The
Inspiration4 manned space flight is scheduled to splashdown in the Atlantic at
4:06 Pacific Time today. Netflix has an incredible documentary titled Countdown
that I recommend for all to watch. It is fascinating and enlightening.
I want to share one incredible story with
you that touched my heart. Let us go back to 1959 when NASA was just getting
started. It was a sad time of strict racial segregation and brutal treatment of
black people. Dr. Sian Proctor's father never had the money to go to college.
He taught himself complex subjects like calculus, physics, engineering, etc.
When he heard that NASA was hiring, he went over and applied for a job. Since
he had no college degrees or experience in the aircraft industry, his chances
of getting hired were small. He did not let this deter him. He applied for a
job. He got the attention of one person. He took a battery of tests. This NASA
employee was amazed at how good he did. He got a job offer.
NASA became his life. Some ten years later,
he was at the intersection of a historical moment. He was on the island of
Guam. He was at a NASA deep-space communications facility. As Apollo-11 was
preparing to reenter the earth's atmosphere, it lost all contact with earth
except for a deep-space tracking facility on Guam. Dr. Proctor's father found
himself talking on the radio with Neil Armstrong. He gave Neil all the
information that he needed to come through the atmosphere and splashdown in the
Pacific. When Apollo 11 hit the Pacific Ocean, Mr. Proctor guided rescue
helicopters to pick up the capsule and three astronauts. When Neil Armstrong
got onto the USS Hornet, he felt deep gratitude to Mr. Proctor. He wrote him a
personal thank you note. He asked US Navy personnel to make sure that the note
got to Mr. Proctor on Guam.
Mr. Proctor was surprised and touched when
he got the thank you note from Neil. It became a family treasure. When Dr.
Proctor blasted off into space, the note was carried with her.
Continue
with your hard work and preparations,
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