Where

jenx67.com

were you?

We will never forget

them, nor the last time

we saw them, this

morning, as they

prepared for the journey

and waved goodbye

and slipped the „surly

bonds of earth‟ to

„touch the face of God.‟

—President Reagan,

January 28, 1986

Once upon a time, Once when you were mine I remember skies, Reflected in your eyes I wonder where you are. I wonder if you Think about me Once upon a time In your wildest dreams —Your Wildest Dreams, The Moody Blues, 1986

jenx67.com

I arrived on the beautiful blue planet in 1967.

Two years later, man landed on the moon. This

would become my earliest memory. I am in

my father’s arms and I am looking up at the moon

from our front yard in Los Angeles. My father says a

man is walking on the moon, and I say, Daddy, I

can’t see him.

In 2007, I started blogging about Generation X.

By broadest definition, Gen X includes those born

between 1961 and 1981. Experts in generational

theory believe the Space Shuttle Challenger was

a key moment in the lives of Gen Xers. They say it

contributed to our distrust of large institutions.

I was a freshman in college when the Space

Shuttle Challenger exploded. My friends and I

were gathered around a console TV in the in the

student union building. We watched in disbelief as

seven astronauts perished before our eyes.

Twenty-five years have come and gone since that

day, and not in my wildest dreams did I ever think

the time would pass this fast.

Last week, I asked Gen Xers from around the

country where they were on January 28, 1986.

Here is what some of them had to say.

Photos courtesy NASA

Becky Sturm StormSister Spatique

I wasn‟t at school, but at home, watching before I went to

work. I will never forget that day. It was so exciting. Lift-off. The

camera watching the crowd. Split screen. Half of the screen

showing the shuttle careening through the sky The other half

on the audience who had come to see this historic event. It

was very disturbing watching the faces of the bystanders as

they realized something had gone horribly wrong.

jenx67.com

Dan Greenberg Massachusetts In January 1986, I was finishing my undergraduate engineering

degree, and I fulfilled a lifelong desire to interview at NASA.

Returning from the interview, I called my mother in Crestfallen

and said, "They are so poorly managed I don't know how they

get men in space."

That was January 14, 1986. I watched the Challenger explode

14 days later on TV in my fraternity house...

jenx67.com

Brian Bellmont Co-creator of GenXtinct.com

Co-author, Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops?

I was a senior in high school, and what struck me most

viscerally then - and what sticks with me to this day - was the

camera trained on Christa McAuliffe‟s parents as they

watched from the bleachers at Kennedy Space Center. It was

supposed to document their soaring elation, but instead

captured their slow - agonizingly slow - realization that

something was desperately wrong...

jenx67.com

jenx67.com

Once the world was new

Our bodies felt the morning dew

That greets the brand new day

We couldn't tear ourselves away

I wonder if you care

I wonder if you still remember...

—Your Wildest Dreams, The Moody Blues, 1986

Jennifer Hancock The Humanist Approach to Happiness I was working in an electronics store when the shuttle

exploded. I was two years out of high school and working my

way through a junior college at the time. I remember having

to watch it explode on the bank of TV sets we had on display

over and over and over again…

What I take away from that disaster is just how exceptionally

courageous some people are in their service to others...For

me, the crew of Challenger were heroes...

jenx67.com

Holly Branch Virginia

...I was 10 years old and in the 5th grade. I remember what I was

wearing, where I sat in my class. I can still see the day‟s lesson

on the chalkboard and smell my teach Mrs. Brunnel‟s perfume.

We did not have electricity at home and I remember waking up

that morning so excited about going to school to see television.

I can remember hearing the countdown and becoming very

excited when the smoke began to billow from beneath the

engines and begin its ascent into space. I remember saying to a

classmate “Wow that is so cool! I wish I could be Mrs. McAuliffe.”

No sooner had I said that the Challenger exploded. This was a

very traumatic experience for me. It has been nearly 25 years

and as I type this I am once again in tears…

jenx67.com

Marianne O’Hare Connecticut

I was live on the radio with a young intern from Trinity College

in Hartford. Since it was the teacher in space shuttle mission,

we were carrying it live even though WHCN-FM was a rock

station. We went from a live break in the music to carrying the

launch to ongoing news coverage of the event afterwards.

