That’s a Great Question
When veterans, families and a STEM experience came together, something happened that went far beyond indoor skydiving.
There are moments you remember because of what happened.
And then there are moments you remember because of how people made someone feel.
For Children of Fallen Heroes, one of those moments happened in California.
We had traveled to the Universal Studios area with families for our STEM Indoor Skydiving Program.
The idea was to give families facing difficult circumstances an opportunity to step away from those challenges for a little while.
To learn.
To laugh.
To experience something new.
And eventually, to fly.
We knew the wind tunnel would be exciting.
What we didn’t fully anticipate was what would happen before anyone stepped into the wind.
Before the Wind
A Different Kind of STEM Classroom
Indoor skydiving gives young people an extraordinary way to experience science.
- Airflow.
- Lift.
- Drag.
- Body position.
- Movement.
- Cause and effect.
These aren’t simply concepts on a worksheet when you’re standing beside a wind tunnel.
A young person can ask what happens when they change the position of their arms—and then step into the wind and experience the answer.
But something else was happening in that classroom.
We weren’t alone.
Members of Veterans in Media & Entertainment were there with us.
And they didn’t come simply to watch.
They participated.
They sat through the STEM experience with the children.
They listened.
They engaged.
And when a child raised a hand and asked a question, the response wasn’t silence.
It wasn’t simply an instructor answering and moving on.
Someone would say:
“That’s a great question!”
And people clapped.
The Motivating Engine
Suddenly, Asking a Question Mattered
Think about that from a child’s perspective.
You raise your hand.
Maybe you’re confident.
Maybe you’re nervous.
Maybe you’re wondering whether what you’re about to ask sounds silly.
And instead of simply receiving an answer, a room filled with adults celebrates the fact that you were curious enough to ask.
“That’s a great question!”
Applause. Encouragement. Smiles.
And then another child raises a hand.
The veterans became the motivating engine in the room.
They made curiosity something worth celebrating.
They showed these young people that their voices mattered.
That their questions mattered.
That they belonged in the conversation.
They felt heard.
They felt encouraged.
They felt present.
That may sound like a small thing.
It isn’t.
Partnership
Different People Opened Different Doors
An experience like this doesn’t happen because of one organization.
It happens because different people decide to contribute what they can.
The Everest Foundation helped raise funds for Children of Fallen Heroes to make the experience possible.
That support helped open the door.
Mario Lopez and other veterans from the entertainment community came to show their support.
They brought visibility, encouragement and presence.
And Veterans in Media & Entertainment did something equally important.
They stepped into the experience.
They didn’t remain on the sidelines.
They became part of the classroom.
Part of the encouragement.
Part of the energy.
Part of the memory.
Everyone contributed something different.
And that’s what made the partnership work.
Into the Wind
Then We Went to the Wind Tunnel
Eventually, it was time to take what the children had been learning and experience it.
The classroom moved to the wind.
Suddenly airflow wasn’t something being explained.
They could feel it.
Body position wasn’t theoretical.
Move an arm.
Change an angle.
Watch what happens.
The science responded immediately.
And those same people who had encouraged the children to ask questions were there as they took another step.
Into the tunnel.
The nervousness was real.
So was the excitement.
Then came the first attempt.
The adjustment.
The realization that the wind could actually hold them.
And the smiles.
They were flying.
What Stays With Us
The Wind Tunnel Was the Tool
Looking back, it’s easy to remember the most visually exciting part.
Children flying in a wind tunnel makes a great photograph.
But that isn’t the part that stays with us most.
We remember the room.
We remember the questions.
We remember adults genuinely listening to children.
We remember the applause.
The wind tunnel was the tool.
The people created the environment.
The veterans helped create a place where a young person could be curious without worrying whether their question was good enough.
Where trying something unfamiliar was celebrated.
Where adults weren’t simply talking to children.
They were engaging with them.
That is where confidence can begin.
Not necessarily with some enormous life-changing moment.
Sometimes it begins when a child raises their hand and someone responds:
“That’s a great question.”
Presence
For a Little While
The families who joined us were carrying challenges of their own.
We couldn’t make all of those challenges disappear.
That wasn’t what we promised.
But for a little while, something else could occupy the space.
- Curiosity.
- Laughter.
- Encouragement.
- Science.
- Flight.
A parent could watch their child try something completely new.
A child could hear adults applaud their question.
Families could experience something together that had nothing to do with whatever difficulties were waiting outside.
For a little while, everyone could simply be there.
Present.
And sometimes that’s more powerful than we realize.
A Better Definition
This Is What Partnership Looks Like
It’s easy to describe partnerships with logos.
One organization beside another.
A sponsor banner.
A photograph.
A list of names.
But that day showed us a better definition.
Partnership looked like The Everest Foundation helping raise the resources necessary to create the opportunity.
It looked like Mario Lopez and members of the veteran entertainment community showing up in support.
It looked like Veterans in Media & Entertainment sitting beside children and participating in the experience.
It sounded like applause when a child asked a question.
And eventually, it looked like families standing beside a wind tunnel watching young people discover something new about science—
and maybe something new about themselves.
That’s partnership.
Not simply organizations standing beside one another.
People showing up for young people.
Why It Matters
Why Experiences Like This Matter
Children of Fallen Heroes continues to build programs around STEM, aviation, flight, mentorship and extraordinary experiences.
But the activity itself is never the entire point.
Indoor skydiving can teach physics.
It can build body awareness.
It can introduce aviation concepts.
It can challenge a young person.
But put the right people around that experience and something else happens.
A child can discover that adults value their ideas.
They can discover that asking questions is a strength.
They can discover that being nervous doesn’t mean they can’t try.
They can discover that science isn’t something happening somewhere else.
They’re standing inside it.
And perhaps most importantly, they can discover that there are people willing to stand beside them while they figure it out.
The Smallest Moment
That’s a Great Question
Years later, there are plenty of things we could remember about that day.
- Universal Studios.
- The wind tunnel.
- The people who came.
- The flights.
- The photographs.
But sometimes the smallest moments tell the biggest story.
A child raised a hand.
A question was asked.
And instead of simply answering it, a group of veterans made that child feel like asking the question itself mattered.
“That’s a great question!”
Then came the applause.
Then another question.
Then another.
And eventually—
the wind.
That is what Children of Fallen Heroes wants to create more of.
Places where young people are encouraged to be curious.
Places where families can be present together.
Places where veterans can continue serving by investing in another generation.
Places where partners don’t simply fund an experience—
they become part of it.
And places where a young person can walk in wondering whether they belong…
and walk out knowing someone was listening.
Sometimes the first step toward discovery
is someone telling you your question matters.
Stand Beside the Next Generation
Every CFH Next Gen experience puts young people in a room where curiosity is encouraged and questions are celebrated. Support keeps those rooms open—and keeps families in them together.
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