Bessie Coleman

Born in Texas to a family of sharecroppers, Bessie Coleman eventually moved to Chicago where she worked as a manicurist. After her brother, who had fought in WWI, taunted her about French women being pilots, she decided she would learn to fly.

Finding no American flight schools willing to admit her due to her race and gender, Coleman took French lessons and saved up her money. In 1921, she traveled to France, earning her international pilot's license from the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, becoming the first African American woman and first Native American to do so.

Returning to the U.S., Coleman became a celebrated stunt pilot, performing for crowds nationwide. Her goal was to establish a flight school for African Americans, but her life was tragically cut short in 1926 during a test flight when she fell from her plane. Despite her brief career, "Queen Bess" remains an enduring symbol of courage and determination.

So, while her aeronautical achievements were undoubtedly kvell-worthy, her connection to the tribe was, shall we say, non-existent. Unless, of course, you count the shared human desire to fly far, far away from mundane existence.