Two grand galas honor heroes from the past!

Before we take off for the weekend we'd like to bring your attention to one last article. Patti Payne from the Puget Sound Business Journal wrote a nice story about two recent galas that honored "those who serve, and soar."

The first was the USO Puget Sound Area's (USOPSA) annual gala, co-chaired by Randy and Margaret Talbot, and Betty and Kemper Freeman as honorary co-chairs. The event raised a record $500,000 dollars for USOPSA and the Wounded Warrior program. What Patti won't tell you is that her mother co-founded the USO!

Meanwhile, The Museum of Flight was hosting their Wings of Heroes Gala, which featured a rare gathering of space legends. The event was headed by Mike Hallman, Bruce McCaw and Charles Simonyi and was organized by Museum trustee Bill Rex. The event raised $2 million for the museum's educational programs!

If you'd like to read more - check out Patti's full column here.  

Monday Morning Musings*

There's been much to discuss following the controversial Monday Night Football game and what still remains from those Eastern Washington wildfires. Here are some highlights of what is being read on the web and discussed around the office:

Touchdown, endzone, referees..oh my! What a crazy few days it has been following the Monday night game between the Seahawks and Packers. You already know what went down if you have a homepage on your computer, but let's look at the outcome from two different perspectives: The Seattle Times and the Green Bay Press Gazette.

• Still stinging, Packers look to move on
• Dissecting the Seahawks-Packers final play

Secondly, smoke from wildfires on the Eastern side of our state is still a problem as we Seattleites experience a foreign concept to the Pacific Northwest: little to no rain. The fires on the other side of the mountains were sparked by lightning, leaving severely foul air behind as the blazes die down. Here is an article on the smoke in Eastern Washington.




*posted on Wednesday due to office giddiness following the exciting weekend at the Museum of Flight

Mission Accomplished for Historic Museum of Flight Heroes Gala

Buzz Aldrin saluting at Saturday's Wings of Heroes Gala at Seattle's Museum of Flight 

Lee Keller with retired astronaut Buzz Aldrin at Saturday's Wings of Heroes Gala at Seattle's Museum of Flight

What an exciting weekend at the Museum of Flight! From the black tie gala on Saturday night to the lectures throughout the day on Sunday, thousands were at the Museum to celebrate, pay tribune, fundraise, and support. Around $2 million was raised at Saturday night's gala to further the educational mission of the Museum.


A few highlights from Patti Payne's column on the event:

• "Enthusiastic emcee and MOF Trustee Steve Pool calling up about 50 stars of space to the stage, including Buzz Aldrin; Walt Cunningham, James McDivitt and T.K. Mattingly; Jim Lovell, of Apollo 13 fame; iconic flight director Gene Krantz; Washington’s homegrown astronaut Bonnie Dunbar; Russian cosmonauts Alexi Leonov and Valery Kubasov; Gene Cernan; Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders, who lives on Orcas Island; Gemini and Apollo astronaut Dick Gordon; NASA mission controller James Joki; Charles Simonyi; Chris Lewicki, involved with the Mars rover and CEO of Planetary Resources; Eric Anderson, head of Space Adventures; Jeff Bezos, Blue Origins; Brian Binnie, test pilot for SpaceShipOne, Paul Allen’s project that won the Ansari X Prize; space traveler Anousheh Ansari, sponsor of that X Prize; and, to illustrate how far space travel has come, a father and son were on the stage – Skylab astronaut Owen Garriott and his son Richard Garriott, who has traveled to the International Space Station (ISS.) They are a great human interest story on their own.
   
