Son's dreams take flight after dad's tragic death

A FLYING dream made reality is helping a Coast family recover from cancer devastation.

WINGS: Adain Harris, 15, has won a learn to fly scholarship offered up by GoFly Aviation. Chief Pilot and owner Damian Wills congratulates Adain. Picture: Patrick Woods

A FLYING dream made reality is helping a Coast family recover from cancer devastation.

Mudjimba mum Kathryn Harris was already planning on treating her 15-year-old son Adain to a few flight lessons when she saw an opportunity to win him a whole scholarship.

"I applied for this because I thought he deserved to have something special and positive happen," Mrs Harris said.

Her husband and father of her children, Gerard Harris, died in April last year, aged 42.

The internet security specialist had first been diagnosed with an ocular melanoma in June 2014.

He was treated but pain in his stomach in February last year led to discovery that the cancer had spread.

Mrs Harris said her family was told Mr Harris had six to nine months to live.

But he only survived two.

Kathryn, Adain, Erin and Gerard Harris celebrate Erin's birthday at Disneyland Hong Kong in 2015. Picture: Contributed

"We spent the first few months absolutely just numb," Mrs Harris said.

"The world could have blown up under my feet and I wouldn't have known it had happened."

She said her son had done well to complete martial arts training since then and when she saw GoFly Aviation's inaugural scholarship program, she applied on his behalf.

A phone call from the Caloundra business earlier this month confirming Adain's acceptance generated great excitement.

"Stuff like that doesn't seem to happen to our family," Mrs Harris said.

"This is just icing on the cake."

She said her family could never have afforded a full training program.

"It is a lot of money and a lot of time and a lot of effort on their part.

"You hear a lot of stories about businesses doing quite the opposite."

Adain, a Year 10 student St John's College in Nambour, said he planned to apply for the Air Force.

He said he was awe-struck and excited when he learned about the scholarship.

"It's one of the good things that happened after it (dad's death) and part of me wished that he could have seen it," Adain said.

He said he was tailoring his senior school studies towards engineering and aviation.

A recent trial flight, where he got to hold the controls for a short while, affirmed his decisions.

"For days after I couldn't wait to do that again," he said.

He is due to start his training during the upcoming school holidays.

Originally published as Son's dreams take flight after dad's tragic death