He was a college drop out who was awarded nine honorary doctorates in Engineering. He was one of Robert F. Kennedy's closest friends and helped manage RFK's bid for the presidency. He first met his wife while still in a playpen and never dated or loved another woman during all the years of his life.

He flew bombers during W.W.II and flew jet fighters during the Korean War. Ted Williams was his wing man during that time. He was awarded the Distinguished Service medal six times, the Air Medal eighteen times and various other medals too numerous to mention. He retired from the service as a full Colonel.

He neither smoked nor drank alcohol, and his love for his wife is the stuff romance novels are written about. Sweethearts since the eighth grade, they were married the day he was awarded his wings as a Marine pilot. During his time overseas, he took pride in having written her every day they were apart.

Anna suffered from a speech defect that made it nearly impossible to communicate, yet she earned a BA degree in music and was an accomplished organist. As a young wife and mother, she often had to rely on her children to interpret for her because her stuttering in public made even such simple tasks as shopping for groceries extremely difficult. She finally took speech therapy classes and eventually went on to head national committees for the hearing and speech impaired. She was also acclaimed for her work on national committees for child abuse and Americans with disabilities.

When this man left the service, he became a self made millionaire. Among his other accomplishments, he was president of Royal Crown Cola for a number of years and bought and managed a resort in Florida that he made into a virtual money machine.

He ran unsuccessfully for Governor, then tried for the Senate and was again unsuccessful. The third time was the charm and he was elected to the Senate where he served with distinction for twenty-four years. After retiring from the Senate at the ripe old age of seventy, he did something no other man in his seventies has ever done. He went up into space for the SECOND time.

Yep, it was the second trip into space for John Glenn. His first trip was three orbits of the earth. He was the first man to circle the earth even once. Have I mentioned that he was the test pilot who was the first man to cross the continent at speeds exceeding that of sound? Or that he was awarded his BS degree only after having returned from space that first time?

Because of his avoidance of alcohol, his being a non smoker and his deep love for his wife, John Glenn was considered the 'Goodie Two Shoes' of the original astronauts. Personally, I never thought of him that way. To me, he represents all that is noble and good in my generation. For anyone who enjoys reading, especially anyone who enjoys reading about our country's heroes, I strongly recommend they read the autobiography of John Glenn. You'll be glad you did.

Loyal