ALYISSA MILLER
GJHS Reporter 

           Outside the big city of Charlotte, North Carolina, is the small town of Waxhaw, whose population rarely ever moved from the neighborhood they've come to love. But that didn't stop Preston Shuman, a 2007 graduate at Central Piedmont Community College. 

           On the 15th of September Shuman shared his life's journey in front of 25 sets of eyes including his former teacher Steven Robb, a World History teacher at Greater Johnstown High School, who has helped him get on the path he is today and to help him follow his dreams. 

           Shuman says, “I promise you in highschool I had a 2.0; I never put in 100% but in college I was more focused. It's not hard whenever you apply yourself to something.”

            He came a long way, from being a lower achieving student to a flight attendant at Mesa Airlines, which is a small company that moved him from North Carolina to Phoenix, Arizona. After graduating from training he landed himself a job at Emirate Dubai, one of the world’s number one hub for international passengers. Although he admits that this was a luxurious job Shuman had his heart set on Southwest Airlines.

               Shuman gets his ultimate dream job, Southwest.

              “I could be who I am there, I make jokes, I have flexible hours; I'm basically my own boss. Some days are long but when you find something you're passionate about it isn't really a job anymore.”

               Shuman has been to over 43 countries and plans to take his summer off next year in Japan. He began to learn foreign languages from interacting with native people from different countries such as, Arabic, Chinese, and Japanese.

            “I'd start talking Chinese or Japanese to a complete stranger,” he says, “and they're like ’How do you know that?’ Or they say ‘Where are you from?’ It sparks a meaningful conversation.”
             
            The objective of Shuman’s visit to Greater Johnstown was to push kids to follow their dreams and do something they're passionate about.

            Robb ended the class with: “Ultimately your sky is limitless, I do not know where your plane will take you, but let it take you somewhere.”