• Seeing, on the same stage, the oldest and most experienced, from Joe Engle, pilot of the X-15 earliest space mission, to the youngest and newest on the space scene, like space tourist Simonyi, who has been to the ISS twice, space entrepreneur Bezos, whose Blue Origins is creating manned rockets to go into orbit, and Anderson, whose company Space Adventures sends people up to space now.
• Viewing the film clips that held the crowd rapt, with many asking each other, “Where were you when that happened?” all night long.
• Feeling the camaraderie among the aviation community, many of whom hadn’t seen each other for years but had worked together closely in their lifetimes, weathering space triumphs and tragedies.
• Watching Apollo 1 astronaut Roger Chaffee’s elegant widow Martha Chaffee presenting Deke Slayton’s cherished gold and diamond astronaut pin to the museum on behalf of the Apollo 1 astronauts’ widows who gave it to him.
• Seeing, from my vantage point on stage during the auction, a wide-eyed audience amazed at the auction offerings, including a Saturn V model rocket signed by the Wings of Heroes gala honorees; a sheet of 1969 moon stamps, a collector’s piece signed by six moonwalkers, including Neil Armstrong, Alan Shepard, Pete Conrad, Alan Bean, Jack Schmitt, David Scott; Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell’s signed space patch, which was with him in the harrowing April 1970 flight; and a trip to suborbital space donated by Space Adventures, which went for a whopping $100,000 to MOF trustee and Delta Captain Anne Simpson.
• And witnessing the poignant and loving tributes to their father by Rick and Mark Armstrong, the two sons of Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon. Armstrong was slated to be at the event early on. He passed away Aug. 25, and the nation mourns his passing."

Tons of coverage has been pouring in from the full weekend. More to come!

For more information on the Museum of Flight, visit their website.

2012 Spirit of Team Play Award Recipient Throws First Pitch

Last night, John Nankervis, Shoreline Fire Department paramedic, received the 2012 Spirit of Team Play Award sponsored by the Medic One Foundation, Philips Healthcare, and the Seattle Mariners. Nankervis threw out the first pitch at the Seattle Mariners game after being awarded for his continued commitment and exemplary service to the community. He was nominated by his coworkers, who said Nankervis exemplifies the integrity, teamwork, and compassion that bestows this honor.

Here a few photos from the exciting evening:

John Nankervis receiving the 2012 Spirit of Team Play Award

 

Nankervis throwing out the first pitch

 

Nankervis walking off the field after opening the Mariners game on September 19th



Moose with 2012 Spirit of Team Play award recipient, John Nankervis

Museum of Flight Hosts Star-Studded Weekend

 

The 2012 Wings of Heroes Gala is a celebration of men and women who have helped make spaceflight a reality and who continue to serve as the visionaries and entrepreneurs who are taking space exploration to even greater heights today.

Over 40 astronauts and mission control figures from all eras of space, including Buzz Aldrin, Gene Cernan, and Jim Lovell, are just a few of the guests attending this weekend's events at Seattle's Museum of Flight.

The distinguished group arrives for the Museum's Wing of Heroes Gala on Saturday evening, many of whom will be available to the public on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. for a sneak peek of the Space Shuttle Trainer and the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery, which will permanently open in November.

To cap off this exciting weekend at The Museum of Flight, native Seattleite and “Father of the Space Program,” George Abbey will be in attendance and donating all of his historic, personal NASA papers and documents from his time as Director of the Johnson Space Center to The Museum of Flight archives.

 

Below is a list of the lectures being hosted by the Museum of Flight this weekend.

 

Spaceflight Lectures - Sunday, September 23

11 a.m. - Moon Missions - The First Space Station - The Shuttle

• Buzz Aldrin - NASA astronaut, Gemini 12, Apollo 11.
• Jerry Bostick - NASA mission controller for Apollo 13 and other moon program missions, shuttle program manager
• Gerald Carr - NASA astronaut, Skylab 4 (1974)
• Owen Garriott - NASA astronaut, Skylab 3 (1973), shuttle mission STS-9 (1983).
• Jack Lousma - NASA astronaut, Skylab 3 (1973). shuttle mission STS-3 (1982).
• T.K. Mattingly - NASA astronaut, Apollo 16, shuttle missions STS-4, STS-51C.
• Milton Windler - NASA mission controller for Apollo 13 and other moon program missions, Skylab, space shuttle.

1 p.m. - Apollo-Soyuz Test Project and International Space Programs

• Valery Kubasov - Cosmonaut, Soyuz 6 (1969), Soyuz 19/Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (1975), Soyuz 36/Salyut-6 space station (1980).
• Alexey Leonov - Cosmonaut, Voskhd 2 (1965), Soyuz 19/Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (1975).
• Charles Lewis - NASA mission controller for Apollo 17, Skylab, ASTP and early shuttle flights
• Sy Liebergot - NASA flight controller for missions including Apollo 13 and Apollo-Soyuz Test Project.
• Glynn Lunney - NASA mission controller for Apollo 13 and other moon program missions, manager of Apollo-Soyuz Test Project and shuttle program.
• Charles Simonyi - Spaceflight participant, Soyuz TMA-10, 9 (2007), 14 and 13 (2009).

