Tag Archives: Space Flight

Minute Meditations-1

14 Apr

SUNDAY MEMORIES 

Judy Wills

Reblog

Back in 2015, my brother Bill, gave me permission to publish some of his “Minute Meditations” he had written following the Challenger disaster. I would like to re-blog them for the next few weeks.  They are as appropriate today as they were when he wrote them, and I submitted them in 2015.

I would like to do something a little different for a few weeks.  Hope you like my musings.

As I have mentioned before – and he has posted – my brother worked in the space industry all of his career.  He has shared so many interesting stories of his work.  Recently, one that has impressed me the most is that, whenever one of our space shuttles docked with the International Space Station, it would “nudge” the ISS back into its orbit.  

Credit:  wallpaper.com

If that didn’t happen, then eventually the ISS would fall into the earth’s atmosphere and burn up.  Did you know that?  I didn’t.  And it seems like such a waste to have spent all that time and money to make the ISS, and then stop the space program.  Oh well.

In any case, if you are old enough to remember the Challenger disaster,

Credit newsweek.com

Credit mansfieldnewsjournal

Bill wrote a “Minute Meditation” about it, and I would like to quote it here:

So, even in tragedy, as Bill stated, we can know that God is there, is in control, and we can trust Him in all our ways.  That is such a hopeful and reassuring thought for me.  For you, as well, I pray.

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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I was a 12 Year Old Businessman-Part 2

30 Jan

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

It was like the difference between night and day to move from LA, a hugh city within an area consisting of almost 500 square miles of asphalt and concrete, to say nothing of the massive traffic problems there, to a small town with a 1960 census population of only 4000.

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The non-stopped work at the Kennedy Space Center to land men on the moon only lasted until 1970.  Not long after NASA and its many contractors had successfully completed this monumental accomplishment, the American public lost interest in space, manned space program funds were cut, and NASA started laying off contractors as the Apollo Program started spinning down.

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At age 35, I was one of the last engineers at Rockwell International to be laid off in 1973, and since DiVoran and I didn’t want to return to LA, and there were no engineering job to be had in the immediate area, I worked and studied the construction business to obtain my General Contractors license.   I built houses full time for two years until I landed a job with Lockheed Missiles & Space Co. on the Trident Submarine Missile program.

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For the next four years, I worked full time assembling and launching the Trident C4 submarine missile at Cape Canaveral, while building houses in my spare time.

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When that series of launches was completed, I was laid off by LMSC and went to work for McDonnell-Douglas who was launching communication satellites from Cape Canaveral using their Delta Launch vehicles.

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Then in 1979, I was recalled by LMSC to work on another series of the new Trident D5 submarine missiles launches, again at Cape Canaveral.

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In 1987, after that series of launches was completed, I transferred to the NASA Space Shuttle program with Lockheed Space Operations Co. at the Kennedy Space Center.  I retired in 1996 with a total of 35 years as what I called an “Aerospace Nomad” having worked for eight different companies during my career in the U.S. aerospace community.

7jpg DiVoran and I enjoy our retirement, while living in the same house we bought new in 1965.  We stay so busy with the fun things in our lives now that I sometimes wonder how I ever found the time to go to work.  I am involved in the R/C model airplane hobby, and do volunteer work with a local Car Care Ministry, and as a tour guide at the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum at the TICO Airport here in Titusville.

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DiVoran is realizing several of her lifelong dreams as she uses her God given talents with her painting and novel writing.  We both are enjoying having our extended family near us so we can spend quality time with them as often as possible.

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DiVoran and I are looking forward to many more years of life together, filled with the fun and adventures that only God, family and friends can give us.

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Proverbs 5:18 (NIV) 

 

                                            

                           

 

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