Michael Alger, 45, has racked up 25 missions for Angel Flight Southeast and is looking forward to more.
UMATILLA — Pilot Michael Alger flies with a purpose.
Alger, 45, has been flying missions through Angel Flight Southeast, a Leesburg nonprofit that helps patients get to medical care when it's not available in their area. He has flown 25 missions since December 2012.
"It's the best thing I've done with my pilot's license," he said. "I get a lot out of it. It's pretty significant to fly with a purpose, not just as a hobby for myself."
Alger, born in Eustis and raised in Umatilla, earned his pilot's license in 2001 in the midst of his career as a paramedic. His late mother supported his quest to fly and was his first passenger. In 2011, he bought a single-engine Rockwell Commander 112TC with a partner.
"That's when I decided I could do Angel Flight," he said.
Alger recalled his first mission. It was cancelled two days before the flight, but another mission still needed a pilot: A woman needed a lift from Leesburg to Okeechobee. Alger volunteered for the flight.
"I met the lady. Her name was Joan — it's my mother's first name," he said. "That was a very special moment for me."
Alger said Angel Flight does a lot for him on many levels.
"When you see someone who is dealing with something, it makes you grateful for your own life and not having to struggle with things that others have to," he said. "It helps you to count your blessings."
Alger said he always has wanted to help others.
After he graduated from Umatilla High School, he earned a degree in paramedic technology at Tallahassee Community College. In 1990, he returned to Lake, landed a job with Lake EMS and worked there for 12 years.
While a paramedic, he earned a degree in firefighting from Lake Technical Center. He switched careers to become a firefighter-paramedic with the Mount Dora Fire Department in 2003 and is still there today.
"I guess it's in my blood," he said of his service-orientated career. "It's very rewarding, very challenging at times."
Alger said his grandfather was a West Point graduate and had at least a 40-year military career. His brother served in the Air Force, and his late father was a navigator on a B-17 bomber in World War II.
"Lots of military in my family, a lot of military influence," he said. "I was going to join the military but decided to go the civilian route."
Alger said his father shared stories of his flights in the Army Air Corps and took flying lessons after the war. Father and son went to fly-ins and airshows often. A family friend, State Sen. Alan Hays, and Alger got a ride in it several times around the age of 13.
"I was hooked at that point," he said of flying. "I always kind of had it in my head that it would be something I'd like to do."
Alger spends his free time watching and going to Florida State football games. He's also working on the old family home in Umatilla. He has lived there with his five-year-old English bulldog Hannah, since 2010.
"It's an old house," he said. "There's a lot of stuff to be done with that. I'm chipping away at whatever I can."
At the moment, Alger is waiting to hear of his next mission with Angel Flight Southeast.
"At the end of the day when I do a flight, I think 'I'm the luckiest guy in the world. I just flew my airplane and helped someone in the process.' There's nothing better than that."
Angel Flight Southeast fundraiser
What: The 19th Annual Golf Tournament
When: Nov. 11
Where: Arlington Ridge Golf Club, 4463 Arlington Ridge Blvd., Leesburg
Time: 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Call 352-326-0761 to support the event by purchasing a foursome or providing a sponsorship.
- Source: http://www.orlandosentinel.com
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