Sixteen-year-old Kedesha Johnson hopes to pursue an undergraduate degree in entrepreneurship and digital animation in another two years. It’s a little daunting, but she has been inspired to reach for the stars by someone who knows all too well about celestial bodies – Aerospace Engineer and Senior Manager at Virgin Galactic, Christopher Huie.

Johnson, still awe-struck, reflects on the surreal experience, “Meeting an astronaut is something that I would read about, but would never think was possible for me.”

She was one of a group of students from Spot Valley High School that was invited to participate in a recent session with Huie at the Iberostar Hotel. The session was hosted by the Flow Foundation in collaboration with the organizers of Tech Beach Retreat and other partners.

Huie was one of a roster of speakers at the annual event which was attended by hundreds of tech enthusiasts, government officials, financiers, and entrepreneurs from across the Caribbean and North America. Following his inspiring presentation on the main stage, Huie took some time to share his story with the youngsters in an intimate 45-minute session attended by about 20 youngsters.

He encouraged them to be careful of the company they keep, dream big and document their goals. “Ensure you write down that big, audacious goal and that you meticulously record all the small steps that you will need to take to get to your destination. Then, day by day, take a step at a time towards it, no matter how small, until you achieve success,” Huie said.

His words resonated with Johnson, who is also Spot Valley High’s Head Girl. Her schoolmate Malike Stephenson also left the session feeling inspired. He had several questions for Huie, each of which was answered with patience and enthusiasm.

“I felt honoured that someone so accomplished took the time to speak with us and I appreciate that he was so humble and approachable,” Johnson shared.

The day ended with a session on cybersecurity led by Senior Director at C&W Business, Delroy McLean. The youngsters were enthralled by the talk which provided tips on creating strong passwords and safeguarding your personally identifiable information (PII).

While the session was eye-opening for most of the students, it served as a refresher for 16-year-old Malcolm Green. He already uses passwords of no less than 16 characters and has a firewall on his phone. Green was commended by the C&W Business team and encouraged to share his cybersecurity knowledge with his peers, friends and loved ones.

According to Shelly-Ann O’Connor, Operations and Projects Coordinator at the Flow Foundation, the team was happy to have been able to facilitate the session. She shared that the Flow Foundation and its sister brand C&W Business eagerly agreed to the session after being approached by the organizers of Tech Beach.

“The session was exciting and inspiring even for us as we heard from Christopher but also as we watched him interact with the students. It was heartwarming. Engagements of this nature form part of our overall mission to empower young people with the skills they will need to soar in the classroom and beyond,” O’Connor said.

The session is the latest in the suite of initiatives aimed at youth empowerment hosted by the Flow Foundation since the year began, some of which were School Based Assessment workshops, Connected & Protected forums and strategic partnerships with like-minded community and non-governmental organizations to donate devices and connectivity to Flow’s fibre-fast network.