2 p.m. - Book signing/autograph session

 

For more information, visit www.museumofflight.org.

 

 

Monday Morning Musings

It was an exciting weekend here in Seattle and around the (virtual) globe. Between the Seahawks win at home against Dallas, chart-topping iPhone 5 orders and some of the best online live-streaming we've seen, these stories have us talking around the office today.

Our top three links for this Monday morning:

Topshop
Two million people from over 100 countries watched fashion retailer Topshop's Spring/Summer 2012 broadcast from London's Fashion Week. Not only could viewers watch the 10-15 minute fashion show, but they could click on clothes and accessories as the models walked the catwalk. Topshop estimates that "well over" 200 million people were exposed to images from the fashion show in the first three hours after it began. Now that is impressive.

Apple: iPhone 5 orders topped 2M in 24 hours
Have you ordered the iPhone 5 yet? Two million is more than double what the iPhone 4S raked in within the first 24 hours. The iPhone 5 is Apple's first major revision to the iPhone since its introduction in 2007. It will be available at Apple's 356 U.S. stores starting Friday. That is, if there are any left.

Seahawks show the world the team it can and wants to be
We Seattleites have a pep in our step this morning thinking about the Seahawks 27-7 win at home against Dallas. Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times said the Seahawks "practically pitched a perfect game..." Let's hope there's more where that came from!

And honorable mention to the current Seattle weather: thanks for making our Monday!

Seen Around Town

 

 

Be on the lookout for these posters peppered around businesses and landmarks in the Kirkland and Redmond areas. The first Eastside Vitality health fair is this Saturday from 9 am to noon at the Kirkland clinic. Walk-in appointments are welcome!

Like so many people probably did, I woke up this morning not thinking about this horrific event 11 years ago.  But when I saw the national coverage, the memories came flooding back.  I had just found out I was pregnant with Jacob 4 days earlier.  Mike told me I should come look at the pictures on the television.  I was horrified and actually didn't believe what I was seeing .  Then the second plane hit and I felt this wave of nausea (and not from being pregnant), come over me.  And what was most horrifying to me personally, was the plane hitting the Pentagon. After working in Washington, D.C. for 9 years, I never thought in my wildest dreams, anything like that could happen.  Then the phone began to ring and never stopped. I was managing a public affairs firm in Seattle, APCO Worldwide, and we were located in Seattle's World Trade Center.  I had employees literally crying and screaming into the phone that they were not going to come to work.  I reassured them and we shut the offices down for the day.  As it turned out, we left it closed for the week. 
But so many things were happening so quickly that it was impossible to wrap my head around it.    Air traffic was halted.  Commerce stopped.  Nothing was normal.  Our worlds simply stopped functioning.  And for me, that was the most unsettling thing of all.  We wake up every morning expecting certain things will be the same.  Our ability to move about freely.  Our ability to get on an airplane or call someone or pick up the mail.  Our everyday functioning.  All of that stopped. 

And so on this day, 11 years later, as we all move through our worlds, I will take the time to hug my family, tell my friends and colleagues how important they are to me.  And most of all, thank God that I live in this country.  Because we have the ability to bounce back from even the most horrific of events like this.  And I remain so very proud to be an American and to live in this greatest country on earth.  And I will never take our liberties here for granted.  And I will never forget.

Eastside Vitality Health Month Launches in Kirkland This Weekend

A community health fair is taking place this upcoming Saturday, September 15th, at the Overlake Medical Clinic in Kirkland. This is the launch of Overlake Medical Center's Eastside Vitality Health Month; the first of three Eastside locations hosting the event. Guests can participate in FREE cholesterol, blood pressure, cardiac and diabetes screenings, and much more! Appointments are filling up quickly, but walk-in guests are always welcome during the event hours from 9 am until noon.

 

The second community health fair will be on September 22nd at Overlake Medical Clinics Redmond location. The final event will take place at Overlake's main campus in Bellevue on September 29th. All events are from 9 am until noon.

 

Visit www.OverlakeHospital.org/EastsideVitality for a full list of screenings and more information.