Armstrong Arrives
On Thursday night I sat waiting at Lindberg Field for a young man, named Armstrong, that our family met in Uganda back in the summer of 2012. The journey for Armstrong has been beyond difficult. Growing up in poverty, but having the intelligence of a rocket scientist must be very challenging. While we were in Uganda the founder of U-TOUCH, Deb Plotkin, told me that Armstrong was the most intelligent person she had met in her 7 years visiting Uganda. After 18 months getting to know Armstrong, I would agree.
Over the past 18 months I have spoken to Armstrong about every 2 – 3 weeks. Our family has invested in Armstrong’s education and realized about 10 months ago that in order for him to fulfill his dream, to become a commercial airline pilot, he needed to come to the US. He has worked his but off and has made it to San Diego to achieve his dream. I have taken Armstrong to his flight training school, San Diego Flight Training International, as well as just visiting Home Depot. This experience must be mind blowing for someone who has lived 26 years in poverty.
All the new cars, all the paved road, the running water, hot water out of a spout without burning any wood, houses all lined up in neat little rows, the ocean, the list is endless. I can’t imagine what it must be like for him, but one thing that I know is that he will take every advantage of this opportunity for himself and his community back in Africa. I feel like this is an opportunity of a lifetime for Armstrong, but I believe our family will learn as much, if not more, from Armstrong. I am looking forward to the next year and learning as much as we can from him and helping Armstrong reach his dreams.
If you have any desire to help support Armstrong’s journey it would be greatly appreciated. We need to raise between $50,000 – $75,000 to pay for his training. In the end, this investment will payoff in so many ways.
‘Til next time …….
Larry Kesslin 