More than a dozen kids spent the past week at Camp Willa, where they learned the ins and outs of the airline industry.

The free camp hosted by the Willa Brown Aviation Academy exposed underserved youth in the Madison area to the world of aviation. Campers were between the ages of 12 and 17.

“I’m just super excited because as soon as we show them a little bit of knowledge and experience, they are just really excited and they already making plans. And so we’ve accomplished our mission,” said Fareed Guyot, president of Willa Brown Aviation Academy.

The nonprofit was named after aviator and civil rights activist Willa Brown. She was the first African American woman to have a commercial and mechanic pilot license in the United States.

Willa Brown was a lifelong advocate for gender and racial equality in aviation. That’s why the nonprofit, made up of airline pilots, opens its doors for kids who may not otherwise get an opportunity to learn about careers in aviation.

Alex Nunley, 17, and his brother Amir Brown, 15, were two of those kids and attended the camp together.

“It’s eye-opening. It’s more than I expected,” said Nunley. 

Nunley and Amir Brown said they never thought of a job in aviation.

“I didn’t consider being a pilot before, but now I do... I do. I was really fun,” Amir Brown said.

The teens said it was a special opportunity for them, echoed by their grandmother.

“It means the future, what the next generation looks like in our family, for the youth of color, “ said Martha Stacker.