Mary E. (Chance) VanScyoc ’41 was known for taking chances. She even named her memoir — A Lifetime of Chances.
Born in Wichita in 1919, she earned a private pilot’s license at the age of 20, before graduating from the University of Wichita with a bachelor’s degree in education and then, in June 1942, becoming the first female civilian air traffic controller in the United States. After a year of teaching school in Ford, Kan., a newspaper ad for air traffic controllers had caught her attention, enticing her to apply since she had the two main requirements: a college degree and a pilot’s license. She began her trailblazing career at the Denver Airway Traffic Control Center and went on to work as a controller in Cheyenne, Wyo., Hutchinson, Kan., and Wichita.
It was in Wichita at the University Airport at 25th Street and Hillside in 1947 that she met her future husband. E.B. “Van” VanScyoc, fresh out of the Army, was taking flying lessons there. The couple was married Oct. 10 that same year and set about raising a family. In addition to her homemaking activities, VanScyoc taught PE at Augusta (Kan.) High School for several years. She also served as a juvenile probation officer for a time. Flying, though, remained a key part of her life. She took helicopter lessons and soloed at the age of 64. In one of her letters about flying she wrote, “I was privileged to fly in the right seat and will never forget the thrill.”
Mary VanScyoc died Feb. 9 in Wichita.
