Press Release

Issued by West Houston Airport Corporation.

September 18, 2021

Shelly Lesikar deZevallos, of Houston, Texas, has been honoured as an inductee into the International Forest of Friendship in Atchison, Kansas during a recent online ceremony. The Forest is a living, growing memorial to the world history of aviation and aerospace. She was recognised for her work and dedication to the general aviation industry including workforce development.

As the first person in her family to graduate from college, she understands what a difference in her life that challenge meant. Her dad, Woody Lesikar, taught her the value of hard work, a passion for learning, and never giving up. By the time she was 20, she had earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas, her private pilot's licence, was a lay minister in her church and was working at the Texas Legislature. Fast forward 30 years and Dr. deZevallos strives to show others how any education and opportunity in life whether it's in a trade, degree programme or a passion, can make a tremendous difference.

Dr. deZevallos currently serves Texas Southern University on their Aviation Advisory Board working alongside their Professional Pilot and Aviation Management degree programs. Locally, she is involved in numerous charitable efforts such as the San Jacinto Girl Scouts of America and is a spokesperson at schools across the state about aviation workforce development. Her passion is presenting to youth and policy makers about the aviation industry and aerospace workforce that is needed around the world - less than 8% of all licensed pilots are women and minorities and she is trying to do her best to increase that number - one student at a time.

Shelly is part of the family that operates West Houston Airport, one of the top 20 privately owned-public use general aviation FAA reliever airports across the country. They also currently operate the oldest and continuous running flight school in the Houston area which has trained thousands and thousands of pilots flying at airlines and companies all around the globe.

Dr. deZevallos herself is an active pilot with a commercial certificate, Single, Multi Engine Land and glider ratings with over 5,000 hours of flight in various makes and models.

Nationally, Shelly is on the board of directors for the National Business Aviation Association, the world's leading business aviation trade association. She also volunteers and conducts research with the National Academy of Science's Transportation Research Board. Statewide, Dr. deZevallos currently serves Texas on the Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Advisory Committee.

In the autumn of 2019, Dr. deZevallos was appointed by Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao to the United States Department of Transportation Safety Oversight and Certification Advisory Committee (SOCAC) where she is part of a national committee addressing safety and certification issues in the aviation industry.

Shelly is a native Houstonian and resides in Houston, Texas, with her husband, Chris and their twin girls, Katharine and Sarah.

The International Forest of Friendship was a gift to America on the Nation's 200th birthday (1976) from the City of Atchison (Amelia Earhart's birthplace) and The Ninety-Nines, the International Organization of Women Pilots. It is made up of trees representing all the 50 US states and 35 countries around the world, including a “moon tree” grown from a seed taken to the moon on Apollo 14. Among the more than 1500 honorees are such internationally recognized fliers as Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergh, the Wright Brothers, Sally Ride, Eileen Collins and Chuck Yeager.