Billy Kevin Hebert 1982

Employment: For the past 27 years I have worked as an aircraft technician for Boeing. Aircraft I have worked on include the Stealth Bomber, 757, 737, 747, 767, B17 and the P8 Poseidon. I am currently an avionics instructor volunteer at The Pacific West Aerospace Academy, a non- profit organization. I enjoy teaching and look forward to continuing that on a spiritual level.
Books I’d recommend: “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander and “1611 King James Bible with Hidden Books”.
Memorable Central College moments: Graduation was a big moment for me. Also, being vice president of the Black Students Union with John Whipple as president. We had Joseph Lowery and H. Rap Brown come to campus to speak. Also, I remember studying with friends and neighbors. We had friends from all around the world, which is what I really loved about my experience at Central College. I enjoyed working in town with central Iowans – Richard van der Laan who hired me, meeting Gary Vermeer and Mr. Presley the forklift driver at Vermeer who was Elvis’s first cousin. What a memorable time we had!
Who besides me remembers the blizzard of 1979? Perhaps it has stuck with me, because I along with a few other students spent the night of that blizzard locked in the library because it was deemed safer to keep us inside rather than out in the elements. I recall the wind howling and the windows of the library were greatly tested. I spent part of that night getting to know a fellow student from Ghana named Fredrick Kumi and we have remained friends to this day!
The following morning a man from facilities came to let us out – it was at this time I had a conversation with this fine Dutchman and we spoke of many things, mostly concerning God and family, however the topic of politics did come into the conversation – I was after all a religion and political science major and both topics were right up my alley – or so I thought. Some things we agreed on and others we did not.
During our discussion I mentioned that one day a female would be president of our nation – he agreed that one day it could happen, but said before it did we would have a black man as our president. Wow, I did not expect that response from him, nor was I prepared for his level of commitment to his response. My family and I were transplants from California, where the 1960’s and 1970’s were not always happy times, so for me to hear this type of thought in Pella, Iowa – the middle of America…well, lets just say I was amazed – and today thinking back on it – how prophetic!
Central College Pella, Iowa, an institution that facilitates higher learning for many, met its requirement for me on that day, but it is only to this day that I can honestly understand its full meaning.