The Other 6 Days

Overcomers: Flying By Faith | The Other 6 Days | Episode 67

• Southwest Church • Season 4 • Episode 67

Share episode

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 31:04

In this episode, CJ sits down with Elizabeth Witte to hear an incredible story of faith, survival, and resilience. At just 16 years old, Elizabeth survived a devastating plane crash that could have ended everything—but instead, it reshaped her faith, her future, and her purpose. This is a story about pain, perseverance, and learning how to trust God when life takes an unexpected turn.

INFORMATION & RESOURCES:

For more information or to join the conversation, head over to https://southwestchurch.com/theother6days or email us at theother6days@southwestchurch.com

FOLLOW US!

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/theother6dayspodcast/
TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@theother6days
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@theother6days

Welcome And Series Setup

SPEAKER_01

Hey everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Other Six Days podcast, where we talk about life outside of Sundays and what it means to live from our gatherings and not just for them. I'm your host, CJ McFadden, and today we're continuing our Overcomer series: stories of real people who faced overwhelming odds and use those experiences to point others to the hope we find in Jesus. Today's story is powerful, humbling, and honestly hard to believe. Our guest is Elizabeth Witt, a Coachella Valley local whose life changed forever after surviving a tragic plane crash at just the age of 16 years old. What could have ended her story actually became the beginning of a new one. Elizabeth, we're so grateful you're here and welcome to the podcast. Thank you. So happy to be here. Uh so before we dive into your story today, could you give us a little background, maybe, on who you are, upbringings, hobbies, passion, family? Who is Elizabeth Witt?

SPEAKER_00

Alrighty. Well, I was born in the Bay Area. Okay. And then came here when I was about three years old to the desert. Um, my parents wanted to be closer to our grandparents. And it ended up being like, you know, of course, God's timing. And so honestly, not long after we arrived here, my grandma got like stage four breast cancer. So it ended up be really great that we were there to support her. And so I just remember like my childhood being out in grandma's pool, enjoying the summers, watermelon throwing into the garden. You know, it's just perfectly I love thinking back to that time of my childhood. And so, but that season was really caring for grandparents. So we cared for my grandma until she passed away from cancer, and then after that, we cared for um my grandpa. He came in and moved in with us in a casita, and he lived with us for about five years, and then my dad's dad, his house burnt down in the 2018 paradise fires. Oh no. So we cared for him for two years. So like my childhood was definitely like very family, like grandparents and caring for one another, like focused. Yeah. And then, you know, I was blessed to, you know, be in a Christian home. Like I accepted Jesus in my heart when I was four. Oh, there you go. Yeah. You know, we went to church on a Sunday morning and loved doing um Bible studies, and that was like a big part of my childhood. And then I loved doing music. So that was that was my thing. I love doing piano, guitars, singing in choirs and worship. That that was so my thing. That's what I thought, you know, for sure I was gonna do. So I thought it was gonna be music. Okay. And then like passions, like or you know, hobbies. Today I just loved driving fast cars. Really? That's my thing. That's your thing now? That's my thing, yeah. Oh man, that's awesome. I've been in a couple Corvettes and I try to drive my little zippy thing as fast as it can go. Around town or a close track?

SPEAKER_01

Okay, safely. I like how you the caveat, yeah. You're all safely, illegally. How many tickets do you have? No. Zero. Oh, okay, okay. You're safe.

SPEAKER_00

All right, you're good.

SPEAKER_01

Have you ever been out to the thermal club on one of that closed track out there?

SPEAKER_00

I actually have a gift card to go there. That is so cool. Haven't gone yet. But it's I'm gonna do it before it gets hot.

SPEAKER_01

Yep. That's a hey, that's smart. I heard it's a great time. I've heard a couple people who really have enjoyed it. Actually, my dad really liked it too.

SPEAKER_00

So yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I can't wait.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. You're gonna you're gonna go fast for sure. That's cool. Um, so uh yeah, hobbies. Uh so worship, you thought you were gonna do that. Were you a worship person at church? Is that kind of your yes?

