May 14, 2026 – It’s the day before her 17th birthday when Emily Sims sits down for her Senior Stories interview. She’s full of anticipation and excitement. Emily is oh-so-close to obtaining a pilot’s license.

“I’ve lived by Tradewind Airport since I was 9 months old, and that shaped my interest in flying. I can’t wait to get it and take up some of my friends and family and show them what all my hard work has done,” she says. “I’m just soaking it all in and very thankful for everything my parents have given me.”

Earning her proverbial wings is just the start of all the ways Emily hopes her future will take flight. She’s graduating a year early from Tascosa High School and is headed to the US Air Force Academy Preparatory School. There, she’ll start the Early Path to Wings Program. Emily was a standout basketball player in high school, so she’ll also play basketball at the P School, as it’s called. If everything goes as planned, the following year, she’ll transition to the US Air Force Academy.

Emily hopes it all leads to a career as a fighter pilot.

“My flying instructor, Lt. Col. Jeff Ryan, who is retired Air Force, shaped my interest in that and made me want to be a fighter pilot,” acknowledges Emily.

Emily, whose major is aeronautical engineering, wants to know her plane, inside and out.

“I guess I feel if I can understand how a plane is built and how it works, I can be the best pilot,” she says.

The diploma and the pilot’s license are, as Emily puts it, tangible evidence of her hard work. She knows a lot more is ahead, but Emily is ready to fly.

“I will miss Amarillo and all the people who supported me,” she says. “Being able to return what I’ve been given by serving my country is a big deal to me. And I’m very, very fortunate to be able to do that.”