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Nothing Stood in Her Way, Captain Julie Clark
Julie Clark, orphaned as a teen, forged two successful careers. With 35 years in aviation she has flown twenty-seven accident-free years as an airline pilot and twenty-four as an air show star. She became an airline pilot when women's applications were routinely thrown into the trash. Book contains 16 pages of color photos. The co-author, Ann Lewis Cooper, is also an experienced pilot. She has previously published biographies of other female aviators, including Ednat Gardner White, Jessie Woods,, Patty Wagstaff, Dot Swain Lewis, and Emily Warner. With her husband Charlie, she has written Tuskeegee's Heroes, How to Draw Aircraft Like a Pro, and War in Pacific Skies.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2004
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October 8, 2011
I’ve been blessed in my life to meet several people who, in just a short time, left an indelible mark on my life. In my role as web-TV host for FlyingNorthAmerica.com I had the privilege of meeting someone who changed the way women are treated in America forever. This woman is Captain Julie Clark, and her book is: “Nothing Stood in Her Way” written with Ann Lewis Cooper.
Julie is an aerobatic pilot. An aerobatic pilot is an artist that paints in the sky by sharing with us the grace and power of man and machine in flight. Or in Julie’s case, woman and machine in flight! This is an important distinction because when Julie started the typical aviation career for a woman was stewardess, not pilot.
“Nothing Stood in Her Way” is more than the story of a female pilot; it’s the story of a life filled with challenges and adversity overcome with enthusiasm, grace and charm. Julie was still in high school when in the span of a few short months her mother died and her father was murdered by a deranged gunman while at the controls of his Pacific Air Lines plane in the most widely publicized aviation disaster of the 1960’s.
That would have been enough to stop most any rational human being. Despite numerous other challenges, family separation and personal loss, Julie forged ahead and crafted a life full of adventure and success. Her father’s legacy was a love of flying that would eventually shape Julie’s destiny.
Like many other women of the emerging “Jet Set” age, Julie started her aviation career as one of the legendary Air Hostesses flying for TWA. Having met Julie, I cannot imagine her being satisfied as a glorified waitress, even a high-flying one. No, Julie belonged at the controls. She would overcome numerous other obstacles and set-backs and break through the boy’s club of commercial aviation to become an airline pilot and America’s first female Captain at a major airline.
As much as I’m tempted to trumpet the rest of the story, I don’t want to spoil the adventure for you! Read “Nothing Stood in Her Way” and you’ll meet one of the most remarkable and inspirational women of our time. Julie will take you on her journey from the constraints of the ground to the limitless freedom of flight and through her ascent as she pierced the “glass ceiling” in life as well as in the air.
Julie is one of those rare leaders that through undaunted courage and perseverance change the world in which she lives for the better. Woman or man, you will be changed by Julie’s example of she lives life on her own terms while still exemplifying the best of all feminine qualities of grace, charm and genuine compassion.
As a person, Julie is a remarkable combination of fire and water. She can swear like a pirate (or a pilot!) or go toe to toe with a man twice her size one moment, and then in the next welcome you into her most tender self with a warm hug and an infectious laugh. Her energy and her spirit is well captured in this book which should be required reading for all modern women and for anyone who faces what might seem to be insurmountable challenges.
I personally hope to get to know Julie much better over the next few years. I am grateful for such a quick and genuine friendship; in just a few short days Julie has become a major inspiration in my life. Not ironically her aerobatic plane Julie still flies at age 63 is a type called a “Mentor.” Read this book and Julie will become your inspiration and mentor too!
You can listen to our interview of Julie on THINK Like a BLACK BELT: The Show: http://bit.ly/n5byKo
Julie is an aerobatic pilot. An aerobatic pilot is an artist that paints in the sky by sharing with us the grace and power of man and machine in flight. Or in Julie’s case, woman and machine in flight! This is an important distinction because when Julie started the typical aviation career for a woman was stewardess, not pilot.
“Nothing Stood in Her Way” is more than the story of a female pilot; it’s the story of a life filled with challenges and adversity overcome with enthusiasm, grace and charm. Julie was still in high school when in the span of a few short months her mother died and her father was murdered by a deranged gunman while at the controls of his Pacific Air Lines plane in the most widely publicized aviation disaster of the 1960’s.
That would have been enough to stop most any rational human being. Despite numerous other challenges, family separation and personal loss, Julie forged ahead and crafted a life full of adventure and success. Her father’s legacy was a love of flying that would eventually shape Julie’s destiny.
Like many other women of the emerging “Jet Set” age, Julie started her aviation career as one of the legendary Air Hostesses flying for TWA. Having met Julie, I cannot imagine her being satisfied as a glorified waitress, even a high-flying one. No, Julie belonged at the controls. She would overcome numerous other obstacles and set-backs and break through the boy’s club of commercial aviation to become an airline pilot and America’s first female Captain at a major airline.
As much as I’m tempted to trumpet the rest of the story, I don’t want to spoil the adventure for you! Read “Nothing Stood in Her Way” and you’ll meet one of the most remarkable and inspirational women of our time. Julie will take you on her journey from the constraints of the ground to the limitless freedom of flight and through her ascent as she pierced the “glass ceiling” in life as well as in the air.
Julie is one of those rare leaders that through undaunted courage and perseverance change the world in which she lives for the better. Woman or man, you will be changed by Julie’s example of she lives life on her own terms while still exemplifying the best of all feminine qualities of grace, charm and genuine compassion.
As a person, Julie is a remarkable combination of fire and water. She can swear like a pirate (or a pilot!) or go toe to toe with a man twice her size one moment, and then in the next welcome you into her most tender self with a warm hug and an infectious laugh. Her energy and her spirit is well captured in this book which should be required reading for all modern women and for anyone who faces what might seem to be insurmountable challenges.
I personally hope to get to know Julie much better over the next few years. I am grateful for such a quick and genuine friendship; in just a few short days Julie has become a major inspiration in my life. Not ironically her aerobatic plane Julie still flies at age 63 is a type called a “Mentor.” Read this book and Julie will become your inspiration and mentor too!
You can listen to our interview of Julie on THINK Like a BLACK BELT: The Show: http://bit.ly/n5byKo
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