44:35.300 on. But I have to say that the flight attendants 00:44:35.300 --> 00:44:38.360 who I flew with, any time they'd look in the 00:44:38.360 --> 00:44:41.039 flight deck and they would see me, boy, they 00:44:41.039 --> 00:44:44.780 defended me all the time. They said, she has 00:44:44.780 --> 00:44:48.019 qualified to be there. She's worked hard. And 00:44:48.019 --> 00:44:52.469 we only hire great pilots. So don't worry. move 00:44:52.469 --> 00:44:56.409 along. But I would get these stories when we, 00:44:56.449 --> 00:44:59.610 you know, land final flight of the day and we'd 00:44:59.610 --> 00:45:02.769 be going to our hotel layover and they would 00:45:02.769 --> 00:45:06.090 share those stories with me. So great, great 00:45:06.090 --> 00:45:08.769 flight attendants. And I have to say male and 00:45:08.769 --> 00:45:13.929 female, they were all very supportive. When I 00:45:13.929 --> 00:45:16.530 first got there, obviously the captains that 00:45:16.530 --> 00:45:19.170 they had, I called them crusty old captains. 00:45:19.550 --> 00:45:21.590 They really didn't want us there. They didn't 00:45:21.590 --> 00:45:25.590 know why that the airline was hiring females 00:45:25.590 --> 00:45:31.449 pilots. And it was it was a different culture. 00:45:31.489 --> 00:45:35.769 It took a couple of years for the culture to 00:45:35.769 --> 00:45:38.530 change. But, you know, I wasn't going anywhere. 00:45:39.030 --> 00:45:41.469 And I would look at those captains. I said, you're 00:45:41.469 --> 00:45:44.449 retiring soon, so please get out of my seat because 00:45:44.449 --> 00:45:50.949 I'm moving up. Get out of my chair. Yes, there 00:45:50.949 --> 00:45:56.730 you go. I gotta love that. So incredibly fulfilling 00:45:56.730 --> 00:45:59.630 career. You did so much in in your career, both 00:45:59.630 --> 00:46:02.829 in the Air Force and and in the airlines. But 00:46:02.829 --> 00:46:04.969 I think there's also a lot to be said for what 00:46:04.969 --> 00:46:06.869 you've done in the community. So you've done 00:46:06.869 --> 00:46:08.650 a lot of things in the community to help a lot 00:46:08.650 --> 00:46:11.750 of people and a lot of many people just may not 00:46:11.750 --> 00:46:13.510 know that about you. So why don't you share a 00:46:13.510 --> 00:46:15.650 little bit about your community type activities? 00:46:15.829 --> 00:46:19.480 No, absolutely. Absolutely. Um, I want to say 00:46:19.480 --> 00:46:25.219 that even while I was still flying, I made sure 00:46:25.219 --> 00:46:29.980 I was involved with my kids. My daughter was 00:46:29.980 --> 00:46:33.900 in Girl Scouts. I would do that, especially for 00:46:33.900 --> 00:46:36.559 the Girl Scouts, so they could see what that 00:46:36.559 --> 00:46:41.159 was like. This is kind of interesting. So my 00:46:41.159 --> 00:46:44.440 daughter's in middle school. I'm still active 00:46:44.440 --> 00:46:49.139 duty pilot. One of her teachers finds out that 00:46:49.139 --> 00:46:53.000 I am a pilot and makes a huge deal about it. 00:46:53.000 --> 00:46:56.760 Oh, my God, your mother. So for my daughter, 00:46:57.039 --> 00:46:59.719 that was normal. Like, yeah, every other mom 00:46:59.719 --> 00:47:03.059 is a pilot, right? But it wasn't. And she didn't 00:47:03.059 --> 00:47:06.280 realize that until her teacher said, oh, no, 00:47:06.280 --> 00:47:08.900 she needs to come in and talk to the class. And 00:47:08.900 --> 00:47:12.139 so that's kind of where my daughter realized, 00:47:12.280 --> 00:47:15.440 wow, what mom does. You know, she knew it was 00:47:15.440 --> 00:47:17.579 different, but she didn't know it was that different. 