VARIETY CLUB AND FREEDOM IN THE AIR LAUNCHES FIRST NATIONAL PRIVATE PILOTS LICENCE SCHEME FOR YOUNG PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
Variety Club the children’s charity in association with Freedom in the Air and Cranfield Flying School this week selected the first young person with a disability for a unique scholarship that will allow a young person to achieve a National private pilots licence (NPPL) over the summer holidays.
Shelbi Grist (17) suffers from McCune Albright Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder as well as Polistic Fibres Displacia, a rare bone disease and Focal Nodular Hyperplacia, a liver complaint. Even though Shelbi has a rafter of disabilities she has never let this stop her fulfilling her dreams and is currently activity involved in sport having received her National Diploma of Sport and is in a national wheelchair basket ball team while in full time education studying Sports Therapy. Based in Portsmouth, Shelbi travels all over the UK to play basket ball and will be attending her pilot training twice a week for the next 10 weeks.
Based in Cranfield Airport near Milton Keynes, the scholarship was open to all young people between the ages for 17 – 19 with the primary aim to simply enable disabled young people the opportunity to realise their full potential through the pleasure and thrill of flying. After many weeks of searching for the right candidate Shelbi Grist was selected.
Shelbi will complete over 40 hours of dual and solo flying as well as intensive exams to achieve her National Private Pilot’s Licence which will give her full command of an aeroplane and in doing so change her life.
The programme has been funded by Freedom in the Air, Cranfield Flying School, Pooleys Flight Equipment and the De Vere Venues, part of the De Vere Group/MWB who have to date raised over £1.3m on behalf of the Variety Club through staff fundraising and corporate events.
Keith Andrews Chairman of Variety At Work commented “I am so proud to be able to offer this unique opportunity to such a fantastic candidate. I would like to thank Gautam Lewis at Freedom in The Air and all the pilots at Cranfield for making this a reality for Shelbi. Huge thanks to Freedom in the Air, Cranfield Flying School and De Vere Venues for funding this scheme. We wish Shelbi good luck.”
FITA founder Gautam Lewis, who uses crutches after contracting polio as a child in India, wants to show people disability is not a barrier to achievement. As an orphan growing up in the care of Mother Teresa, he believes that his calling in life is to help others less fortunate and celebrate in the spirit that the sky’s the limit.
He said: “I thought maybe I should do something positive about supporting disabled people, help them learn new skills and push them to a new level of confidence so that they can have opportunities.
“It’s trying to show what we can do regardless of disability.”
Together we intend to show that anyone can reach for the skies, and achieve virtually anything, sometimes with only the very smallest amount of support.
