Meet Laura Morris: Dropzone Co-Owner & Industry Leader

Laura Morris plays a pivotal role at Skydive New England, which she owns and operates with her husband, Rob, and their business partner, Curtis White. Together, they’ve built one of the busiest skydiving centers in the region. But this wasn’t always the plan. After attending college for a degree in education, Laura thought she would be an elementary school teacher, until life took an exciting and unexpected turn, and she flipped to teaching adults how to jump out of perfectly good airplanes!

Hiking in Pucón, Chile; volcano Villarrica in the background.

Just a Suburban Punk

Laura grew up in Naperville, Illinois – your typical Midwest suburb, the kind with tidy lawns, good schools, and a pretty quiet sense of normal. Her mom was a teacher, her dad a banker. But Laura? She was never quite cut from the same cloth.

As a teenager, Laura was deep in the punk rock scene, spending weekends at Chicago concerts and proudly wearing a hot pink mohawk that stood 14 inches tall. Her world was full of energy, music, and a healthy disregard for convention. “I was always outgoing and eccentric,” she said. “I gave my parents a hard time.” 

Laura is still chasing the same thing: intensity, community, and the kind of thrill that rattles your soul in the best way possible.

Running

At 18, Laura did what many teenagers threaten but few actually do: she ran away from home. She moved to Alabama to live with her boyfriend (now husband), Rob, who was managing the Alabama Skydiving Center.

That first trip to the dropzone wasn’t about skydiving, but it quickly drew her in. “I was instantly drawn into the skydiving culture,” Laura said. “The people were interesting, skydiving was engaging, and I wanted to join the craziness.”

She took a job behind the manifest check-in counter and tried her first tandem, which she loved.

Jumping In

Despite how much time she spent at the dropzone, Laura didn’t rush into skydiving. “I didn’t want to start jumping just because I was dating someone who already skydived. I wanted to do it for me.”

She spent her first year immersed in dropzone life and did five tandems to get a feel for the sport. She spent a lot of time on the ground, watching everyone play in the sky – until she could bear it no more, and decided to get up into the sky to play too. She started the nerve-wracking journey to her A license.

Fear & Flight

You wouldn’t guess it now, but Laura started out terrified of skydiving. “I would get a huge stomach cramp just turning onto the road that led to the DZ! In the airplane, I had knots in my stomach and constant second thoughts.”

But she kept going.

“I decided I didn’t want fear to control my ability to do something I wanted to do, so I told myself I had to keep jumping until I wasn’t scared anymore.” For Laura, that took about 100 jumps. By then, skydiving wasn’t just something she did; it was part of who she was.

A duo at work! Laura shot video; Rob took people on tandems.

Buying In

Skydiving didn’t just become Laura’s passion; it became her career. “I started from the bottom and worked my way up to where I am now. I’ve had every single job at a skydiving center.” 

From the manifest counter to parachute packing, from video editing to managing the office, Laura climbed the ranks by getting her hands dirty. She’s been a social media collaborator, a coach, an AFF instructor, a videographer, a Coach Examiner – and eventually, a dropzone owner.

By the time 2013 rolled around, Laura and Rob were all in. After years of working as instructors and managers at a large dropzone in the Midwest, they made a bold move: they rented out their house, moved into an RV, and saved every penny they could. Then they emptied their bank accounts and bought Skydive Danielson.

Hanging from a helicopter; Chicks Boogie, Skydive Danielson.

“We tackled it head-on,” Laura said. “That first season, we tried to do everything ourselves, and we quickly realized that wasn’t sustainable.” They learned to lean on their team, delegate, and build a culture that didn’t depend on burning out.

Building Skydive New England

Their hard work paid off. Danielson grew a strong reputation in the skydiving community, known for its laid-back vibe, welcoming culture, and attention to detail. And then, in 2021, they expanded again, this time buying Skydive New England.

Laura admitted, “I’d never even been to Skydive New England before we came to look at buying it! Now, she’s at the helm of a dropzone where more than 20,000 jumps happen every summer. The planes are full, the waitlist is long, and the vibe is unmistakable. “Enjoy life, keep the vibe right, and have fun doing what we all love,” she said. That’s her guiding philosophy, and it shows.

Making Space For Women in Skydiving

In a sport where fewer than 15% of participants are women, Laura is one of the rare few at the top, owning her own dropzone. 

“Women provide a much-needed balance to the skydiving world,” she said. “The guys need us around.”

She believes women bring different teaching styles, leadership approaches, and emotional intelligence that strengthen the sport as a whole. But that presence has to be cultivated; it doesn’t just happen by chance.

Her advice? Become instructors. Become leaders. Mentor others. “Help foster a strong community at your dropzone. Be inviting to new jumpers. Include people on your jumps and your dinner plans. Give back to the community, because it gives so much to you.”

Laura hanging from an all-female hybrid; Chicks Boogie, Skydive Danielson.

Most Memorable Jumps

After 4,000 skydives, Laura stepped back from jumping for medical reasons. Even so, the sky remains a central part of her world.

Her favorite kinds of jumps? Two-way freefly and sunset tracking jumps. Easily the best way to end the day!

And then there are the unforgettable ones: winter jumping in Pucón, Chile. Flying past an active 9,000-foot volcano with no doors on the plane, and catching glimpses of glowing magma on the ride to altitude. “Seeing magma inside an active volcano is a very moving experience, and then to jump out of the plane just a few minutes later is really crazy. Even as a jumper with thousands of skydives, every single jump I did there was just insane!” Laura reflected. 

Skydive New England is a place where people come to challenge themselves, to connect, and to feel alive. Laura has built more than a business; she’s built a culture. If you haven’t met her yet, don’t leave the dropzone without saying hi!