SPEAKER_00

I love doing it, you know, for the services, but in youth ministry. So I did it for the elementary and junior high and love doing it with, you know, fellow, you know, students my age and just learning the craft. We had worship discipleship at church, and it was such a great way to like grow spiritually, but then also musically. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

So uh vocalist or instrumentalist were you?

SPEAKER_00

I was a vocalist and then pianist and guitarist.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, there you go.

SPEAKER_00

So of course a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of all. All right, yeah.

Falling In Love With Flight

SPEAKER_01

You're the same as like uh our producer here on the show, Danny, like just multi-talented.

SPEAKER_00

We used to do worship together. Oh, of course, of course we did. Yes.

SPEAKER_01

Okay. All right, it's all coming together. Uh so when did you become interested in flying? When was it when did that happen?

SPEAKER_00

I was 14. Okay. So I went to a school fair and there was this booth that had um free ground school and introduced you to your first flight. So I was a go-getter. I was like, who wouldn't want to fly an airplane? And so I I signed up, and about maybe a couple weeks later, I showed up to um Jacqueline Cochrane Regional Airport. Just call it thermal airport.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Thermal airport. Um and you know, it was a small, you know, Cessna 172, and I hopped in and we did all the pre-flight and I taxed and we're at the point of taking off, and I remember pulling back and just feeling like the speed and you know, going back in your seat a little bit, and to think like I was the one doing that. Yeah. And you're up in the air, and I'm like, oh my goodness, I love this. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I that was it.

SPEAKER_00

That was it. I was like, I want to do this. So um after that, I just you know started asking for like advice and from mentors, other people who are aviation, asking, you know, best paths or yeah, that kind of thing. And um I ended up applying for scholarships. So I got two scholarships to get my flight training done. Wow. Um, and um applied for college um because I was about to graduate. I was at the point, I was 16. Yeah. Um, to Emory Riddle Aeronautical University worldwide. Wow. And got in with um a degree in aeronautics. And so I started flying and I was just having I was having the time of my life.

SPEAKER_01

That is so awesome.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. So it was it was pretty crazy.

SPEAKER_01

That's pretty incredible. Wow, I didn't know Emory Ridd Riddle. I didn't know you went that far with it. It makes sense though now, kind of okay. Um, but so what did you like most about flying though? Was it the speed?

SPEAKER_00

It was the speed, and I mean just the views. Like, honestly, like just being up there in a small airplane and just looking down, seeing everything small, seeing your own local valley and enjoying honestly the peace and quiet. And it's pretty, it is pretty calm.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, it's pretty serene up there, huh?

SPEAKER_00

It was also always challenging too. Like, I loved being challenged and learning something new, and it was something I had none of my family had been in aviation. Like this was all this was all new to us. And so I just enjoyed exploring it and flying, and it was it was cool.

SPEAKER_01

Pretty much every aspect of it.

SPEAKER_00

Every aspect of it was great. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I love that. I love the challenging. That totally makes sense with uh it's like the instrument panel and all that stuff is actually very complex.

SPEAKER_00

And it is complex, but basically I'm like, it's just a bunch of math. Once you get your math down, it makes sense.

SPEAKER_01

So when you were uh 16 years old, um, most people are worried about what school, uh friends and future things like that, but you were learning how to fly a plane, like you mentioned. So walk us through part of your, you know, tell us about your incredible story, what happened?

