A wish that once seemed difficult to imagine became reality this week at Clinton Regional Airport, where 36-year-old Brittnee Anderson took to the skies surrounded by family, hospice staff, and a pilot willing to help make the moment happen.
Anderson, who is receiving hospice care and battling cancer, had a simple but meaningful wish: she wanted to fly in a small airplane.
Social worker at St. Croix Hospice, Jackie Neubauer, says that wish quickly turned into a community effort. Neubauer turned to Facebook in hopes of finding someone who might be willing to help. Instead of one response, she was met with many.
“Five pilots kind of came my way, willing to do this pro bono, which was so nice” Neubauer said. “Brad said, ‘I can do that.’ He was very free, very willing to do it pro bono.”
That pilot was Brad Beebe, who has been flying for about 12 years and owns the plane he flew Anderson in. For Beebe, saying yes was simple.
“I just love flying, and anybody that enjoys flying is fun with me. Anything I can do to share it, I sure as heck will” he said.
The flight took place on a beautiful afternoon that followed a day of cold weather and snow, making the sunshine and calmer skies feel even more special. Family members gathered at the airport, first gathering at the hangar to admire the blue plane. Once Brittnee, Andrew, and her daughter Maddee were loaded into the plane, the race was on.
A group of the family members hopped on the golf cart to jet over to the runway and watch as the plane took off. Energetic waves came from everyone watching and cheers of joy rang out as a dream came true. It was a scene that truly carried plenty of emotion.
Among those there to support Anderson were her mother, Mollie Anderson; sisters Johnna Calvin, Nicole Anderson Neil and Diana Anderson; niece Norah Calvin; aunt Kim Noe; daughter Maddee Anderson; and fiance Andrew Newman. Neubauer said Anderson is deeply family-oriented, quiet and shy, with faith playing an important role in her life.
Her family described her as funny, artistic, and known for sharp one-liners delivered with just the right amount of blunt honesty.
“She’s really funny” Noe said. “She has great one-liners.”
Her sister, Johnna, described her as someone who has always shown up for the people she loves.
“If I would call her for anything, she would show up” she said. “We’ve been through so much in our lives. Us girls, we are a team. We get through everything together. We lost our dad and our grandparents. We lost all these things and we've gone through all this life. But no matter what, there were us four girls and we've always had each other.”
For Anderson’s loved ones, the flight was much bigger than a plane ride. It was a chance to create one more memory together.
Kim Noe said the wish had been on Anderson’s mind since she first became seriously ill.
“When she first got sick, she said, ‘I’ve never got to fly in a plane’” Noe said. “That was one of the very first things she said. We’ve been plotting as a family, like, how do we get her in the air?”
The family had considered different possibilities, even wondering about a helicopter ride or going in a hot air balloon, but the logistics felt overwhelming. Hospice staff stepping in to help changed everything.
“We’re like, thank goodness” Noe said.
As the family waited in the airport lounge, watching other aircraft come and go and hoping Anderson was having the time of her life in the sky, they did not have to wait long for reassurance. Maddee, who family members said had been nervous for days leading up to the trip, began sending videos from inside the plane showing the views below.
Beebe later said the flight took the group over Clinton, south toward Truman Lake, and around the dam before circling back through the area.
When they landed, the smiles told the story before anyone said a word.
Asked how the flight went, Anderson answered simply: “Awesome.”
Newman said one of the best parts was flying over Truman Lake.
“I was looking for fish” he said with a grin.
The joy of the day was evident not just in Anderson and her family, but in those who helped make it happen. Neubauer, who has worked in hospice for a decade, said wishes like this are a reminder of what the work is really about.
“It makes me feel like all the politics of my job wash away” she said. “This is actually why we’re here.”
For Beebe, the reward was just as clear.
“To see their smile on their face and make them happy, a little joy in their life, it makes me happy,” he said.
For one afternoon at Clinton Regional Airport, a family facing the unimaginable was given something precious: not more time, but a memory lifted high above the clouds.
