Herrington Visit A Message Of Celebrating A Journey, Sharing A Vision-A Dream (cont'd)

John Herrington was able to visit Goddard employees such as Dr. Tracee Jamison, electrical engineer

Next, it was back to Goddard, Building 8 auditorium, where a diverse group of more than 400 school students awaited Herrington. The crowd included students from Holy Trinity School, Bowie, Maryland; Rocking Horse Road Center, Rockville, Maryland; Patterson High School, Baltimore, Maryland; and Spark Matsunaga Elementary School, Germantown, Maryland. Again, Herrington stressed the importance of school to fulfill their dreams while giving an overview of his work during STS-113.

For lunch he met with the Center Director and several Goddard employees which included Dillard Menchan, Equal Opportunity Employment Office chief; Wanda David, Native American Program Manager; and Marcellus Proctor, Native American advisor at Goddard and direct descendant of the Piscataway Nation.

The afternoon for Herrington was spent meeting Goddard employees, first an assembly in the Building 8 auditorium and then a visit to Building 22. There he spent time talking with Goddard employees

	John Herrington was able to meet some Goddard employees in their work space.

about their work and thanking them for their daily contributions within the NASA family.

"His visit is just another opportunity for the Goddard community to gain a better understanding and appreciation of Native American history and culture," said David. "We are committed to continually revealing the contributions of the Native American culture within mainstream America, especially at Goddard."

According to Proctor, coordinator for the visit, "He (Herrington) was very happy about how the day evolved and really enjoyed the opportunity to visit with so many students and Goddard employees."

Photos by Chris Gunn/293
Dancer performs traditional dance before astronaut John Herrington talks with students.

For Proctor, it was an unforgettable experience that he shall always treasure. It was his dream when Herrington launched in 2002 to have him visit Goddard. "It was an honor for me to meet him but the best thing about it was that he is a humble man that takes pride in sharing his experience with others," said Proctor.

Other activities for the month include a video presentation entitled "500 Nations" co-hosted by Kevin Costner, November 25, 11:30 a.m., Building 8, room 121. This 8-part series documents the history of Native people of North and South America from before Columbus through to the United States Civil War.

"Earlier this year, all of us at NASA saw the Native American spirit again at work as groups of Native American firefighters volunteered to assist in the vital work to recover debris from Columbia," said Administrator O'Keefe. "We will never forget their outstanding contributions to the recovery effort that has greatly helped us along the path to resuming safe Space Shuttle flight operations."

For more information about Native American activities at Goddard contact Wanda David at 301-286-1091 or Marcellus Proctor at 301-286-9402.