Dawn Boren is an IT&DA teammate at BSC who has authored several children’s books about the Gullah Geechee culture.

When Boeing South Carolina teammate Dawn Boren was growing up, an old Gullah Geechee proverb was often expressed in her household. It translates to “one must take care of the root to heal the tree.”

Boren is from Givhans, South Carolina, where she grew up in a Gullah Geechee family. Boren carries lessons like this and others from her childhood into her daily work at Boeing as a senior partner management specialist in Information Technology & Data Analytics (IT&DA) Strategy and Operations.

“I remember having one particular challenge that I was facing at work, and I recalled that saying,” Boren said. “I had to stop and identify the root of the problem, and use my Seek, Speak and Listen skills to engage my teammates.”

According to the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, the Gullah Geechee people are descendants of enslaved Africans along the southeastern coast. Their unique, English, African and Creole mixed language was – and still is – spoken in coastal communities from North Carolina to Florida. Organizations in those areas are working to preserve the rich history, art, music and food of the culture that shaped the growth of many coastal regions, including Charleston and the surrounding Lowcountry.

Woven sweetgrass baskets are a popular art form of the Gullah Geechee culture. (Alexis Beniash photo)

Outside of her work at Boeing, Boren says she is also doing her part to capture and share the rich history of her culture with the public, specifically children. Boren has published a book series that showcases children experiencing some of the highlights of the Gullah Geechee culture, like sweetgrass basket weaving and Lowcountry cuisine.

“I’ve always wanted to write. Even when I was a child, I did a lot of poetry,” Boren said. “I thought about my kids, and I started writing about the culture and how important it was to me.”

Children’s books authored by Boren. (Bubble Photography photo)

One of her characters is the “Candy Lady,” who Boren explains was like a mother to all the children in the community. She sold sweets like “Chilly Bear” out of her home, which are popular frozen treats that are especially delectable during the hot, humid summers in the Lowcountry. Another book showcases young Gullah Geechee boys who sell “Palmetto Roses” made out of palm fronds, and another features the traditional “crab crack.”

Boren’s ancestors were quilt makers and sweetgrass basket weavers, both traditional Gullah Geechee art forms. Though Boren never mastered those creative skills, she credits both the past generations as well as future generations of Gullah Geechee descendants for the inspiration and motivation to author her books.

“I wanted my kids to understand where they came from and how they got here. It’s really easy to lose yourself if you do not know your roots,” Boren said. “You can’t know who you are if you don’t know where you’re from.”

“I wanted my kids to understand where they came from and how they got here. It’s really easy to lose yourself if you do not know your roots,” Boren said. “You can’t know who you are if you don’t know where you’re from.”

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To the untrained eye, it may look like these Boeing Research & Technology Materials, Process and Physics engineers are handling jars of water. But the testing vessels really contain jet reference fluids (JRFs) that mimic the broadest envelope of the chemistry and behavior of SAF.

Roland Stone and Bart Stevens, two BR&T engineers who are a part of the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Compatibility Integrated Product Team, pour a sustainable aviation fuel jet reference fluid into a test vessel. (Kaitlin Stansell photo)

Samples of finishes, like paints and coatings used on current commercial airplanes soak in the JRFs with the goal to understand how SAF interacts with different parts of the airplane. The experts anticipate their research could also lead to findings that influence which paints or coatings are used in the future and test finishes that may appear on Boeing’s next generation of products.

Why it matters: “We are working to develop the next generation of materials, trying to get away from those that are hazardous to human health and the environment, like finding a non-chrome version of our fuel tank primer,” said Stone. “The data we are generating will provide that confidence of a new material that we would hopefully implement one day as an alternative.”

Roland Stone removes test panels from the SAF test fluids following an immersion in a hot water bath. (Kaitlin Stansell photo)

Testing their way to 100: Supporting the industry’s 2050 net zero emissions goal, SAF can reduce carbon emissions up to 80% over the fuel’s life cycle, and Boeing has committed all of its commercial airplanes will be compatible with 100% SAF by 2030.

