The AOPA Foundation, Inc.
Personal Giving Stories
Gifts to AOPA Support General Aviation
Jeff Harris' dreams of flight took off when he was 39.
At the time, Jeff was living in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and his parents were in Manteo, North Carolina; a tedious six hour drive away. When his Dad passed away Jeff hired a local charter pilot to fly him down to Manteo, and the trip only took two hours in a Cessna 182.
That flight marked the beginning of his private pilot adventures! His wife, DeAnn, contacted the charter pilot, who was also a certified flight instructor, and gave Jeff flying lessons as a Father's Day gift.
Today Jeff, 51, a business consultant and author of the book Retire Rich and Happy, flies 175 to 200 hours a year. Among other places, he has flown his Cirrus SR 22 from his South Carolina home to Montreal, Toronto, California, the Bahamas, and Detroit, where one of his daughters lives. Last July he was featured in a Wall Street Journal article titled "How I Live 300 Miles from My Office."
"We have three married daughters and three grandchildren in different states," Jeff said. "Flying offers an amazing amount of freedom and flexibility that blesses us personally and professionally." He's been a volunteer Angel Flight pilot for over nine years and recently added Animal Rescue (ARF) flights to his aviation community service.
When his father, a pilot in the 1950s, passed away, Jeff found his old log book and his AOPA wings. The organization meant a lot to his father, and it does to Jeff too. When he received an e-mail about AOPA's new Charitable Legacy initiative he took action by naming the AOPA Foundation as a beneficiary of the Donor Advised Fund he and his wife created several years ago.
Jeff said he's confident that the organization's years of proven stability and wise stewardship mean his gift will be put to good use. "Flying has been such a rewarding experience for me and my family, but I know it's expensive," he said. "I want to encourage more people to fly, get new blood in the industry. AOPA is a leader, the premier organization supporting general aviation."
Updated June 16, 2008