The Solo Flight And The Crash

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so I was 16. I I was into my flight training. I was actually only one milestone away from getting my private pilot's license. And that's the first step when you um become a pilot. And I was really close to that goal. And specifically this day, I was doing a towered solo flight out at Palm Springs International Airport. So, what that means is you do three full stop landings. So you take off, you land, and then you taxi back and then do that three times. So that's called full stop landings. Okay, they're not touch and goes, which is you know, you land you. Yeah, exactly. So it was full stop landings while, you know, communicating with the ATC tower. So, you know, they have their own language and you gotta you have to learn that. And there's other pilots, there's old planes, you know, about a hundred times bigger than me. You know, you do not want to be the one in the way because you're not communicating right. Yeah, no, thank you. So um, that was going to be my um that milestone that I was gonna complete, and then after that, I only had one more.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So I was really excited about getting this done. I was felt like I was getting close to the finish line. So um with my flight instructor and I, we left from Thermal Airport and then we flew to Palm Springs International Airport. We did a couple full stop landings um together, and then I dropped him off. And, you know, everything was going well. I did one solo flight, so just me and the plane, the full stop landing, communicating with the tower, another one, second one just fine. Okay. And then on the third one, and I'd done solo flights before, this wasn't my first time doing it. And um on the third one, I just remember taking off and then the plane falling. Amazingly, that's you know, all I remember. And I had a couple thoughts in those moments, like the first one being Oh god, please don't let me hit the ATC tower because that could mean casualties. Um, and the second one just being like, This is it, you know, as I just the you know, the plane's barreling towards the ground, the ground is getting closer, and and then I just had this peace. I just had this sense that this was the next step of my journey because I had this verse go through my head and Matthew, even the wind and the waves obey him. And you know, everything about flying is about the wind. And people had prayed that verse over me. And when that verse came through my head in those last couple of moments, I was like, this is just the next step of my journey. And then, you know, black.

SPEAKER_01

Black, yeah. Um I was gonna ask you, yeah, what so that verse went through your head, and were you kind of at at peace at that moment?

SPEAKER_00

I was at peace in that moment. Yeah. Like I wasn't, I wasn't scared and whatever it is. Yeah. Um, of course, I don't think I fully understood the reality of the moment either. Of course. Um, so um my plane crashed.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

And that's when the rescue started happening. So again, you know, God's timing was in it all, you know, his hand, despite it being an accident, it, you know, he was in charge of it all. So the ATC tower, she could um, the controller, she could tell something was just erratic. Something was wrong with the plane. And she had pushed like that call button to the fire department before I hit the ground.

SPEAKER_01

Oh wow, okay. So she moved right away, yeah.

Rescue On The Runway

SPEAKER_00

And then um the fire department, they're just a couple hundred yards away from the tower. And one of the firefighters was actually outside working on the trucks, and he saw my plane go down and he already started moving and getting ready before the alarm had gone off. So it's just like people were already in action. Already on it, already in action. And because of that, um, the firefighters were at my side within honestly moments.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Which was amazing because with that kind of accident, every every moment is the every second, every moment counts.

SPEAKER_01

Where did you land? Where did the plane hit?

SPEAKER_00

Right onto the runway.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, so you're on the runway. Right onto the runway.

SPEAKER_00

I hadn't got that far because I was like, take off and nosedive.

SPEAKER_01

Nose dive. Okay, got it.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. So it took it took about you know 30 minutes for them to get me out just because of honestly, planes aren't made for crashing. No. Okay. Cars are designed to be prepared for a crash because they happen more often. Planes are meant to be light and to fly. So when they hit the ground, they just crumble up. So honestly, that plane was just surrounding me. Oh wow. And so they couldn't pull me out. Okay. So they had to cut me out with like the jaws of life. They had one on each side trying just to pry the plane off of me. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. And what were some considerations? Did they notice injury possibilities?

SPEAKER_00

And so there was so I had completely shattered my face. So like I'll talk more about that with like, you know, injuries, but you know, they that was all blood. Yeah. All blood here. Yeah. Um, but they my legs were trapped. So they couldn't tell, you know, what the injuries were there. Got it. Um, I was alert, which was interesting. So you're awake the whole time. I was awake. I don't remember it, but I was talking with them and it was amazing. I I've talked to the firefighters later, but they were so kind. You know, they they stayed by my side the entire time, just talking me through it and making sure I stayed calm. And they said I was calm, and because I was calm, it helped them be calm too. So we were it was a calm situation despite you know it being life and death. But they got me out after about 30 minutes. Yeah. And it was also scary too, because there was like um, you know, the ab gas, the fuel all over, and so they had to put foam on it, like that could have caught on fire. Oh, so they also had to think about yeah, we have to make sure this isn't catch on fire.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, because airplane fuel is highly flammable and all the things.

SPEAKER_00

And some of the um some of the tools they were using were still creating sparks. So it was it's kind of a dangerous situation as well. So kind of keeping that in mind, and but they got me out and then they thankfully they just brought me over to Desert Reach All Medical Center, which was only five minutes away.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So I made it in with like that golden hour, that hour of trauma.

