On The Fly

“Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure science.” Edwin Hubble, The Nature of Science, 1954 . “It’s cold out here, what are we looking for?” As an avid six-year old TV viewer my response was, “A space capsule.” No binoculars, no telescope, we naively looked to the sky thinking we would see a jet trail or something. We had watched Walter Cronkite, the anchor of CBS Evening News, broadcast the launch of Friendship 7 from Cape Canaveral on our black and white console television. It was 21 degrees Fahrenheit on February 20, 1962. The skies were clear blue as we stood outdoors in our back yard in West Central Illinois (Cuba). Shivering in the cold, my father and I were looking skyward for the Mercury capsule with John Hershel Glenn Jr. to pass overhead. The first American to orbit Earth. My Hero, America’s hero. He was a man destined to become a National Treasure.  How many other father and son duos do you suppose...

Let me take you back to the days when “MaBell” dominated how you communicated with distant family and friends. I’d venture to say your primary means was a rotary dial telephone, undoubtedly a party line, some had to crank, attached to the wall in your home. Getting social meant the neighbors were listening in to your phone conversations. How times have changed! Today’s pilot can communicate with their friends and former squadron mates worldwide on a variety of devices. A cellphone, laptop computer, tablet, smartphone, or a television connected to your home WiFi network. Social media, via the internet, provides a much broader range of options. Thousands communicate daily from a visit to a museum, a video segment from an airshow, or post a compelling story shared with a veteran.  For our patrons, it all begins at the Foundation’s website . This is the launch point for all our public activities, educational outreach, and social media outlets. We’re proud to report our activ...