Kathleen Benner Duble grew up surrounded by very talented individuals. Her father was a jet pilot in the Pittsburgh Air National Guard, and her sister, Lauren, went on to receive her wings and become a tanker pilot for the MAINEiacs in Bangor, Maine. Because Kathleen had sixteen car accidents before she was twenty-one, Kathleen's father would not let her try her hand at flying. This was probably a very good decision.