00:47:18.030 --> 00:47:20.789 and unique. And so I went and started talking 00:47:20.789 --> 00:47:22.809 to the class, and I got involved, like I said, 00:47:22.849 --> 00:47:25.489 with the Girl Scout troop. And that just really 00:47:25.489 --> 00:47:31.449 showed me the need to have female, strong female 00:47:31.449 --> 00:47:39.269 leaders and professionals in schools and in groups 00:47:39.269 --> 00:47:44.570 to make sure that they could see us and have 00:47:44.570 --> 00:47:49.820 that little seed planted. So after I retired, 00:47:50.079 --> 00:47:53.039 well, throughout, you know, I would go and speak 00:47:53.039 --> 00:48:03.940 to troops, schools, community groups, and I really 00:48:03.940 --> 00:48:10.119 enjoyed being able to show what the possibilities 00:48:10.119 --> 00:48:15.699 were for females. And after I retired, I said, 00:48:15.780 --> 00:48:19.579 you know what? I've got a blessed career, blessed 00:48:19.579 --> 00:48:23.400 life. I mean, it wasn't easy, you know, you give 00:48:23.400 --> 00:48:28.920 and take that personal and work balance, very 00:48:28.920 --> 00:48:32.739 important. And I wanted to make sure that the 00:48:32.739 --> 00:48:36.380 underserved community, especially people and 00:48:36.380 --> 00:48:42.869 kids who are not around, especially aviation 00:48:42.869 --> 00:48:49.969 and aerospace, have that opportunity. I want 00:48:49.969 --> 00:48:53.590 to share that with them, open their eyes, and 00:48:53.590 --> 00:48:57.150 let them know that that's always a possibility. 00:48:57.630 --> 00:49:02.409 And I think the important part is that they are 00:49:02.409 --> 00:49:06.949 smart enough and have the capability of achieving 00:49:06.949 --> 00:49:11.420 this. And if it's not this, anything else. So 00:49:11.420 --> 00:49:17.320 I push aviation and aerospace. I push STEM. But 00:49:17.320 --> 00:49:20.980 whatever they want to achieve, I let them know 00:49:20.980 --> 00:49:24.139 that it's doable. But they have to hang in there 00:49:24.139 --> 00:49:26.860 and believe in themselves. And I think that's 00:49:26.860 --> 00:49:31.099 the first step of knowing that we're all capable 00:49:31.099 --> 00:49:35.199 of that, given the right environment. And I talk 00:49:35.199 --> 00:49:38.360 about who they hang out with as well. So it's 00:49:38.360 --> 00:49:44.369 not only Study, study, yeah, studies, education, 00:49:45.030 --> 00:49:48.469 you know, education, and I always say this, education 00:49:48.469 --> 00:49:52.909 and information helps you make better decisions. 00:49:53.309 --> 00:49:58.010 But it's the people who you hang out with that 00:49:58.010 --> 00:50:00.150 are gonna make that difference. So make sure 00:50:00.150 --> 00:50:03.230 that whoever's around you supports what you're 00:50:03.230 --> 00:50:07.030 trying to achieve. If you can dream it, you can 00:50:07.030 --> 00:50:09.349 do it, if you work hard enough and persevere. 00:50:09.630 --> 00:50:12.889 Exactly. And then I said, just put it out in 00:50:12.889 --> 00:50:16.010 the universe. So tell everybody and anybody what 00:50:16.010 --> 00:50:18.550 you want to do, because you never know who's 00:50:18.550 --> 00:50:22.289 going to help you. So I continue to do that. 00:50:22.289 --> 00:50:26.449 And right now I sit on several nonprofit boards 00:50:26.449 --> 00:50:31.829 who advocate for aviation and aerospace, military, 00:50:32.190 --> 00:50:37.269 civilian. we're doing the best we can in this 00:50:37.269 --> 00:50:42.730 community. And now I'm a speaker, a motivational 00:50:42.730 --> 00:50:45.630 and professional speaker. I speak around the 00:50:45.630 --> 00:50:50.190 country with different colleges, universities, 00:50:50.190 --> 00:50:53.769 and I have a couple of agencies that help me 00:50:53.769 --> 00:50:56.869 get those contracts so I can share the story 00:50:56.869 --> 00:51:00.489 and try and inspire others. And you have an event 00:51:00.489 --> 00:51:03.000 coming up that you're going to. Yes. So next 00:51:03.000 --> 00:51:05.760 week I'm going to attend the Women in Aviation 00:51:05.760 --> 00:51:08.440 Conference. It's