The
Ryan J. Poe Foundation’s mission is to "Utilize aviation to
provide a path for young people to realize their dreams".
Greg Poe found early on that focus and dedication to a
passion could yield incredible results, and we now share
that message with America’s youth.
Poe was one of the
nation’s premiere airshow performers, thrilling millions
with his original, exciting maneuvers in some of the world’s
most exotic aerobatic aircraft. He began the Elevate Your
Life program after losing his son to heroin addiction in
2002. After Ryan’s death, Poe realized that it was the
distraction, not the drugs that took his son, so he took his
own story of success though focus and determination, crafted
it into a
dynamic,
multimedia thrill ride for children and parents, and began
delivering his presentation at schools around the country in
conjunction with his airshow appearances. His message of
focusing on your dreams and shunning distraction has been a
tremendous success, and since its inception in 2004, the
program has reached in excess of 50,000 young people.
After
Greg Poe’s passing in 2011, the torch passed to his airshow
announcer and close friend, Dax Wanless. A champion
bodybuilder and former Mr. Wisconsin, Dax now tells his own
motivational story of how a young boy from a small town
overcame many challenges to realize his dreams of becoming
an international competition bodybuilder. He used his
formula of success to follow another passion: aviation. It
was through realizing this dream that he met Greg Poe, and
soon the two became great friends.
The goal of Elevate
Your Life is to empower today’s young people to rise above
the distractions of drugs and other dangerous activities and
realize that they have the ability to soar in any direction
they choose. It is
not
a preachy "Don’t Do
Drugs" seminar, rather it is a fun, motivational experience
designed to light the fires of ambition.
The
program gives children of all ages something to take away…
smiles, laughter, hope, some of life’s stark realities and a
lot of encouragement. Dax inspires his audiences to find
something they love, to allow themselves to dream, to set
goals, open up their hearts and to reach for the sky.
It is a wonderfully
synergetic program for young people, teachers, parents, and
the media. Most events include essay contests and aerobatic
plane rides for several children, and the program also
includes fundraising opportunities for the school or
organization. There are also several "Pay it Forward"
opportunities that our organization supports that schools
can get involved with.
At
school events, an essay contest is held in the weeks prior
to each presentation, and winners for the best "Elevate Your
Life" essays are selected to go for the ride of a lifetime
with Dax in his MX2 showplane.
"I wanted to
take a moment to thank you for the very motivating and
inspiring Elevate Your Life presentation you performed at
Seven Springs Middle School! Our students enjoyed your
enthusiasm and spark for setting your goals and achieving
them. You are doing great things for our youth through the
Ryan Poe Foundation AND our planet, as I later learned about
your ethanol usage on the website. Thanks for being such a
positive role model and example of hard work and dedication
to our students!!"
- Dora
Martin, Seven Springs Middle School, Tampa, FL
Bring
Elevate Your Life to your school or organization!
"Our students
returned to school the day after your presentation in awe of
what you are able to accomplish in your plane, and they
clearly remembered your message of making good decisions now
to accomplish their dreams in the future"
"I was inspired by your message
that everyone has the ability to achieve anything they
desire. All it takes is passion and determination. There are
no limits to a person's dreams anything is possible"
"It was the ride of a lifetime! I
am honored that he (Poe) took the time out of his day to
take an interest in me!"
Please mail donations to:
Ryan J. Poe Foundation
518 Dishman Pl.
Caldwell, ID 83605
Or call to make a credit card
donation over the phone: (208) 455-0700