CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — When Virgin Galactic's space plane blasts away from its mothership for a journey outside the atmosphere, it does so with the help of Englewood native Sidney Lee, who’s the company’s director of quality.
He caught the space bug on the South Side, thanks to a TV show about the history of NASA.
“Where I came from, [there] wasn’t a lot of people that I could go and talk to and get mentored by to talk about aerospace, but I always had that in the back of my mind as a dream or aspiration that I wanted to do,” Lee said.
Lee's journey into the aerospace industry took him through the Mercy Home for Boys and Girls, and he told WBBM that the mentorship he received there got him to where he is today.
“They showed me and gave me the belief that I can actually go out and do great things,” he said.
Now, Lee said he wants to help other Black men pursue their aerospace dreams with a mentorship program called Spaceships After Dark. He started the virtual program in 2020 and mentors about 20 – 25 people per year.
“I take anybody from college all the way up to the executive level to help them get better, because that’s what it’s about,” he said.
Lee, who also recently started a podcast and Instagram account called the Black Executive, said he’s a firm believer in the power of mentorship.
“If you get the opportunity to mentor somebody, especially in [an impoverished] area, please do it,” he said.
Sidney Lee and Spaceships After Dark: this week's Difference Maker.
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