By: Janice Dayle
Young Barrington Irving, created history on June 26, 2007, when he returned from his solo flight around the world. The 23year old Jamaican born pilot caused tears of pride to well up in the eyes of many as he accomplished his youthful dreams and achieved the aim of inspiring young men and women for some time to come. Being the first person of African descent as well as the youngest person to ever succeed in such a colossal feat, has placed Irving way above the clouds he rode alone – in the eyes of the world.
Inspired at the age of 15 by another Jamaican pilot, Gary Robinson, young Irving set out to not only master the field of Aviation but also to become an inspiration himself to other youth. Having been born in Kingston and raised in Miami's inner city since he was 6 years old, Irving was accustomed to seeing teens develop into nothingness, with not much confidence in their future or hope for substantial progress after high school. In an interview on his Experience Aviation website, Irving said, "When I was a teenager, there was little incentive for me or my classmates to get off the streets and pursue real careers. And the situation hasn't improved; in the neighborhoods between my home and high school, more than 24 kids under the age of 21 were murdered by other kids under 21 in the past year alone."
Identifying these conditions as the main cause for diminished hope amongst inner city youth, Irving set out to encourage change, by being a living example. Through his love for aviation, Irving was able to prove naysayers wrong, as he persevered even while lacking sufficient resources. "I was too you and had no money, but that didn't stop me," he said. Determined to show his Miami Gardens peeps that they can do more with their lives than resorting to violence, Irving set out fearlessly to not only learn, accomplish and earn, but also to construct an environment geared towards mentoring and developing the aviation skills of other youth.
Experience Aviation is the name of that place, and it is a nonprofit organization founded by Irving that aims at encouraging kids to pursue careers in aviation and aerospace. Citing statistics that show a shortage in qualified aviation industry personnel over the next 10 years, Irving developed a plan to foster the interests of youth by informing them of the procedures to get the necessary training and by promoting confidence in their potential.
With deep passion and strong faith in God, Irving fearlessly flew around the world. He feels his ability to motivate countless young people to pursue careers in aviation is his actual purpose on earth. "I feel that aviation has chosen me for this purpose," Irving said.