Making sure its airplanes are 100% SAF compatible requires testing, and lots of it. Up for the challenge is a cross-functional SAF Compatibility Integrated Product Team (IPT) of 90-plus engineers anchored by the Sustainability and Technology team in Product Development.

Believing in the mission: For many involved in the project, the implications are personal.

“I am excited to go to work every day to contribute to this project.. The people I work with believe in the vision of a better world and are working together to make it happen,” said David Sims, an engineer leading several of the IPT’s materials groups.

From left, Roland Stone, Jessica Savage, David Sims and Bart Stevens take a look at the test panels after they’ve cooled following time in an oven for exposure to high temperatures. (Kaitlin Stansell photo)

“I love traveling, and, at the same time, I see a world that needs to prioritize how we are using our resources,” said Jessica Savage, a materials integration engineer. “Not having aviation isn’t an option. But how do we do aviation the right way and build a world where you can fly, connect with other people, see other cultures and appreciate the things people do without harming the environment matters a great deal.”

Charting a flight path: Much of what the team is doing is novel, from test methods to the jet reference fluids they are using, with a range of fuel chemistries to simulate any SAF the industry could see in 2030 and beyond.

Additionally, the overall project is moving at considerable speed as the team collaborates with others around the globe, including Boeing’s suppliers, with a goal to complete testing of seven different material families by the end of 2024. That includes sealants, finishes, metals, elastomers, thermosets, thermoplastics and electrical wiring components.

“We want to move at pace with technical excellence, and that means we’re leveraging our global capabilities to hit our targets and generate these data packages to give us a better understanding of these materials,” Sims said. “The pace at which we are moving is exciting. Everyone is so bought in. It’s hard to believe what’s already been accomplished.”

Since February 2022, the team developed a roadmap to 2030 SAF compatibility, has built seven test plans, connected with Tier 1 suppliers and is actively coordinating with them to make sure their materials are compatible as well.

“The most incredible part is how we’ve all been working together. The working environment we’ve created is such a safe space for debate. The freedom to share your opinions is really valuable to the work we are doing,” Sims said.

By Kaitlin Stansell

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Boeing South Carolina (BSC) teammate Nathan Burgess has a passion for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). It’s something you might expect, as he has spent 12 years working for Boeing and the 787 program, currently working at BSC as a programmer analyst. Recently, he took the opportunity to serve as a mentor for one of Boeing’s 2021 STEM Signing Day recipients.

“It can seem a bit awkward virtually sitting down with someone you hardly know and start discussing their future plans,” Burgess said. “But, actually, I had a very positive experience with my mentee. I understand the challenges that students face upon entering a STEM field, and I provide insight and advice based on my own experiences.” 

BSC teammate Nathan Burgess (right) stands with his daughter, Ashley (left), following STEM Signing Day.

STEM Signing Day, which launched in 2012 at BSC, is similar to college signing days for athletes; the next generation of South Carolina STEM talent are recognized for their pursuit of a two- or four-year STEM-focused degree after graduating from high school. The 2022 South Carolina STEM Signing Day was held at Joseph P. Riley Park, home of the Charleston RiverDogs, on May 20, where 90 students from across South Carolina were honored. 

All STEM Signing Day students are also offered the opportunity to participate in the Boeing Mentorship Program, which matches students with Boeing teammates currently working in a STEM field. The mentorship program began in 2021, which is when Burgess began to take part. 

“It was wonderful to see the maturity and decision-making process being used by the students, and I was excited to be a small part of that,” Burgess said. 

The 2022 Mentorship Program will be even more special for Burgess – his daughter, Ashley Burgess, was honored during this year’s South Carolina STEM Signing Day. 

Ashley recently graduated from Summerville High school as the class salutatorian. She also earned her Associate of Science degree from Trident Technical College after participating in the schools early college program. She plans to attend Clemson University in the fall and study engineering.

