Remembering Aviation Pioneer Wally Funk ‘58
Stephens alumna and Aviation Pioneer Wally Funk was already dreaming of the skies when she enrolled at Stephens College in the mid-1950’s. By the time she graduated in 1958 with her pilot’s license and an associate degree in hand, she had already begun charting a course that would make her one of the most accomplished female aviators in history, and, ultimately, fulfill a dream that took more than six decades to accomplish.
On July 8, 2026, the world lost an extraordinary woman when Funk passed away peacefully at her home in Grapevine, Texas, surrounded by those she loved. She was 87 years old, and her legacy – one of determination, perseverance, and an unwavering refusal to accept limitations – will continue to inspire generations of women to reach for the stars, both literally and figuratively.
A Stephens Education Takes Flight
Funk’s connection to Stephens College was profound. At the age of just 16, Funk enrolled in Stephens College, where she joined the ‘Flying Susies’ aviation club and flight team. The Columbia native quickly learned the ropes and earned her pilots license when she graduated top of her class in 1958. Funk graduated with an Associate of Arts and left her mark on Stephens by becoming part of a pioneering cohort of women who dared to pursue aviation at a time when the field was almost exclusively male-dominated.
Funk’s trailblazing in aviation was recognized by Stephens College in 1964 when she was presented with the Alumni Achievement Award – making her the youngest woman ever to receive the highest honor bestowed upon Stephens graduates.
Her ties to Stephens go beyond just the flight team and classroom. Funk left a lasting impression on her classmates as well – and that was shown when Funk finally achieved her lifelong dream of going to space. At the age of 82 on July 20, 2021, Funk was a part of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Rocket Launch that sent him and two others to space.
Nearly 100 Stephens College alumni and friends gathered over Zoom that morning to cheer her on as she became the oldest woman ever to travel to space and earned a Guinness World Record in the process.
Those who watched the launch from campus wore shirts that said “Girls who go to space begin at Stephens.” This line was reminiscent of Funks favorite former admissions tagline, “Woman who are going places start at Stephens.”
The pride that Stephens alumni felt in that moment was immense. For decades, Funk had represented the very best of a Stephens education. Funk embodied intellectual rigor, leadership and a steadfast commitment to breaking barriers. Her achievement in space was, in many ways, the culmination of a journey that began on the Stephens campus more than 60 years earlier.
Refusing to Accept “No”
Funk’s path to that historic moment was anything but straightforward. In 1961, she was selected as one of 13 elite women in the groundbreaking Mercury 13 program – a rigorous astronaut training initiative that put women through the same physical and psychological testing administered to NASA’s Mercury Seven Astronauts. Funk was the only member of the group to pass all the tests, ranking among the program’s top performers and outscoring many of her male counterparts on several tests.
Yet despite her qualifications and the qualifications of her fellow Mercury 13 members, NASA was not prepared to send women into space. The space agency selected seven men who became known as the Mercury Seven to be its first astronauts instead. This came as a crushing disappointment for Funk, but it was not a defeat.
It has been said that she refused to let those barriers define her career. Instead, Funk forged an extraordinary path through aviation that spanned more than seven decades and included a series of historic firsts: the first female flight instructor at Fort Sill, Oklahoma; the first female inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration; and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board.
A Legacy of Mentorship
What truly set Funk apart, however, was her commitment to lifting other women into the cockpit. Over her remarkable career, she trained more than 3,000 pilots, many of them women who might never have had the opportunity to learn to fly without her guidance and encouragement. She logged more than 30,000 hours of flight time, much of it spent teaching the next generation of aviators.
Her mentorship extended far beyond technical instruction. Funk was a living example of what was possible when a woman refused to accept the limitations others tried to place on her. Every pilot she trained carried forward not just her knowledge of aviation, but her spirit of determination and resilience.
“She was told what was not possible, and she spent seventy years proving otherwise,” said Stephens College President Shannon Lundeen. “She became the first woman in role after role that had never admitted one.”
Her achievements earned her numerous honors throughout her career, including induction into the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame in 2024, the Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame, and the Mercury 13 Hall of Fame. But perhaps the most meaningful recognition came from the countless pilots she trained, women and men alike, who owed their careers to her willingness to teach, mentor and inspire.
Wally Funk Day and Her Lasting Legacy
The City of Grapevine proclaimed “Wally Funk Day” in her honor and celebrated her as one of the community’s most distinguished residents. It was a fitting tribute to a woman whose impact extended far beyond aviation into the very fabric of her community.
Stephens College also dedicated a day to Wally Funk.
“On July 20–our Wally Funk Day–we will celebrate her as we always have, and now we will also honor her memory,” said Lundeen. “She was a Stephens graduate who lived her life to the fullest, and we are proud beyond words to have called her ours.”
From being the oldest woman to travel to space, to training thousands of pilots, breaking barriers and refusing to accept defeat, Funk spent 60 years proving her worth in the skies and leaving her mark on every person she encountered.
“Though I never had the privilege of meeting Wally, she has long stood among our most accomplished alumnae,” said Lundeen. “Her courage and determination remain a standard our students measure themselves against to this day.”
A Stephens Spirit that Endures
Funk’s life embodied the spirit that Stephens College has long championed–intellectual rigor, leadership and steadfast commitment to breaking barriers. In her 2020 memoir, ‘Higher, Faster, Longer: My Life in Aviation and My Quest for Spaceflight,’ Funk simply wrote: “Aviation has been my whole life. I eat it, and breathe it.”
As the world mourns her passing, Stephens College joins family, friends and admirers from around the globe in celebrating a woman whose extraordinary courage and determination proved that dreams truly have no expiration date. Wally Funk will be posthumously inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame at the New Mexico Museum of Space History, a fitting final honor of a Stephens alumna who refused to accept the limits others tried to place on her.
Her legacy lives on in every young woman who dares to dream bigger, aim higher and refuse to accept “no” as an answer. It lives on in the 3,000 pilots she trained, in the barriers she broke and in the Stephens College community that nurtured her dreams from the very beginning.
Photos of Wally Funk ’58
