Twelve items, consisting of signed photos, ALSs, and TLSs, from a total of eight different astronauts. All have written to a sick young girl recovering from surgery, at the behest of her uncle, as she has aspirations of becoming an astronaut. Participating astronauts are Walt Cunningham (photo), Eugene Trinh (photo), Byron Lichtenberg (photo and letter), Joe Kerwin (photo and letter), Dianne K. Prinz (photo and letter), John S. Bull (photo and letter), Pete Knight (letter), and Gary Payton (letter). Almost all of the photos are inscribed to Kathy. Payton writes, in part: “Like everything in life though, the good things are accompanied by some bad things. One of the guys I flew with, El Onizuka, was on board the Challenger. Since that awful day, I have attended many memorial ceremonies, seen many missing-man formations, heard many sad speeches, and shed many tears. But I have learned a considerable amount about the American people since then. I’ve learned that Americans have a trait called resiliency.” In fine overall condition.
The following are excerpts from the astronaut letters included with this collection. All letters are addressed to a young girl names Kathy Urban, who is suffering from an unknown handicap. These letters were written to her at the behest of her uncle, Father William Ward, to boost her spirits and provide encouragement to keep her dreams alive of entering the space program.
ALS, signed “Byron Lichtenberg, Spacelab I,” one page, 8.5 x 11, Paylopad Systems Inc. letterhead, dated February 2, 1987. “I wanted you to know that I’m thinking about you and wish you good luck. One of the most important qualities you can have is perseverance and determination. I know you have that in you—keep your spirits up.”
TLS, signed “Joe Kerwin,” 8.5 x 11, one page, NASA letterhead, stamp dated January 30, 1987. “Your uncle, Father William Ward, wrote me a short letter about your ambition to be an astronaut, and about the great disappointment of your illness … I am glad there are people likeyou who set your sights high, and struggle against obstacles that come between them and their goods. We need people like you. You can do things with your life even more important and more satisfying than going into space. I see people doing these things frequently. One of my best professional employees is blind; her job is helping people with personal problems, and she does it very well. We have others, not physically qualified to be astronauts, who are flight directors, designers, and so forth. But the best thing about the letter was that you have friends and family who love you. I’ve been to space; it was a wonderful experience; and I would throw it all away gladly for that kind of love.”
TLS, signed “Dianne K. Prinz,” two pages, 8.5 x 11, Department of Navy letterhead, dated February 23, 1987. “I’m not a NASA astronaut, but I was one of four scientists selected in 1978 to train with NASA as a Payload Specialist crew memebr for one aprticular flight of the Space Shuttle—the Spacelab 2 mission … Unlike the NASA astronauts, scientist Payload Specialists rarely get a second chance to fly aboard the Shuttle … Some of the Spacelab 2 experiments, including mine, were scheduled to fly again, aboard a Shuttle mission that was to be called ‘Sunlab,’ and I had been nominated and selected by the Sunlab experimenters to be one of the flight Payload Specialists for that mission. The letter approving my selection was to have been signed by the head of NASA on that fateful day of the Challenger accident: January 28, 1986. Needless to say, the letter was not signed, and the Sunlab mission has been put on indefinite hold. So I have no idea if I will ever get into orbit with one of my experiments … I once thought I’d like to be a NASA astronaut, but after going through the Spacelab 2 training, which lasted nearly 7 years, I’ve discovered that I enjoy my regular job much more. The intellectual challenge of thinking of ways to solve problems involved and understanding how the atmosphere of the earth responds to man-made and natural incputs, which is what I do, is much more satisfying to me than learning how to operate an instrument that someone else has thought up, which is what the NASA astronauts do … Their job is more like a technician … and they must adjust to a number of pressures. One mistake on orbit, now matter how minor, can mean no reassignment to another flight for years, and it’s often difficult to be ‘perfect’ when you’re experiencing the nasea of the ‘Space Adaptation Syndrome.’”
TLS, signed “Gary Payton,” 8.5 x 11, two pages, dated February 14, 1987. “Like everything in life though, the good things are accompanied by some bad things. One of the guys I flew with, El Onizuka, was on board the Challenger. Since that awful day, I have attended many memorial ceremonies, seen many missing-man formations, heard many sad speeches, and shed many tears. But I have learned a considerable amount about the American people since then. I’ve learned that Americans have a trait called resiliency: they can suffer an immense tragedy, work hard, overcome it, then come back and do better than ever before. America’s space program is doing that with the best quality engineers, scientists, mathematicians, and technicians in the worls. Unfortunately, most of them will never get the opportunity to fly in space; but they are the ones who actually make every flight happen. They share in the glory every time the ground rumbles at lift-off, every time we see the beautiful pictures from space, every time the tires squeak during landing. The world’s best are attracted to the space program.”
ALS,signed “Pete Knight, Col. USAF Ret,” 8.5 x 11, two pages, dated March 23, 1987. “The past teaches us that some of the greatest men and women have had limitations of one kind or another, FDR, Wiley Post, John Barrymore, Deke Slayton, Sen. Dole. And there is one young girl in particular that through her courage and determination learned to walk with the aid of a computer hooked to the muscles of her legs. She walked to receive her College Degree … The world needs movers and shakers and with your determination you will be one of those people. The world needs so many people that are willing to be ‘all they can be’ to make it a better place for all. You can be one of those people, and who knows, by the time you are ready—your limitation may be an asset for space travel.”
ALS,signed “John S. Bull,” 8.5 x 11, one lined page, dated February 17, 1987. “Our space program needs people like yourself who can help the U. S. continue to explore space and learn more about our universe. It takes so many dedicated people in addition to the astronauts to carry out successful space missions.”
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