“Ashley has always been interested in the STEM field. It was neat to see how her favorite classes migrated around math, chemistry, and physics,” Burgess said. “I am very excited for Ashley to participate in the Boeing Mentorship Program. I love seeing the diversity of students who take part in our programs. But, the reality is that you very rarely ever see someone in our own family in these programs. So, it is especially exciting to see my daughter on the recipient side, while I can be on the serving side. It elevates my pride and joy to a whole other level.” 

STEM Signing Day honorees were joined by representatives from Boeing and the South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance (SCMA) for the ceremony. Pictured (left to right): Darrel Larson, VP of 787 operations; Lisa Fahl, Senior Director of 787 Quality; Ashley Burgess, STEM Signing Day honoree; Raj Patel, Senior Leader of the Engineering Design Center; James Richter, Director of Workforce Development for SCMA.

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“My best memories of soccer are all about the teammates I played with,” Akwari said.

Akwari played on the U-17 U.S. Men’s National Team with Landon Donovan and DaMarcus Beasley, who are now icons in the sport. While Akwari didn’t become a generational star, he played for a decade in the top American leagues – Major League Soccer and the United Soccer League. Each season meant forming bonds and cultivating relationships with a new group of teammates.

In 2019, Nelson was featured in US Soccer’s BOND OF BROTHERHOOD: 1999 U-17 MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM REUNITES 20 YEARS LATER. Photo courtesy: US Soccer

“I moved around quite a bit and played in different cities and had definite experiences that have shaped me as a person,” Akwari said. “I truly believe that those experiences have also shaped me as a leader here at The Boeing Company.”

Nelson Akwari with the Charleston Battery, right, defends the ball against the Puerto Rico Islanders during a game at Blackbaud Stadium in Charleston, SC. Photo courtesy: U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Marie Cassetty

A former player for the Charleston Battery, Akwari is now part of a different team in the Charleston area: the Interiors Responsibility Center South Carolina (IRCSC). As the IRCSC director, Akwari oversees a multifunctional team of approximately 400 teammates, which manufactures, assembles and delivers a wide range of interior products to the 787 program and Global Services aftermarket customers.

As the director of the IRCSC, Akwari meets with teammates one-on-one throughout the day to make sure they are checked-in and feeling safe.

On any given day, you can find Akwari walking the IRCSC production floor and encouraging teammates as he did on the soccer field. 

“I’ll take the time to meet with teammates one-on-one and make sure they are checked in and feeling safe,” Akwari said. 

Akwari knows how impactful leadership engagement can be. After retiring from professional soccer, he returned to school at the University of California, Los Angeles. There, he received another coaching lesson. Now-retired Boeing Chief Technology Officer Dr. John Tracy encouraged Akwari to challenge himself and align himself with teammates who shared his drive for innovation and success. 

That advice left a lasting impression. Akwari earned a bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree in engineering – all while working as a materials and process engineer at Boeing. His dissertation, “Environmental Effects on a Protective Coating Used to Mitigate Composite Degradation,” has added to the aerospace industry’s knowledge of composite materials, which are being used more and more in airplane structures like the 787 Dreamliner. Additionally, he’s filed several invention disclosures and holds two patents.

The National Society of Black Engineers recently named Akwari the 2022 Pioneer of the Year and 2022 Distinguished Engineer of the Year. Akwari expressed gratitude to the mentors and coaches who guided him.

Akwari was recently featured in Boeing’s 2021 Annual Report as a participant in Boeing’s industry-leading Learning Together Program through which he earned his doctorate degree in Materials Science and Engineering from UCLA in 2021.

 “I’m grateful for the leaders who not only recommended me but have been a part of my journey as a young engineer to where I am now,” Akwari said. “I’m just excited to represent The Boeing Company and to know the platform I’ve been provided has given me the opportunity to be recognized with these awards.”

Akwari now pays that support forward by actively working in the community and contributing to youth STEM and outreach programs, food banks and other faith-based nonprofits as a volunteer, as well as coaching youth soccer. For leisure, he spends time with his wife and three children.