going to be in Denver this year. 00:51:09.420 --> 00:51:14.219 We gather and it's international. I mean, there's 00:51:14.219 --> 00:51:21.519 groups that come from Africa, from Australia, 00:51:22.179 --> 00:51:26.199 Europe, from all over. And we gather there and 00:51:26.199 --> 00:51:28.820 they're in all kinds of professions. So just 00:51:28.820 --> 00:51:32.469 because it's aviation doesn't mean that everybody's 00:51:32.469 --> 00:51:36.610 a pilot. So it's in operations, it's in maintenance, 00:51:36.929 --> 00:51:40.159 just so many different. professions that you 00:51:40.159 --> 00:51:42.019 can be. And that's what I tell kids. I said, 00:51:42.039 --> 00:51:44.079 you don't have to be a pilot to be in aviation. 00:51:44.219 --> 00:51:48.059 If you love what it is in aerospace, you can 00:51:48.059 --> 00:51:50.980 be an engineer, you can be a lawyer, you can 00:51:50.980 --> 00:51:54.039 be a medical person and still be involved in 00:51:54.039 --> 00:51:56.480 aviation. So it doesn't matter what your career 00:51:56.480 --> 00:51:59.300 path takes you. If you love aviation, you can 00:51:59.300 --> 00:52:02.199 still be a part of it. Absolutely. You know, 00:52:02.280 --> 00:52:06.199 a couple of years ago in In 2023, we had the 00:52:06.199 --> 00:52:09.579 pleasure of giving an award to Graciela Tizcarino 00:52:09.579 --> 00:52:13.400 Soto. And I know she's a big advocate for that 00:52:13.400 --> 00:52:17.039 as well. She is. She's an amazing lady. To me, 00:52:17.059 --> 00:52:22.179 she's the ever -ready bunny. Is that right? Yeah, 00:52:22.420 --> 00:52:25.079 the energizer bunny. Energizer bunny. That's 00:52:25.079 --> 00:52:29.030 it. And that lady is nonstop. You know, I see 00:52:29.030 --> 00:52:31.750 her and I'm like, okay, slow down, Graciela. 00:52:31.849 --> 00:52:35.190 You know, take it easy, take it easy. She's go, 00:52:35.190 --> 00:52:38.449 go, go. And she's got three kids. And, you know, 00:52:38.590 --> 00:52:43.570 I mean, amazing, amazing lady and, and an author. 00:52:43.929 --> 00:52:46.349 And, and I, and I said, well, one day I'll write 00:52:46.349 --> 00:52:48.909 my book. She goes, just write. just write, just 00:52:48.909 --> 00:52:51.489 sit down and start writing. And I said, OK, so 00:52:51.489 --> 00:52:54.190 I'd write little stories here and there and put 00:52:54.190 --> 00:52:58.670 it all on paper. But I just never got the moment 00:52:58.670 --> 00:53:01.150 or found the right time or right person to help 00:53:01.150 --> 00:53:05.369 me do that. And luckily, if everything goes well, 00:53:05.530 --> 00:53:08.869 I will be launching my book next week at the 00:53:08.869 --> 00:53:11.730 Women in Aviation Conference in Denver. That 00:53:11.730 --> 00:53:17.679 is fantastic. Congratulations, and author. Let's 00:53:17.679 --> 00:53:22.820 hear about Flight Path of Fortitude. Yes. So 00:53:22.820 --> 00:53:27.199 I think the best thing that describes this is 00:53:27.199 --> 00:53:32.460 just different parts of my story put into different 00:53:32.460 --> 00:53:37.400 chapters. I think this kind of is a kind of a 00:53:37.400 --> 00:53:40.980 memoir for me. You know, I mean, at some point 00:53:40.980 --> 00:53:44.219 I'm going to and like I said, to people, as long 00:53:44.219 --> 00:53:48.019 as I have the energy, and I really can get involved, 00:53:48.320 --> 00:53:50.280 and people still want to hear what I have to 00:53:50.280 --> 00:53:52.800 say, I'm going to be involved with the community. 