Never Too Late: Best's Dream Has Become Reality

For Norman Best, it's never too late to pursue a lifelong dream.

That's exactly what he did at age 56, when his son Robert gave him a gift certificate for a flying lesson, and before he left the facility in Brookhaven, he owned 25 percent of a two-seater airplane.

Now, Best, 72, and an East Meadow resident, continues to fly for fun.

"It's just something that gives me so much joy," Best said. "There is a certain poetic feeling when I am in the sky."

Best's dream of flying started back in the 60's, but he realized that the costs would be too much for him to bear, and then life happened. After getting married and having children, flying lessons were not high on his list of priorities.

"Family and children come before flying lessons," Best said. "There was no time to pursue it."

Best has two children of his own, and he also has three step-children. Between the two families, he has seven grandchildren as well.

"I am very close with my family," Best said. "They are my life."

When his children were grown, Best bought his current plane, a 1965 Piper Cherokee, and got his license to fly.

"I was always under the impression that you had to be a millionaire to own a plane," Best said. "It's not the case. There are people who look like you and me who own them."

Now, Best uses the plane to take advantage of the luxuries most people wouldn't have.

"I can fly wherever I'd like," Best said. "As long as I keep in contact over my radio, I am good to go."

A misconception that people have is that older people aren't healthy enough to fly.

"I have a physical every two years to make sure I am fit to fly," Best said. "If they deem me not good enough, I can lose my license. But if I have anything to say about it, and I can find my way to the airport, I will fly until I am 90."

Best has lived in East Meadow since he married his second wife, Sharon, and he loved being a part of the community.

"I feel like I am right in the middle of everything," Best said. "It's a great community, and I love living there."