LeRoy W. Homer Jr. Foundation awards scholarship

A recent high school graduate, Howerton has begun working on a private pilot certificate and plans to attend Iowa State University in the fall, where he will major in aerospace engineering. He will attend the EAA Advanced Air Academy Camp this summer in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

The LeRoy W. Homer Jr. Foundation annually awards one or more flight training scholarships to encourage and support young adults who wish to pursue aviation as a professional career. The foundation was created in memory of First Officer LeRoy Homer, who was on board United Airlines Flight 93 on Sept. 11, 2001. Homer and Capt. Jason Dahl and passengers fought the terrorists who had planned to fly the Boeing 757 into the U.S. Capitol. The airplane subsequently crashed in a field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.

“We’re excited that we’ve been able to impact lives with these flight scholarships,” said Melodie Homer, founder and president of the organization. “We will continue to work to support these inspiring individuals who have the dream of an aviation career.”

The foundation noted that the cost of flight training has increased the average cost of completing a private pilot certificate by more than 100 percent. “Due to these circumstances, we were only able to award one scholarship per year,” the foundation said. Tax-deductible donations may be sent to the organization via the website. A scholarship application for 2018 will be posted in October.