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| "...The Columbia is lost...There are no survivors... ...Mankind is led into the darkness beyond our world by the inspiration of discovery and the longing to understand. Our Journey into Space will go on, yet farther than we can see there is comfort and hope. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Lift your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry hosts one by one and calls each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strengh, not one of them is missing. The Same Creator who names the stars also knows the names of the seven souls we mourn today. The crew of the Space Shuttle Columbia did not return safely to Earth, yet we can pray that all are safely home..." -President George W. Bush Addresses the Nation |
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| Click the Above picture watch the Entire Speech. |
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| "...watching the Moon landings and everything, it was just so incredibly adventurous and exciting to me that I just though, 'There is no doubt in my mind thats what I want to do when I grow up.'" U.S. Air Force Col. Rick Husband's childhood dream was to become an astronaut, Rich and his wife Evelyn along with their two children, Laura who is 12 years old and Mathew, who is 7 attended Grace Community Church for close to eight years where Rick sang in the choir and performed solos at special events. "Rick is probably the godliest man I've ever met, he was such a lover of God and a worker for God, a kind person to everyone." -Rick's Pastor Steve Honohoe |
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| "From our orbital vantage point, we observe an Earth without borders, full of peace, beauty and magnificence, and we pray that humanity as a whole can imagine a borderless world as we see it, and strive to live as one in peace." U.S. Navy Commander William McCool served ten years in the Navy before becoming an astronaut candidate. Willie's wife Described him as a eight year old trapped in a ten year olds body, a comment on Willie's almost boyish attitude. |
| "Whatever I can do to contribute to science, to improve science, I think is really great." U.S. Navy Captain David Brown was born April 16, 1956 in Arlington, Virginia. As a young boy Brown never had a specific dream of becoming an astronaut, he thought it would be a good job, but he didn't think it was possible. "I thought they were moviestars and I just thought I was a normal kid." Brown lived to explore, to do research, to find new cures and he was fulfilled working in the labatory aboard Columbia. |
| "She left India as a student, but she would see the nation of her birth, all of it, from hundreds of miles above." "When the sad news reacher her hometown, an administrator at her high school recalled, 'she always wanted to reach the stars. She went there and beyond.' Kalpana's native country mourns her today and so does her adopted land." Kalpana Chawla, aka Kacey by her friends, had a terrific sense of humor and loved flying...flying was her passion and sometimes when delays occured she would say to her crew "man...your training to fly in space what more could you want? |
| "Michael Anderson always wanted to fly planes, and rose to the rank of lt. Colonel in the Air Force. Along the way, he became a role model especially for his two daughters and school children." U.S. Air Force Lt. Colonel Michael Anderson prepared early in life for being an astronaut and when we went to schools to talk to children he would say "Whatever you want to be in life, you're training for it now." Mich was a perfect choice for the payload commander, organized, someone you could really count on, A gifted leader. We all loved to see him laugh...when he laughed, we laughed with him even harder. |
| "We're incredibly lucky to be able to be working where we are up above the Earth and being able to see our planet from that Vantage point." U.S. Navy Captain Laurel Clark had an interest in animals and the enviroment growing up and her parents expected her to always be her best, her path to becoming an astronaut evolved over time. "laurel Clark was a physician and a flight surgeon who loved adventure, loved her work, loved her husband and her son, a friend who heard larel speaking to Mission Control said there was always a smile in her voice, 'Life,' she said, 'continues in a lot of places and life is a magical thing." |
| "I believe that to be in space, to look at Earth from space, and to be able to contribute to human life so much, must be great." Israel Air Force Colonel Ilan Ramon was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, in June 1954. Ilan Ramon turned to me and said "how does one mark the sabath in space? with every ninety minutes another sunset, every ten and ahalf hours is a sabath, Jerusalem we have a problem! but Ilan taught us a powerful message, no matter how fast we are going, no matter how important our work we need to pause and think about why we are here on Earth." |
| Space Shuttle Columbia |
| "On Febuary 1st, 2003 Communication with Columbia and her crew was lost...they were sixteen minutes from home. Columbia was hardly a thing of beauty, except to us for those who love and cared for her, she was often badmouthed for being a little heavy in the rear end...but many of us can relate to that. Many said she was old and past her prime...still she had only lived a barely quarter of her design life. Columbia had a great many missions ahead of her, she along with her crew had her life snuffed out in her prime, just as her crew has, Columbia has left us quite a legacy...Hail Columbia." |
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| Timothy Joseph Bennett Metro Computer Repair(c) 2004 |
| Click the Above Photo to Watch "16 Minutes From Home" an INCREDIBLE Video dedicated to the Columbia and her crew. |