Whether it’s with his family, in the community, on the soccer field, or at the IRCSC, Akwari recognizes that goals are best scored through teamwork.

“I think when we work as a team and we listen to teammates and their perspectives, we are actually much stronger,” he said.

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The first to join Boeing was Patti Curry in 2008. She was soon followed by her sister, Karen Jones, and niece, Brooke Hicks. Each one says they have found support and opportunity through their roles at Boeing, fueled by the company’s culture of diversity and inclusion.

“Boeing is a strong advocate of women throughout the company. Boeing values passion and talent and provides equal rights for all teammates,” Patti said. 

She was drawn to the company by its long-standing reputation as an aerospace industry leader and local leader in the Lowcountry. While Patti had worked for other Fortune 500 companies before, she says she found something special in what Boeing had to offer its employees and communities.

“I strongly admired Boeing’s community involvement in South Carolina with its large investments in STEM-education programs and its investments in our future,” Patti said.

It was just a few years later, in 2014, when Karen followed in her sister’s footsteps. The two were able to lean on each other, providing tips and tricks to one another along the way. It was a network of support they would soon extend to Karen’s daughter, Brooke, when she joined the company in 2019.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way. My mom and aunt have helped me tremendously in every aspect to excel at my current job. We lean on each other all the time, and their unconditional support helps me strive to import more best practices,” Brooke said. 

The three say their careers have empowered them with opportunities, financial independence, self-confidence, and self-respect. Today, they share a common hope to inspire other women to find their passions and pursue them.  

“Despite any struggles that come your way, you can always overcome them,” Brooke said. “Your career needs to be important to you, so find exactly what it is you want to achieve. Remember to show full support, encouragement, and growth to all of the other women around you.”

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A South Carolina military family is now living in a new, fully furnished home free of charge thanks to a program supported by Boeing.

Built to Honor provides mortgage-free homes to veterans who have been injured during their service. Boeing has been a sponsor of the program since 2016.

In January, retired Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Jason Roberts and his wife, Christina, were recognized for their service and sacrifice by receiving the keys to a new home as part of this program.

BSC teammate Robert Baldwin (center) joins his daughter, Christina Roberts (right), and her husband, SSgt. Jason Roberts, outside their new home.

The Roberts’ friends and family attended the ribbon cutting ceremony at their new home last week, including Christina’s father, Robert Baldwin, a field engineering technical representative at Boeing South Carolina.

“Boeing’s donation, along with dozens of tradesmen and other supporters, is the reason my family is moving home again,” Baldwin said.

Baldwin, a veteran himself, works on the C-17 program at Joint Base Charleston. Prior to his work at Boeing, Baldwin served in the U.S. Air Force for 30 years as an aircraft maintainer and avionics specialist. He retired as a chief master sergeant in April 2004 and joined Boeing just five months later.

Jason and Christina Roberts (center) join Built to Honor representatives at the ribbon cutting event outside their new home. Jason Roberts, United States Marine Corps. (Ret.), was severely injured while serving in Afghanistan in 2009.

“Knowing that Boeing was instrumental in the Built to Honor program means so much to me,” said Baldwin. “It makes me proud to be a part of the Boeing team for the last 17 years.”

Boeing aims to build better lives for transitioning military service members, veterans and their families, which is why over the past five years, the company has contributed more than $50 million in support of veterans service programs and initiatives globally.

“By providing mortgage-free homes to veterans and their families like Jason and Christina, the Built to Honor program is literally providing one of the keys to a smooth transition from service to civilian life,” said Lindsay Leonard, senior director of National Strategy and Engagement and Government Operations at Boeing.

Additionally, Boeing is proud of its commitment to hiring veterans and investing in their families and communities. About 15% of the company’s U.S.-based workforce self-identify as veterans, like Baldwin.

“Thank you to Boeing for supporting my family and the families of other veterans,” Baldwin said.

