Adventure Pilot Amanda Harrison's Talk to Byron House

Body

'Always find the rainbow. If I can, you can' (Amanda Harrison)

T2W have been thinking about their 'big plans' for this year having been inspired by the picture book 'Mabel and the Mountain' by Kim Hillyard - a story about believing in yourself. In connection with this persevering mindset, Byron House were delighted to welcome adventure pilot Amanda Harrison to talk to them with a truly inspirational message.

Amanda is the true spirit of adventure. Despite several setbacks she never gave up on her dream of being a pilot. From small beginnings, she has successfully navigated a twenty-year journey towards her biggest dream - solo pioneering a vintage airplane across the globe.

Aged only 14 when she enjoyed her first flight, Amanda gained inspiration from her engineer dad and Amy Johnson - a pioneering English pilot who was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia. Her dad built her a remote control model of Paddington Bear flying a marmalade plane when she was young and she has been passionate about flying ever since.

Amanda believes that ordinary people can do extraordinary things and is a living example of this. She is passionate about inspiring others to keep their dreams alive and live them. She also talked about being how her dyslexia meant her brain works better with pictures than words. The children heard than she feels her brain works in a different way from other people's but that dyslexia should in no way present barriers to being able to succeed and achieve your goal or your dream.

"Not everyone has to learn to fly, just follow your own dreams."