Hello! My name is Hailey and I am from Gilbert, Arizona - born and raised. I went to Highland High School and graduated from Grand Canyon University with a Communications degree in 2022. Here at Red Rock, I am the office manager. I oversee multiple aspects of the company such as customer service, management of staff and students, and some accounting duties, and a whole bunch of random tasks and projects on a day to day basis.
My mom is from Texas and my dad is from Maine. Growing up, I was so ready to see other parts of America. I was over the heat and wanted to experience something different, so I left Arizona during my college years. I spent my summers of college in Texas working at a summer camp and I even transferred to the University of Alabama. However, I always missed Arizona and ended up back in the valley for good during 2020. I still think it would be fun to go live in another country for a year at some point in my life.
Personally I have always wanted to visit Greece and think that living somewhere abroad for a year would be absolutely incredible. I'm not too picky, but I do love some good ocean front property as well as rich history. I did live in Texas and Alabama for a while during college and it was so much fun! I went to Malawi, Africa when I was 16 and that trip was one of my favorites because of what it taught me. Life is so simple, but we tend to overcomplicate it. Find joy within yourself and loved ones rather than in material items. Lastly, have fun and love others.
However, as I get older, I have learned to love and appreciate Arizona. We have snow and seasons up north while spring and winter in the valley are the best temperatures. The Arizona sunsets are unmatched and the various mountain ranges here are perfect for looking at as well as hiking up. Traffic here is getting worse as more and more people realize all of the benefits of living in Arizona so that's definitely annoying. There are few places in the United States that have such great year
round weather. We also have one of the seven wonders of the world- the Grand Canyon. My husband and I frequently visit Sedona which has such a unique landscape coloring unlike anything I have ever seen.
Currently, I am not a pilot, but I have thought about getting my Private and Instrument ratings. Overall, I love the field and being able to support our students obtain all
the ratings they want. I feel like aviation is actually a pretty emotional field. That's something that really interests me about it. When you're a commercial pilot, you are bringing people to destinations for various reasons. Maybe it's a trip they've waited to go on their whole life, or to go see someone they've been missing, or to celebrate a loved one's life, and so much more. Yes, sometimes a flight is just for work or something a little more surface-level, but pilots are the ones flying these people all over the world and to me that's impactful.
Although I am not a pilot, I do plan on making a career in the aviation field. It's a field I feel very strongly about and would be open to staying at the flight school level, but I also think working for a major airline one day could be really
rewarding as well. My dream career would be something involved with working for Delta or American for sure. I have always loved flying, especially on 737 and 777, but the longer I work at Red Rock the more I am obsessed with it. So my dream job would probably be something along the lines of overseeing the flight staff. I think flight crew management is really essential to any airline or flight school. When you have a team that works well together and is organized, customers see that and it impacts their experience whether they're trying to get
somewhere or learning how to fly themselves
No one in my family, outside of my mom's cousin (she's a flight attendant), has done anything in the aviation field. Maybe my passion for it will spark something in my nieces and nephews! However, I do have close friends and my in-laws that I look up to for various reasons. My husband's grandfather was a pilot for decades and he was so passionate about flying. We got to connect over aviation in many ways before he passed away this last January. He never went commercial, he just strictly loved flying & made excuses to go any chance he could get. I'm also inspired by several of my pilot friends. They are all in their "CFI era" and it is really cool to see them instruct other future pilots and the passion they have for it. I'm sure when they go fly for major airlines and get their wings,it will only continue to be a proud friend moment.
I love the day to day stuff. The students who I gave a tour to now soloing or watching them get their private and other ratings have been so rewarding the last year. I love the conversations I get to have with these students about aviation and what's going on in their lives- like the mom who is changing her career or the newly high school graduate just starting their adult life. There are so many different stories of what brought them here. It's also incredible to see the number of female pilots increase!
My parents are both such hard working and caring people. My mom has always emphasized having love and compassion for others, while my dad has taught me the important lessons of indepence and adventure. I think the combination of their parenting styles have really created in me a passion for being kind to others and to always explore and travel. I love to travel- whether it's a
weekend trip to Sedona or traveling across the globe, I thoroughly enjoy seeing new places and learning about other cultures. I think there is so much to learn from people. Recently, my husband and I went on our honeymoon to Kaui, HI and it was so beautiful. The whole trip was my favorite memory, but the one that stands out the most is when we completed a 6.5 mile hike in the rain and mud and we were so tired but the views were astonishing and our spirits were high.
Some fun facts about Hailey:
My favorite drink right now is a coconut latte from Peixoto (the syrup is homemade) and it's incredible. My favorite food is fruit especially since it's summer and all my favorites are in season. My favorite treat is somewhere between a chocolate chip cookie and ice cream- don't make me choose. I have a fear of heights but I love flying. It's the most contradictory thing ever, but I feel so safe and free while flying, yet standing on top of a mountain makes my heart race and palms sweat.
I think love is the most important human attribute because without it we have nothing. You can have all the success and money in the world, but if you don't have love, you have those things and those things alone. Love is what we should try to focus our lives around. The world would be a better place if we did.
To our students, make sure you are prepared to study!! Flying is incredible, but the work is not
done once you leave the airplane. Flying is the fun part, it's all the aeronautical knowledge that can be dry at times even if you're crazy passionate about flying. Also, I would say don't let fear hold you back. Whether it's financial fear or fear of failure, know that you can do this if you put your mind to it.
I was brought to Red Rock through my last flight school I worked with and I feel so blessed to work here. Jim and Jordie are amazing owners and care about every single student. It is so evident in the way they operate and is very impactful for our students and staff to be led that way.