Mayo Aviation founder Gwendolyn Lee Olson Mayo died November 20. Born in 1932 in Minneapolis, Mayo earned a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Minnesota and had served as a research chemist for the University of Colorado before launching Mayo Aviation in 1978.

Under her leadership, Mayo Aviation grew into established charter and management business that operates aircraft from turboprops to heavy jets and also has a certified repair station. Based at Centennial Airport in Denver, Mayo also has had a 36-year partnership with Flight for Life Colorado.

Mayo was the first woman chair of the National Air Transportation Association and won that organization’s William A. (Bill) Ong Memorial Award in 1978. She was inducted into the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame and was recognized with NBAA’s Silk Scarf Award.

Mayo also was known as a talented seamstress and embroiderer, with some of her embroidery displayed in the Denver Museum of Natural History.