Aviation Pioneer, Aviatrix, Air-Racer. She was a contemporary of Amelia Earhart, first President of the Ninety-Nines. A photo of Amelia Earhart and Vera Dawn Walker is in the collection of the Smithsonian museum and has been widely published online. She began working as a stand-in in the motion picture industry. During the filming of the Tom Mix picture “Purple Sage”, she agreed to go on a sightseeing flight with Tom Mix. She related in a 1972 interview that “Before we touched the ground, I knew that I had to learn how to fly”. In 1928 she applied to numerous aviation schools and was turned down by all but one. She was accepted by the Aerial Corporation of California. In 1929, she learned of a Women’s Air Derby being promoted by the National Exchange Club. With sponsorship by Howard Hughes, she won the right to enter the race in a plane owned by the Curtiss-Wright Flying Service. The Women’s Air Derby of 1929 left Santa Monica’s Clover Field on August 29 for an eight day flight to Cleveland. The participants included Amelia Earhart, Louise Thaden (the eventual winner) and Marvel Crosson, who died when her plane crashed during the race. Vera’s home town of Abilene, Texas was a stop on the route of the Air Derby. During this stop, she received a large reception and was greeted by her father and siblings, who rushed onto the field. Following the famous Women’s Air Derby of 1929, she participated in at least one other Air Derby and in closed course race. At 4’11” and 90 pounds, she became a media darling as “the world’s smallest pilot”. In December 1929, she became the eleventh woman in the world to win the coveted United States Department of Commerce full transport license. She was a representative and demonstration pilot for Panther McClatchie airplane motors. Following an adventurous flight to Guatemala, she contracted tuberculosis. During her recovery, instead of entering a sanatorium, she relocated to the Tucson area and ever the adventurer, began placer mining for gold. She was briefly married to Roy Harrison Balyeat, who she wed on November 12, 1939 in Maricopa County, Arizona. They soon divorced. While Vera recovered from tuberculosis after several years, her health prevented her from flying. She cared for her father from about 1940, bringing him to live with her in Arizona until the time of his death. Vera died in Maricopa County, Arizona in June 1978. She is buried in the Cope Cemetery in Abilene along with both of her parents. At the current time, her grave is marked only by a metal funeral home marker. Through contact with The Ninety-Nines, efforts are being made at sponsoring an appropriate memorial with local assistance from the Taylor County Historical Commission.