What was your first job and what did you learn from it?

Swimming teacher from the time I was 10 years old and camp counselor. (I learned) that I didn't want to be a swimming teacher and camp counselor. I didn't want to teach kids.

What are you most proud of?

My daughter. She came up through learning disabilities and has overcome them. She is doing well in school getting, A's and B's. We have a really good relationship.

Who is your hero, mentor or person you most admire and why?

My hero in college in Gene Nora Jessen and she was one of the original Mercury 13. She was older than I was, a sorority sister and a pilot.

She was selected to be an astronaut and they had to take all the same tests as the men. NASA thought they would fail and all 13 of them passed. NASA had to say jet training was required. Of course, women couldn't be pilots in the military, which was the only way you could get jet training in the sixties. She was really a hero of mine. She went ahead and became a professional pilot, still flies, and is president of the Ninety-Nines (a club founded by Amelia Earhart).

What advice would you give to young women who want to enter your field?

Be brave. Persevere. You have to really want to do it. You have to follow your passion. If you don't have a passion, don't do it.