Amanda Stubblefield's Crew Launches
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Sandra H. Magnus, Mike Fincke, Amanda Stubblefield, Yury Valentinovich Lonchakov, and Koichi Wakata
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Amanda Stubblefield, a member of the inaugural class of SPACE CAMP® Hall of Fame, trains astronauts and cosmonauts at Johnson Space Center as an ISS Environmental Control and Life Support Systems Instructor for United Space Alliance. After spending over two years training the crew of Expedition 18, her first two crew members launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Sunday, October 12, 2008. Commander Mike Fincke and Flight Engineer Yury Valentinovich Lonchakov launched with Flight Participant Richard Garriott, who is the son of Skylab astronaut Dr. Owen Garriott. Garriott also received training from Amanda at Johnson Space Center.
Fincke and Lonchakov are now onboard the International Space Station waiting for their third crewmate, Astronaut Sandra H. Magnus, who is scheduled to fly to the station on STS-126 later this fall. Amanda's fourth crewmember, Koichi Wakata, is not scheduled to launch until at least February 2009.
Amanda was in mission control leading the astronauts through their first on-board training exercise scheduled for October 30, 2008. The crew will be reviewing the locations and stowage for all their emergency equipment and reviewing emergency procedures. She has promised to keep her Space Camp friends updated on how her crew is doing on board space station.
SPACE CAMP Salute
A Space Camp salute goes to alumnus Elon Musk whose company, SPACEX, recently successfully launched a Falcon 1 rocket from Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific. Musk, who is CEO and CTO of SpaceX, attended a corporate camp in 2003, along with e-Bay founder Pierre Omidyar and Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Prior to building rockets, Musk founded PayPal and the Zip2 Corporation.
Counselor Recruiting Underway
December graduates, do you know where you will be working in January? Still searching for that perfect spring internship? Just need a break and want to work in a rewarding and fun environment? Are you an alumnus of a Space Camp or Aviation Challenge program? If you answered yes to any of these questions, it is time to fill out your application to be a Space Camp Counselor!
Jennifer DiCarlo, recruiting at Embry Riddle's Career and Industry Job Fair at the Prescott, AZ campus.
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The SPACE CAMP recruitment team recently returned from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona, Middle Tennessee State University, and Purdue University. The recruiters did much traveling in October, and November will be full of trips to schools all across the country in search of our new additions to the Space Camp Counselor family! Check the calendar and stop by and see the recruiters if you are in the area.
- Mississippi State — Nov 11th
- University of Mississippi — Nov 12th
- Delta State — Nov 13th
The counselor adventure begins January 7, 2009. Don't wait! Apply today at www.spacecamp.com/employment.
U.S. Space & Rocket Center Foundation Joins MissionFish
The U.S. Space & Rocket Center Foundation has just been accepted for listing on eBay's MissionFish site, which assists nonprofit organizations with fundraising. An eBay seller may now select the USSRC Foundation to receive a portion (10% or more) of sales transactions, and the USSRC Foundation may also sell on eBay.
On-line donations for scholarships and museum projects may also be made on the SPACE CAMP Web site, www.spacecamp.com. Click “donate now” on the homepage.
Alumni Spotlight
Melinda Boyd, a Librarian from Bethany School in Cincinnati, Ohio, is one proud parent! Both of her children, Lydia and Curtis, have attended multiple Space Camp programs over the years and owe many of their career decisions to their camp experiences.
"The last time I dropped a child off at Space Camp," Melinda recalls, "I saw a mom taking a picture of her son outside the Habitat in front of the sign that says, 'Through these doors walk America's future engineers, scientists, and astronauts.' I told her that I remembered taking a picture of my son in front of that sign, and now he is an aerospace engineer!"
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Lydia Ewbanks, age 10
Curtis Ewbank, age 8
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Melinda's daughter, Lydia, is a sophomore at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. She attended Parent/Child, Astrotrek, Space Academy, Advanced Academy, and the Advanced 12-day programs. Lydia recalls that going to Space Camp changed the direction of her life: "I now know that I definitely want to work to further space exploration... I am especially interested in the human factors of spaceflight and am majoring in Psychology and Russian to hopefully be some kind of liaison between Russia's space program and NASA."
Curtis, Melinda's son, became interested in Space Camp in the second grade when he read about it in a book from the library. He first attended a Parent/Child camp in 1994 as a birthday present. "That was, of course, fascinating," Curtis says, "but the weekend trip really made me wonder what a week would be like." In 1997, Curtis got his chance and went back for Space Camp, where he discovered that the position of mission specialist is what really interested him. "I learned I could become one of these by having a degree in aerospace engineering, and so, in the summer after fifth grade, I knew what I wanted to go to college for."
Curtis returned to Huntsville in 2002 for Aviation Challenge Mach III, in 2003 for Advanced Space Academy, and finally in 2004 for International Space Camp, the last year he was able to attend. At the end of his final camp session, Curtis took home the Right Stuff Award, having impressed his counselors with knowledge and leadership skills.
Since then, Curtis was accepted to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for Aerospace Engineering and has received a Co-Op position with United Space Alliance at Kennedy Space Center where he will be working in Launch Site Design Engineering. He is also planning to pursue his Master's degree at Purdue University in order to be a better candidate for NASA's astronaut program.
"I am very proud of my children," Melinda says, "and am thankful to Space Camp for the opportunities given to them." She hopes to bring a group of students from Bethany School to camp so more students can be encouraged to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics career goals.
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Lydia Ewbanks, present day, with mother, Melinda, and Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden
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Curtis Ewbank, present day, in front of Atlantis at Cape Kennedy
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Save 20% on Gaylord Opryland's "A Country Christmas" Packages
It's never too early to start making your holiday travel plans. And with this limited time offer, now is the perfect time! As a subscriber to the Space Camp newsletter, you're eligible to get 20% off* two or three-night "A Country Christmas" packages for travel on the following select dates when you book by Nov. 17, 2008, and travel November 23-30 or December 14-26, 2008. Packages include accommodations plus tickets to exciting holiday events like the Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring The Rockettes, ICE! featuring "How The Grinch Stole Christmas!" by Dr. Seuss and more! Click for information and reservations or call 1-877-234-OPRY and refer to code ACCA20. Restrictions apply.
For suggestions, questions, or comments about this or any Alumni Newsletter, please email us at alumni@spacecamp.com.
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