In 1892, Bessie Coleman was born in a very small town called Atlanta, Texas (It’s not to be confused with Atlanta, Georgia, which is a very big town!). Bessie was the 10th of 13 children. When she was six, she went to school in a one-room schoolhouse where she was a very good student, especially at math. But each year, her school schedule was interrupted because she and the other children had to pick cotton.

In search of a better life, Bessie eventually moved to Chicago, Illinois, where she found work and began pursuing her dream: to become a pilot. It seemed like an impossible dream, but she didn’t give up. And when she finally earned her International Pilot’s License in 1921, she became the first woman of African-American and Native-American descent to achieve that honor.

Bessie Coleman dared to dream big dreams, and her dreams came true. You can dream big, too. And if Bessie were here today, that’s exactly what she’d tell you to do.

Dream Big!

“Dreams, if they are any good, are always a little crazy.”
Ray Charles

“In the long run we only hit what we aim at. Aim high.”
Henry David Thoreau

“Dreams don’t come true by magic. It takes determination and hard work.
Colin Powell

“If you can dream it, you can do it.”
Walt Disney

“The dream is the truth.”
Zora Neal Hurston