Monterey Bay
Ninety-Nines

"When I think of something, I'm going to do it."

-Geneva Cranford

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She dropped out of the sky on June 29, 2003

How did Geneva celebrate her 80th birthday? Skydiving, of course! With friends and family cheering her on, she donned a parachute, climbed into the jump plane and headed for the sky.

She jumped at 15,000 feet, free-falling until the chute opened at 10,000 feet. Was it what she expected? "I was amazed at how much time there was to look around during the free-fall. It's like swimming only you don't have the pressure of the water. It would be a lot of fun to be a skydiver in a group."

"This is something I've had in my mind since I was a little girl," said Geneva. She has been fascinated since she was about 5 years old and saw a woman dive from an airplane at the state fair in Oklahoma City. She said it has taken about 74 years to fulfill her skydiving dream, mainly because she didn't want to worry other people in her life, particularly her mother, Tessie Edwards, who died in 1995, and her husband, Douglas, who died in 2000.

Geneva's creativity has taken many forms - from designing an early 99s' sales booth to organizing section meetings to fashion design and so much more. Over the years she has delighted us with her artistry and did so again on her jump -- she designed and created a gold lamé jumpsuit to wear over her leopard-printed leotard especially for the occasion

When her jump was over, she handed her car keys off to someone and flew back to Salinas with former Airport Manager, Mr. Chappell. Geneva said she wanted to do a landing!