The first-ever black-tie fundraising gala for the Ashton Johnson Memorial CloudDancer Scholarship is slated for Oct. 15, 2022, at the American Airlines CR Smith Museum in Fort Worth, Texas.
The scholarship helps provide flight training scholarships to military veterans interested in a post-military aviation career by bridging the gap in the GI Bill benefits. The GI Bill offers benefits that begin at the instrument rating, scholarship officials noted.
“Veterans have unique skill sets that make them ideal candidates for an aviation career,” officials noted.
The scholarship was created in honor of Ashton Johnson (Army SPC) who passed away in October 2021 at just 28 years old.
Born in Fort Worth on the noteworthy day of Dec. 3, 1992, Ashton joined the US Army in 2016. He served his country for over three years as an air defense battle management system operator (MOS 14G). He received numerous medals and accolades and was honorably discharged in 2019. He completed an eight-month combat tour in Afghanistan, where he was instrumental in several specialized military operations.
Ashton was also interested in flying, with his family hangar one of his favorite places. He often brought his friends there to share the family PT-17 Stearman biplane, which he loved to fly. Although he soloed in June 2020, he was unable to complete his aviation venture before he passed away, organizers noted.
To learn more about Ashton and the CloudDancer Scholarship, go to CloudDancerScholarship.org. Scholarship applications will be accepted until June 1, 2022.
For information on the gala, contact event coordinator Alexandra Stevens at 847-468-4111 or you can buy tickets here and on the scholarship’s website.