00:53:53.360 --> 00:53:59.280 But I think it's time this book comes out so 00:53:59.280 --> 00:54:03.260 people know the real me, my whole story, and 00:54:03.260 --> 00:54:07.099 can understand why I have the perspectives and 00:54:07.099 --> 00:54:10.429 the insights that that I do and that I share 00:54:10.429 --> 00:54:15.150 with others where that came from. And it gives 00:54:15.150 --> 00:54:18.409 me that fortitude. And that's the word I'm key 00:54:18.409 --> 00:54:23.309 on. Obviously, flight path because we're in aviation, 00:54:24.070 --> 00:54:27.769 right? But fortitude is a huge word. And I think 00:54:27.769 --> 00:54:31.510 when I saw it and I talked to the editor, we're 00:54:31.510 --> 00:54:35.630 trying to decide what title are we going to give 00:54:35.630 --> 00:54:40.139 this book. And that just stuck with me. And I 00:54:40.139 --> 00:54:44.559 think it disencompasses perseverance, resilience, 00:54:45.500 --> 00:54:50.760 just everything. And I have a motto, and hopefully 00:54:50.760 --> 00:54:53.619 I'm going to put it as an epigraph in my book. 00:54:53.860 --> 00:54:58.980 And it's Quered es Poder. And I translate that 00:54:58.980 --> 00:55:03.159 to where there's a will, there's power. And I 00:55:03.159 --> 00:55:07.880 think that says it all. I love that. That's fantastic. 00:55:08.059 --> 00:55:11.079 And is a book available for purchase yet? Not 00:55:11.079 --> 00:55:13.659 yet. Not yet. We're still tweaking it. You know, 00:55:13.760 --> 00:55:17.000 we're down to the wire and I just want to make 00:55:17.000 --> 00:55:20.699 sure that everything gets done right. So fingers 00:55:20.699 --> 00:55:22.980 crossed. We'll launch it next week, if not in 00:55:22.980 --> 00:55:28.039 two weeks, but I will send out as soon as I know, 00:55:28.039 --> 00:55:31.380 you know, where we're going to post it for purchase. 00:55:32.159 --> 00:55:34.719 We'll get the word out, but just be on the lookout 00:55:34.719 --> 00:55:38.300 for it. And we will amplify it for you, but in 00:55:38.300 --> 00:55:41.260 the meantime, folks, be on the lookout. Flight 00:55:41.260 --> 00:55:44.119 Path of Fortitude by Olga Custodio, wonderful 00:55:44.119 --> 00:55:49.420 author. Olga, just to wrap things up, I can't 00:55:49.420 --> 00:55:52.380 tell you how grateful we are for your time, for 00:55:52.380 --> 00:55:54.920 your journey, for your service, for your leadership, 00:55:55.460 --> 00:55:59.219 for who you are as a person, for serving on the 00:55:59.219 --> 00:56:01.480 advisory council for ALVA and the support that 00:56:01.480 --> 00:56:06.750 you've provided. With all that said, I know our 00:56:06.750 --> 00:56:08.489 listening audience and viewing audience would 00:56:08.489 --> 00:56:12.469 love to see if there's any pearls of wisdom that 00:56:12.469 --> 00:56:15.530 you'd like to be able to share with them in closing. 00:56:16.670 --> 00:56:18.849 Absolutely. Absolutely. It doesn't matter where 00:56:18.849 --> 00:56:22.309 you are, who you are or what you're doing. Always 00:56:22.309 --> 00:56:27.730 ask questions and keep learning. I love that. 00:56:28.210 --> 00:56:32.340 Always keep. learning. I appreciate your time 00:56:32.340 --> 00:56:34.800 Olga. Thank you again for joining us today and 00:56:34.800 --> 00:56:37.039 on behalf of the American Latino Veterans Association, 00:56:37.119 --> 00:56:40.579 thanks to all of you for joining us today. We 00:56:40.579 --> 00:56:42.500 really hope you enjoy the content today. Please 00:56:42.500 --> 00:56:45.059 join us for future webinars and podcasts and 00:56:45.059 --> 00:56:46.940 please keep an eye out for information on upcoming 00:56:46.940 --> 00:56:50.219 events by visiting our website alphavets .org 00:56:50.219 --> 00:56:52.940 and following us on social media at alphavets. 00:56:53.500 --> 00:56:55.460 Thank you again Olga for being our guest today. 00:56:57.090 --> 00:57:00.429 And thanks again to our sponsors for these podcasts 00:57:00.429 --> 00:57:03.449 and webinars, JP Morgan Chase, PMI, Wells Fargo, 00:57:03.809 --> 00:57:05.989 AT &T, and T -Mobile. Thank you again for joining 00:57:05.989 --> 00:57:09.710 us. And as always, be safe, aim high, and thrive. 00:57:10.070 --> 00:57:11.570 See you next time. Thanks again.