Lucky Pierre’s Solo Flight

When George was little my father gave him the nickname of “Lucky Pierre”. It is an old WW2 joke that refers to how the French men always got the girls. George got the name because whenever my father hugged my mother, George would push his way to the center of the hug. My father would exclaim “Here comes old Lucky Pierre again!” (George never saw a hug he didn’t like! To this day, we can not hug in sight of George without it becoming a group hug!)

Just some history, George, who is soon to be 48 yrs. old, is my youngest brother and has Down syndrome. He has lived with me and my husband for 29 of our 30 years of marriage. My mother died shortly after our marriage and my father was diagnosed with terminal cancer six weeks later so George moved in with us when he was 19. George has three siblings, two sisters and one brother, three to seven years older.

After George moved in with us, I promised my sister and brother that George would spend time with both of them and their families. In the beginning, I would fly with George to Texas or Arizona for visits a couple times a year. This was fine for a while but as I became busier it became more difficult (and expensive) to coordinate between everyone’s different schedules, it was suggested that I allow George to fly solo.

George loves to fly and is very independent so he was fine with the idea. I, on the other hand, was very nervous about it. I did not worry about a flight where everything went right. We would only book non-stop flights and George would be given plenty of things to keep busy (his favorites being playing cards and picture books). It was the “What ifs” that drove me crazy. Although independent, George has some limitations. He can not read other than some sight words and he has poor vision and hearing. What if the plane made an emergency landing? Would George get off and be lost on the streets of Omaha? What if they gave emergency instructions over the intercom, would George understand them and be able to follow them? What if my sister or brother got into an accident on the way to the airport and were not there when George landed? What if someone was mean to him? What if he was frightened and I wasn’t there?

Two days before the flight George and I went out to the airport. We met with a woman from customer relations who helped prepare George for his solo flight .This was in the early 80’s so airlines were very customer friendly back then. He practiced putting on an oxygen mask and locating the exits on a plane. He got his wings and was ready to go.

We got to the airport early the day of his flight and signed him in as an “unaccompanied minor”. He was 22yrs old but this was the only system they had back then that would require the stewardess to check to make sure George was connected to his family and not just left off the plane to wander. I pre-boarded him and spoke to each stewardess about George’s limitations. Although George was quite ready for me to leave, I was having difficulty letting go. I left the plane and waited at the window until it took off, crying the whole time. Later, at home, I got a call from my brother-in-law saying my sister was at the airport and had George in hand. Relief swept over me but I wanted specifics and he didn’t know anything. I didn’t hear from them again that week as they were spending their vacation on their property up at the lake and did not have a phone. (This was before everyone and their toddler had cell phones!)

The next time I heard from them was again a call from my brother in law saying my sister had called to say George was on the plane coming home. My husband and I were at the airport an hour early waiting nervously for George to arrive. I worried about how he was getting along with people, if they saw him as a bother or were unkind to him. Would they understand George when he spoke to them? Would he drive them crazy talking the whole way? My husband assured me that “Lucky Pierre” was doing fine.

Everyone filed off the plane and I saw no sign of George but strangers were looking at me and smiling. A few older passengers came over and greeted us “You are George’s sister! It was so nice to have George on our flight” (Had George passed around our pictures to the whole plane and told our life story?) Then out of the door came George with a young, smiling stewardess on each arm and a full sized bottle of unopened Champaign in his hand!! (Why they gave him Champaign I have no idea but my husband and enjoyed it!) He had several packs of new cards from the airline in his pockets and enough peanuts to last a week. The stewardesses checked my ID, told me how great it was to have George on their flight, hugged and gushed over George and waved good-bye. My husband just shook his head and said “Lucky Pierre strikes again!”

We will never know what transpired on that flight but I did quit worrying about how George is perceived by others. George is quit able to handle people on his own with no help from me. Actually he is much better at it than I am!