The Tribune

By FAY SIMMONS

Tribune Education Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

DEARJE McKinney, the recipient of this year’s Captain Sean Smith scholarship developed a passion for aviation from the tender age of three.

He said that as a child, he became interested in aviation due to the influence of his grandfather and uncle and always knew that he wanted to pursue a career in aviation.

“Its something I always wanted to do from I was a kid. My interest came from a combination of my uncle and my grandfather. My grandfather used to be a taxi driver, my uncle is in the aviation industry now he works to American Airlines, and back in the day he worked for Gulfstream,” said Dearje.

“Between the two of them having me around it, my love just grew for it even more, and I knew it was the only thing I wanted.”

The 19-year-old scholarship winner, who grew up playing on simulators, said the prize is awarded annually by Captain Smith to a young Bahamian that is interested in pursuing a career in aviation.

“Captain Sean Smith does the scholarship every year to give opportunities to Bahamians that are interested in aviation to pursue their career in the industry,” said Dearje

“I just got accepted into Delta State University and I should be leaving this year to pursue my degree in flight operations. I’m also currently doing a course in cybersecurity with Google.”