Built to Honor works in partnership with nonprofit organizations to identify veteran candidates for the homes. Boeing is not part of the selection process.

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“When I was growing up in Oklahoma, there wasn’t any kind of outreach from companies that I saw. When I began working at Boeing South Carolina, I thought, ‘wouldn’t it be great if they had something like the DreamLearners program in my hometown’,” said Nalena Kennett, Transportation, Warehouse and Logistics project manager, and co-chair of BNAN, South Carolina.

Students from Woodlands Middle and High Schools participate in a virtual DreamLearners STEM activity led by BNAN-SC members.

The DreamLearners program, started in 2012, brings local students onsite to learn about the company’s presence in the state as well as advanced manufacturing. As part of the STEM-based program, students can participate in hands-on group activities, discover different careers at Boeing and learn about the benefits of a STEM-focused education. 

More than 950,000 students and adults have participated in the program – many of them in South Carolina. Dreamlearners went virtual in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, enabling the program to reach classrooms and communities beyond the Palmetto State. 

“Once DreamLearners was developed into a virtual program, I thought it would be cool to partner with our tribal communities and with schools that the tribal children attend,” Kennett said.  

Part of BNAN’s mission is to serve the Native American youth. With the help of Frank Hatten, the Boeing education relations specialist who developed and leads DreamLearners, Kennett hosted virtual DreamLearners sessions for tribal communities across the U.S. 

Kennett hosted several sessions for tribal schools in her hometown in Oklahoma and surrounding areas, also involving teammates from Boeing’s Oklahoma City site. To date, approximately 1,600 students and community members across six states have participated.  

“The kids are excited. They enjoy taking part in the STEM activity. It’s a break from their normal everyday grind,” Kennett said. 

In addition to participating in the virtual DreamLearners programs, Boeing has also hosted STEM-based activities as part of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) national conference, and locally during the Edisto Natchez Kusso Tribe powwows. 

“I have seen a lot of the kids; their eyes just pop open like, ‘Oh, I can do this?’ They just love the STEM events,” said Stephen West, a Boeing enterprise technical workplace coach, and BNAN operation lead, who has hosted DreamLearners at the AISES conference for the past six years.

The BRGs are volunteer, employee-driven groups focusing on a particular part of someone’s identity, such as ethnicity, race, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability or veteran status, though every group is open to all. Including BNAN, Boeing has nine BRGs in nine countries.

“If you truly want to be diverse then you have to recruit from diverse areas. Intelligence is there among all cultures, but the tools are needed to help them use it,” Kennett said. 

Over the past three years, Boeing has invested more than $2.6 million in organizations supporting Native Americans and other Indigenous communities in the U.S. – bringing the company’s global support for Indigenous populations over the same time period to $3.3 million.

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“I have loved airplanes since I was a kid, so it seemed inevitable that I would choose this career path,”
said Lamar, a flight readiness technician inspector (FRTI) at Boeing South Carolina (BSC).

Her aviation career took flight in the Navy, where she spent four years active duty. At that time, she did
not work directly with aircraft, but as an aviation electronic technician, she troubleshot issues with
aircraft parts.

Lamar then joined Boeing in 1987 in the wire shop working with 747s, 767s, and the 777. A decade later,
she left Boeing to move to Miami to work in a repair facility. But, in 2008, she transitioned back to
working on commercial airplanes moving to South Carolina. She began working on the 787 program with
Global Aeronautica when Line 2 moved to 88-20 Cell 20, working in Systems and Electrical. Shortly after,
Lamar rejoined Boeing as a BSC teammate.

With Boeing’s support through the Learning Together Program, she earned a certificate in Avionics
Technology and an associate’s degree in Applied Science General Avionics Maintenance Technology.

“Boeing encourages all teammates to strive for increased knowledge and career choices, and provides
multiple ways to do so,” Lamar said. “When I heard Boeing South Carolina would be getting a Final
Assembly building and a Flight Line, I went back to school. I already had my Airframe Certificate, so I
needed to get my Powerplant Certificate. Once I had that, I was accepted to be a flight line inspector.”

