For tiny Rhode Island, the International Space Station contact with students from All Saints Academy (Middletown, RI) and other schools on May 6 was BIG news. Perhaps because it was good news, or maybe because of a statewide heightened interest in education, it appeared on all three major TV network stations (ABC6, CBS12, NBC10) during their various news programs between 5:00 PM and 7:30 PM Friday. Newspapers, like The Newport Daily News shown below, carried it on their front page the next day.
When I came home after the event around 5 PM, I spent the next 4 and a half hours responding to emails that had come in discussing the event — it really seemed to grab people’s attention. Friends, ham radio acquaintances, and others that somehow knew I was involved reached out to tell me how touched they were.
A common theme appeared in many of the messages, and especially in an audio capture from a local AM radio station that carried the audio feed — “There wasn’t a dry eye to be found in the studio”. While the students at the event were star-eyed and filled with excitement over what they had just accomplished, the adults in the room, all of them, were drying their eyes. Somehow, this connected with everyone’s heart, combining the joy of discovery, exploration, and a sense of communal accomplishment. The adults knew this was rare air indeed and it was impossible to hold the emotional impact in check.
Personally, I had shed my tears earlier during practice sessions, when the kids were first running through their questions. I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to be part of this. I welled up again when I saw what I think is an incredibly touching commercial made by MTN, a continent-wide telecommunication company in Africa called “Sam from earth calling the space station”. There is a scene, when young Sam finally reaches the Space Station, where his mother drops a plate of dishes onto the floor.
That mother’s reaction and feelings — unbelief, shock, wonderment — were felt all throughout the live event room after Paula (one of the most poised students I have ever met) called for NA1SS SEVEN times before Astronaut Jeff Williams’ voice finally broke through the noise. Man, that was stressful, but produced a bonafide hollywood moment.
Once contact was made (1 min 50 sec after the ISS was above our horizon), the students and Jeff Williams handled the Q&A like seasoned pros — all 24 questions (an extraordinary number, I’ve been told), were asked and answered. Paula was sending her 73, just as the ISS was fading into the noise.
The Q&A livestream can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTkq5btNW_U&feature=youtu.be
I’m still trying to get a handle on my feelings two days later so I can capture them. How lucky was I to be a part of this. How fortunate we were to have Mike and Beth Cullen drive this forward. How wonderful to work with such a diverse group of people to plan this for over a year and be able to carry it out (especially the staff of All Saints Academy, who welcomed us with open arms). How amazing that ARISS and NASA allow this to happen.
How much I envy the young school students and what awaits them.
