Ron grew up outside of Atlanta, Georgia in a town called Lithia Springs. As a young boy, he dreamed of flying. While in college, Mr. Young learned that by joining the US Army he could become a pilot and jumped at the opportunity. He graduated flight school and selected the deadly Apache gunship as his aircraft of choice. However, he had no idea that on September 11, 2001 his peaceful world would change entirely. He would soon become involved in our nation’s resulting war on terror as would hundreds of thousands of other service members.

On March 23, 2003 during the invasion of Iraq and on one of his first combat missions, he and co-pilot Chief Warrant Officer David Williams, were shot down behind enemy lines amidst fierce gunfire about 50 miles southwest of Baghdad. The two warrant officers eluded the pursuant Iraqi soldiers for hours under heavy gun fire but were eventually surrounded and taken captive. They were held as prisoners for 23 days under deteriorating conditions. But thankfully, weeks after it all began, the US Marines successfully rescued Young, Williams, and five other Prisoners of War near Samara, Iraq.

Mr. Young has worked as a CNN special contributor, as a White House political appointee for faith-based initiatives, and made it to the finale of the 7^th season of the reality television series “The Amazing Race.”  He has continued flying as a military pilot, a commercial pilot and recently left the airlines to pursue other business aspirations. Ron is an Eagle Scout and loves to share his captivating story of adversity, courage, selfless-service and inspiration with audiences around the nation.