Waking Up In ICU

SPEAKER_01

So And you don't remember much at that time, right?

SPEAKER_00

I don't remember anything.

SPEAKER_01

You don't remember anything.

SPEAKER_00

I don't remember anything.

SPEAKER_01

What's the moment? Where do you what's the moment you remember? Like, do you that eventually and I see you.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. Eventually and I see you. Like waking up or something like that. Okay. So that's kind of where it all started. That's where it all started. So I was really out of it for about two weeks.

SPEAKER_01

Oh.

SPEAKER_00

So there's like two weeks of my life I don't remember.

Injuries And Massive Reconstructive Surgery

SPEAKER_01

That are that's missing. Wow. Yeah. So obviously you survived the plane crash. But surviving the crash was one thing. Let's jump into recovery's a whole different battle. So let's jump in. Tell us about your road to recovery.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so I can just start with the injuries. So I broke both of my legs in multiple areas. So my ankles, um, my knees, and you know, there was thoughts of like if I'd be able to walk again or that kind of thing by how injured um I was, and then I severed a tendon in my finger, and then I completely shattered my face. So um I had to have this surgery where they make an incision from ear to ear, and they pull down your face and reconstruct everything in there. So when they went to do that procedure, which was an 11-hour surgery, the doctors were like, it was like a jigsaw puzzle in there.

SPEAKER_01

You know, we were just trying to dumpty.

SPEAKER_00

The bones were the pieces, and we were just trying to put you back together, which is just crazy. So everything from my jaw to my cheekbones to my nose to my eye sockets, they had to put that all back together.

SPEAKER_01

So I mean, you took a full frontal. Yeah. Absolutely. Wow.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. So that's great.

SPEAKER_01

And so for as far as breathing and all those things, I mean, I that's a miracle that you made it.

SPEAKER_00

It was a miracle, and another thing too, is because they couldn't intubate meat through my mouth. Oh, okay. They had to make an incision through my neck. So I had a trach. And so that was really that was one of the hardest parts because I was on a ventilator and I had to get off the ventilator and I had to breathe again. And one thing with a trach, it it possibly takes the possibility of you being able to speak again. Really? So there was a risk I wouldn't be able to speak again.

SPEAKER_01

Because of the cut how they have to do that, like it could cut like your vocal cords. So you're singing and all the other things.

SPEAKER_00

So just to even be talking and to be singing, it's like those are all things that could have been taken away. Like speaking, eating, seeing, like all of that. Every like just the daily functions that we don't even think about, you know, and all all at jeopardy.

SPEAKER_01

Your eyesight, I mean, like, it's just that's a total miracle. Wow. Uh God has some great things in store for your life.

SPEAKER_00

I was like, I'm always like, I'm I'm in for a ride with this one.

SPEAKER_01

All right, here I am, Lord, use me, right? I'm uh I'm in for this ride. Yeah, you're you're in for the ride along. So, what were some of the hardest moments like during recovery for you that you can remember?

The Long Road Of Recovery

SPEAKER_00

So it ended up being a long recovery. Yeah. Okay. So two weeks in the ICU, three weeks on the hospital floors, and then two weeks after that in inpatient rehab. Um, just to start getting those daily functions back. And then, you know, learning to walk again, physical therapy for months. But then after that, it was still five years of surgeries. So it didn't it's I just finished up my last procedure about six months ago. Oh wow. And so because a lot of things weren't able to get fixed in those first preliminary surgeries. So even afterwards there was oh, pins and screws had to come out of your legs. Um, I still had double vision and some other eye problems that took multiple surgeries. And um I had no idea. I knocked out six of my front teeth.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_00

I had no idea that dental implants were such a long that's a long process.

SPEAKER_01

Long process.

SPEAKER_00

And I already had some extra, you know, problems they had to think about. Like I already had plates and screws in my mouth from my loss surgery.

SPEAKER_01

So you could put posts in. So they had to take those out so you could put posts.

SPEAKER_00

I was like, I had no idea.

SPEAKER_01

Wow, what an ordeal.