Currently, Lamar works on the flight line with a team that inspects the airplanes to ensure they are
ready for test flights, and eventually, delivery to customers.

In 2020, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Lamar took part in the Women in Aviation Conference in
Orlando, joining 4,500 fellow colleagues across the industry for the networking and mentoring
symposium.

“A big take away from that conference for me was that I can be, and should be, an advocate for the
females like me who like working on and testing things,” Lamar said.

“Time has changed, and it is not so rare anymore for females, or males for that matter, to go into a non-
traditional career choice.

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I grew up in Florida on the Space Coast. We lived across the river from the Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, and I used to watch space shuttles take off and land. Our area code was actually called “3-2-1” for the launch countdown.

My parents were engineers for Boeing at the Kennedy Space Center. They were the only Black members of their teams.

The space shuttle program brought a lot of multicultural families to our towns, but I was still the minority in a lot of my classes. I learned how to understand different backgrounds and seek out relationships, which helped me in my career later on. I had to; it was a way to navigate space for awareness and sometimes safety.

I didn’t know that I was growing up in this melting pot of diversity during a historic time in aerospace when I was a child. It was a way of life. And I didn’t think I’d work in aerospace—I thought I’d work in accounting.

Chasity attended Florida A&M University, an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities), that her parents and grandparents also attended. She graduated with her Masters in Business Administration in five years.

When I went to Florida A&M University, it was the first time I was part of a majority group. It was super exciting—I had the freedom to be myself and celebrate what it means to be Black without external expectations than can affect how you see yourself. It boosts your self-awareness.

A big part of my training focused on building inner resilience in the workplace—helping you navigate spaces when you’re the only one, when you’re pioneering and furthering what your parents and grandparents did.

I took these tools from my university to Boeing when I started my career as a young Black woman working with teams where I was the only one my age and gender who looked like me.

Chasity interned at NASA as a financial analyst. She realized she wanted to pursue a career in Human Resources (HR), and landed an internship in HR at Boeing South Carolina, where her parents had relocated. She was hired as an HR Business Partner, and grew her career, supporting site manufacturing and people strategy, engineering and finance, Boeing Capital Corporation, Corporate Law and Global Talent Acquisition. Chasity moved to Seattle in March 2015, when she was an HRBP for Boeing Capital Corporation/Corporate Law. In 2018, Boeing made a $6 million investment in HBCUs, and as an HBCU grad, Chasity raised her hand to drive the development of Boeing’s investment strategy.

I was proud to lead our HBCU strategy, but it felt really heavy and important to me to get it right. I didn’t want to let our collective enterprise community down. And we knew we could be doing so much more in that space.

I leveraged all my skills and experiences of managing stakeholder relationships. I looked at the data, and started to build allyship, understanding and educating about the incomparable talent trained and professionally developed at our HBCUS. With the help of a team, we created scholarship programs, freshmen and sophomore pipeline programs, and recruitment strategies to help Boeing be the employer of choice.

Within our first year, we increased recruitment by 400% and our acceptance rate by 61%. It was surreal to be at the forefront of caring for what many have been doing and building over the years.

This year, I was promoted to manager of university recruiting, and I’m a first-time mother. It’s been a challenge. The resiliency skills I learned in college and throughout my career, including having a network, have helped me take a step back and say, this is hard. How can I strategically build relationships with the people around me? How can I give myself and others grace?

I’ve grown more resilient over the past 10 years, and so has Boeing. I’m proud of how far I’ve come and how far the company has come since my dad started working here 35 years ago.

I feel lucky to work at Boeing with my husband, younger sister and parents. We are all continuing to create legacies and redefine what’s possible within Boeing for generations to come

We still have gaps, and I know I have a unique opportunity to lend my voice and affect that talent arc of diversity.

Chasity visiting her mother, Sharon Leek, on take-your-daughter-to-work day at Kennedy Space Center in 1998.

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