LeRoy W. Homer Jr. Foundation

The LeRoy W. Homer Jr. Foundation was founded in 2002, in memory of LeRoy Homer, First Officer, who was onboard United #93 when it crashed in Shanksville, PA during the 9/11 terrorist attacks. LeRoy, along with the rest of crew and passengers have been credited with thwarting the hijackers’ plot to use the aircraft to destroy the US Capitol. All those onboard have been heralded as the first to fight the war on terror.
The mission of The LeRoy W. Homer Jr. Foundation is to encourage and support young adults who wish to pursue aviation careers and increase awareness about aviation careers to underrepresented youth through public engagement events. The Foundation annually awards flight scholarships to obtain private pilot certification, which is the first step towards becoming a professional pilot.
To date, The Foundation has awarded thirty-one flight scholarships. All recipients have either received their private pilot license or are currently recipients are in training. Some of our past recipients have gone on to graduate from undergraduate programs at the service academies - United States Air Force Academy, the United States Naval Academy. Others have attended the nation’s top flight programs at universities such as Embry Riddle, Purdue and San Jose, graduating with degrees including aeronautical engineering, aeronautical science, aviation, flight technology, aviation business, cyber security and cyber engineering. Most recipients have achieved additional ratings – instrument, complex, commercial single & multi-engine, airline transport pilot (ATP) and certified flight instructor (CFI.)
A former scholarship recipient writes “thank you for seeing the potential in me at such a young age. I do not think I would be where I am today if it was not for you. You helped provide me an opportunity to strive for larger goals like graduating from the Unites States Air Force Academy”.