SPEAKER_00

So all of that um took a a really long time. So I think for me it was just, you know, overall I've probably had like ten surgeries in the beginning and then another twenty over the five year period. And so it was just this constant feeling of always feeling sick. Yeah. And always feeling tired and never feeling never feeling good for five years. And it was just exhausting. You know, that was that was really a challenge and always being in in pain a lot.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. I was gonna say in pain for a long time. Well, and I and I was just thinking, like, yeah, you survived the crash, you know, like thank God. And like, but I didn't think about the like how long of a recovery that is. And like that can wear on I mean the emotional and mental strain. Absolutely. I mean, that was a lot, right? So then let's jump in. I guess most importantly, obviously most importantly, r what role did your relationship with God play in that?

Faith, Presence, And Sustaining Grace

SPEAKER_00

You know, honestly, this isn't like the best question. This is this is like gone through it all. So I would say my relationship with God played a huge role in my recovery in in two primary ways. So, like, first I was never alone. And then um his grace sustained me. And so, like thinking back, so even in those earliest days in the hospital. So let's like go back to the ICU when I was just starting to become alert and everything, you know, I had those questions going through my mind of, you know, why did I crash? Will I, you know, ever be the same? Yeah. Um, will I survive this and really like struggling with God? Like, why did this happen? But I've never felt his presence as close in those moments and like honestly as tangible than like his presence of them being like, I'm here and you're I have you here for a reason. And just you know, I remembered him like right before I crashed, this is the next step in my journey. And so I just had to trust that he would do the same for me even then in that ICU hospital bed and in the years to follow. And and then honestly, God's grace through it all just to sustain, like looking back, I wonder how did I get through that? Like, how did I get through those times in the hospital? How did I get through, you know, the really hard physical therapy? And it was honestly all his grace sustaining me and his strength. There was it was none of me. It was not my strength or my motivation or my will. It was his grace to get me through it back then. I can't even yeah, imagine.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, I can't imagine. Well, and I can see it that you said, you know, basically he's like, Will you trust me? And you're like, you know, I can't see it, but I will. And then he his strength got you through all of those things. I mean, the physical piece, the mental strain, all the things. I mean, just finishing up your stuff six months ago, like, that's a lot. Yeah. So that is so I mean, that's that's powerful. Oh, thank you so much for sharing that. Absolutely. So I do have to ask you, um, what was your experience like with the uh you going back to the ICU? Um, I know there was some interaction with some of the desert regional. That was where you're at, right? Yeah. So like the trauma care team and the doctors and stuff.

Care At Desert Regional During COVID

SPEAKER_00

Like they were really amazing there. So one thing that was really unique was that they don't keep minors at that hospital. And at that point, I was a minor, I was 16. Usually whenever. That happens, they send them out to Loma Linda. But because I was just so serious and unstable, they kept me. And because of that, I I really believe I got some really great care. Yeah. Definitely. And like, you know, the facial reconstruction, like that plastic surgery aspect. Like, I am so grateful to be like recognizable to the person who I was before. You know, like when they're thinking about function, you know, they really shouldn't have to be thinking about, oh, let's try to make her look the same too.

SPEAKER_01

No, they're they're just thinking, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

But they did.

SPEAKER_01

We want you to be able to move your mouth, not that it looks like.

SPEAKER_00

Exactly, but they did. And it it's one of those things, you know, amazing care and skill. But then everybody was also extra tender. This was during actually COVID. Yeah. So we was at the height of COVID, everybody's scared, everybody's isolated. Yeah. Um, I was able to thankfully have my mom with me, but um people were just softened to see each basically a child there. And they they cared and they were sensitive. And I have relationships with people from um some of the doctors and nurses at Dudge Regional that I keep in touch with today.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, that's a big deal.

SPEAKER_00

So, you know, people, you know, they cared. You know, after a while, definitely in that challenging time, it could just be another patient, another patient or another unresponsive patient. Yeah. But they really cared and um tried to, you know, notice when I was in pain, even though I couldn't communicate. Yeah. Um, I couldn't speak, I couldn't see. But they had a way of just holding my hand or they could tell if my heart rate was up and speaking to me. And oh, just compassion at another level.

Gratitude For Medical Teams

SPEAKER_01

That's so sweet. Oh, that builds such confidence, like in the medical community and just like what we have available to us here. Absolutely. Wow. Oh man, that's a big deal. And for those of you that are listening and you're not watching on YouTube, like I can tell you that Elizabeth's face and everything, you would never know that she had gotten in a plane crash. Like they did a fantastic job. Like, I mean, you have like minor like little scars, but other than that, like they did a f I mean, it's phenomenal. It's crazy. Like, that is so cool. I mean, oh, praise God. So, um, yeah, is there anybody you want to just thank while you need a little shout out while you're on here?

SPEAKER_00

Little shout out. Well, okay. Well, at Desert Regional, um my ortho PA, we still stay in touch. So that's really great. There you go. Um some of the doctors and nurses who really cared, just like Tino and Penom, and they were just so kind and compassionate and would, you know, hold my hand and you know, just even though I couldn't like talk or speak, yeah, they were like, We'll we'll read the monitors to see how she feels. Like that's her, that's their interpretation of seeing what my emotions were. Like if I was afraid or scared and they talked me through things. So they didn't just see me as an unresponsive patient, like they knew my brain was going a million dollars going like what's going on here.

New Direction: Engineering And Drones

SPEAKER_01

That's uh that's that's so sweet. Um, so obviously this has shaped your faith in great ways. Um, so what's uh you know, what uh what's next for you? Uh what's but God been showing you through all of this? What how has your life changed because of this uh this uh experience?

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely. So um this experience has both really shaped and strengthened my faith at a new level because I've seen how mighty God is. You know, um just He moved mountains in so many ways. Like he had me survive a plane crash, which is one of those things you don't statistically survive. There was things medically that made doctors scratch their heads, like you shouldn't be you shouldn't be walking like this, or you shouldn't be breathing like this. And one of those moments when I see just how powerful God is, I'm grateful that I've had, you know, experienced him personally in that way. And it helps give me, you know, faith for whatever life will still have my way. I'm like You can go through anything. I was gonna go plane crash at 16. What happens at 21? No one's a minute. Oh, I know. I'm like I was like, I know life is supposed to like ramp up, but I'm like, it was pretty, you know.

SPEAKER_01

Hey, you're a thrill seeker, you like excitement in your life, and so you know, you you you've got it.

SPEAKER_00

This is kind of crazy, but I I'm privileged to have seen God in that perspective of just being with me and having seen the lowest of lows and but also seeing the mighty God meet me there.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

That's really powerful.

SPEAKER_01

So you're not pursuing flying at the moment. What uh what's changed? What are the new dreams and aspirations and your kind of new direction?

Will She Fly Again

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. So I switched my degree from aeronautics to engineering. Um just because I wasn't sure, you know, how I felt about aviation at that time. And um, I really enjoyed my education because even though, you know, my recovery was taken taking everything out of me, you know, I felt like I could continue my education and something was moving forward. Yeah. Because so often after every surgery, I know I was making progress, but for me it just felt like I was going backwards. I'm like, I'm feeling bad again. So I really appreciated my education for that aspect. And then I was just, you know, inspired like by the fire department, just the level of protecting people. And I was like, I'd love to do a job that helps protect people. So I've been able to have some experience working in private security um with drone surveillance. So I fly drones for um big sports events. So that's been fun, like another way of keeping people safe. So I have my engineering degree, then a little work experience in that, and then I'm getting my master's next month in um uncrewed and autonomous systems. What? A fancy term for drones.

SPEAKER_01

We talked about it before the podcast, and I heard that and I was like, I'm writing that down. I mean that's amazing.

Writing The Book And A New Beginning

SPEAKER_00

So just I would love to possibly work in, you know, defense and another way of protecting our military or just you know, our country. Um, but again, I I know that I hold loosely to my plans. Yeah. And God has I've done more things than I ever thought I would, from flying an airplane to flying drones to doing worship for churches, um to authoring a book. I was like, God, I don't know what you have in store. So of course I hold on to that loosely and I'm open to whatever else he might have. I I love to say I bring God my plan A and my plan B, and he brings in the plan C. Yeah. I was like, okay, we're doing the plan C, usually.

SPEAKER_01

So I know you probably get asked this question all the time, but will you ever fly again?

SPEAKER_00

Yes, I absolutely hope to. You know, I loved it. I am more I'm waiting for the right time though. Just waiting for, you know, to be whole and to be healed. And then also this the same for my family too. Like they went through this as well. And I want to make sure we're all in that place of you know, healing and wholeness and unity, and something that really affected us all. So one day I know I will. It's I love I love flying, I love aviation. So yeah, I see it.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, and you have slight course change. I mean, guys still has you're still flying, it's just technically not playing, it's drones now, and so you know, all those things. But God's got big plans for your life, and you know, he's still working mightily, so and it's obvious. Um you mentioned it, uh, so tell us a little bit about this book that's coming out.

Final Encouragement And Closing

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so I graduated in the end of May, and I've been told, you know, you should write a book. And I would say, still it. You know, I'm not a writer, I do math. And but, you know, maybe if somebody came along and helped me or, you know, wrote it. And so um I had this graduation celebration at the Palm Springs Air Museum, and one of my friends came up, he, you know, same thing. Did you write a book? I was like, nah. And he was like, actually, I think I can introduce you to somebody who might help. And that person introduced me to somebody else who introduced me to this person who said, Absolutely, I'd love to do this project with you. And I was like, What? And so he ended up being my editor and helped me from day one, just understanding how to like shape a book. Um, things like, you need an emotional break. I'm like, what's an emotional break? And um he did all the editing and the formatting, and we were about to self-publish, and then I got called up by an a Christian publisher, Corn Media, and they're like, We we'd love to partner with your book. And I was like, Wow, okay, I did not see that coming. So it was a quick project.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Six months.

SPEAKER_01

Yep.

SPEAKER_00

And um it's on a pre-order right now and should be out in about two weeks.

SPEAKER_01

So it'd be like, yeah, December or uh 2026-ish, like kiss, like in there, or no, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

No, so it should be like January. January, perfect. January 6th, yeah, perfect.

SPEAKER_01

Um, you excited about that? What the future looks like for all that? Or you don't know what it is.

SPEAKER_00

It's a new it's something new. I'm like, God, what is this? Everything is new in your life. Everything is new, and I do feel like it's a new beginning just for the fact, like, you know, my recovery is over, like I graduated, so my god, I don't know what you have, but we have this book, and I'm excited to see where that leads, and it's it's his story, you know?

SPEAKER_01

So Behold, I am making all things new. And you are like the poster child for that.

SPEAKER_00

Everything is different.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, there you go. Um, so Elizabeth, any final thoughts or encouragements for our listeners as we wrap this thing up?

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely. I think the biggest thing is to keep trusting God. And I say keep because it's so easy to doubt.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

And personally, for me, I I've seen God do great things, yet somehow something else comes up and I'm and I think this is it. This is the thing that's gonna take me down. And I think it's just in our human nature to doubt and to be, you know, it's okay, it's human, but we had to just go right back and come back to God and surrender to Him and trust again, because He's not going to fail. This is not gonna be the one where He decides, I'm gonna fail you today. So I just have to keep remembering that.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

And I to the listener, just keep trusting God.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, that's so good. Man, He's a God who always comes through. And I I think your story teaches us great lessons on not how just to survive, but to thrive in the midst of adversity. Like you have done so much and you still are doing so much, and God has so much planned in your life, even in the midst of something that would set most people back forever. And so, you know, thank you for all you're doing. Thank you for writing and sharing your story and writing a book. And uh, we're just uh so excited to see what uh kind of plans God has for you, and He's gonna continue to do it in and through your life. And so we'll put it in the show notes, we'll put the link to the book, uh, to some other resources and things that we have. But uh thanks again for being with us.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, absolutely. Yeah, it's the purpose to do this. This was fun.

SPEAKER_01

It was such a good time. So, well, there you have it, guys. Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Other Six Days podcast. Be sure to hit that subscribe, follow, share, and like. Spread the word, and as always, take what you've heard and turn it into something you can do to spread the gospel and the world around you. Until next time. See ya.