Such a riveting event. So tragic. My intern was unflappable. A

cancer survivor who had lost her leg to the disease, she was

my rock that day.

jenx67.com

Christina Sleeper Sleeper‟s Magic Rub

I was a college student at the University of Cincinnati on January 28,

1986. That day, I was in between classes and thought I would go grab a

coffee at the student union…there was a television tuned to the

shuttle...I remember what seemed like a forever wait until the time of

liftoff, then within a few seconds the Challenger was in the sky and the

broadcasters were speaking about what a beautiful day for a launch

and then all of the sudden something did not look right. For a very long

moment we did not know what happened…

“And, I am not sure off the top of my head if Chernobyl followed this

tragedy or came before, I just remember that with the Chernobyl

disaster and Khadafy and the advent of regular terrorist events like the

hostage taking of tourist cruise ships and so many other terrible, terrible

international events, the Challenger explosion was like finding out there

is not a Santa Caus. It really took a part of hope away from me.

jenx67.com

Deborah K. Becker Wisconsin

As our last Space Shuttle keeps juggling the date for its final

mission, I am constantly reminded of my whimsical decision to

skip yet another day of my junior year at Jefferson High School

on 1/28/1986. Licking Cheeto paint off my fingers and wasting

the day away on our ratty old sofa, I settled on TV coverage

of the Challenger's launch.

I didn't know what to do with myself after watching it

disintegrate. At 16, the failure of the shuttle was, for me,

somehow tied to my country's vulnerability in the remnants of

the Cold War. I'd just watched lives cease to exist on national

television and couldn't call my parents for solace because

they'd destroy me if they found out I was truant...

jenx67.com

Leslie Cranford Texas

I was a very young DJ on KSEL-FM in Lubbock at the time. It had

been a typical morning, except for the anticipation of the launch...I

could see the small black and white TV through the large double-

paned window between the studio and the news booth. I wasn't

looking up when the explosion happened, but I heard my colleague

hollering, "It blew up! It blew up!" ...I remember having to gather my

composure as I had to go on the air…

On Saturday morning, Feb. 1, 2003, enjoying my coffee and

catching up with email, I had a call from my ex-husband (who I had

been dating at the time of the Challenger disaster). “Do you have

the TV on?,” he asked. “Columbia has exploded over Texas.” I turned

on CNN, sunk to the couch and sobbed. Everything I had felt during

the Challenger disaster came flooding back to me…

jenx67.com

jenx67.com

A Salvation Army band played

And the children drank lemonade

And the morning lasted all day,

All day

—From Dream Academy and

Life in a Northern Town, 1986

jenx67.com

Michael A. Misetic Illinois

I was in the fourth grade and it was my 10th birthday. It was supposed to be an

exciting day. My teacher, Mrs. Stalke, had reserved the television for our class so we

could watch the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger. My mom was allowing five

of my friends to come by the house after school for a little birthday party. Mom also

made cupcakes the night before for me to take to school and share with the class.

Mrs. Stalke thought it would be a nice treat to enjoy as we watched the launch of the

shuttle.

We anxiously waited with cupcakes in hand. Life was good. My age had finally

reached the double digits. We had TV in the classroom, cupcakes to eat and a break

from our school work. What more could a 10-year-old ask for? 3-2-1 blast off. We sat at

the edge of our seats and cheered. Those cheers quickly turned to confusion and

sadness. I don't remember much else from that day, other than a lot of silence.

I still had my party after school, but it wasn't full of the fun and games that had been

planned. The wiffle ball and basketball was replaced by replays of the disaster. The six

of us - Mike, Ricky, Glenn, James, Jonathan and Phil - matured quite a bit that day. We

realized there were a lot more concerning issues in life than who gets to bat first and

whether or not Ricky's foot was on the line.

jenx67.com

Kyle Miller Game Creature

I was at work when I heard about it - someone had heard

about it on the radio. My first reaction was one of dismay -

that someone had heard wrong. The reason was that I had

previously worked at NASA (on the Columbia missions) and I

knew that NASA had back-ups for the back-ups of their back-

ups and the astronauts were drilled for any contingency. If

they had even a moment to act, there could have been a

way for them to separate the orbiter and comeback safely to

Earth. When the facts finally game out, I understood that the

explosion came without a moment's notice. The tragedy

affected me deeply.

jenx67.com

Jeff Lewis Group M, Inc.

I was watching the shuttle launch on TV when it exploded. I was home

after having taken an 11th-grade mid-term Math exam that morning. I

had always been particularly interested in the NASA space program.

And at that time I was also very interested in Florida's weather, because

my family was due to visit Orlando in a few weeks. I recall the launch

had been scrubbed from the day before (I think) due to extreme cold

temperatures (I remember seeing news footage of icicles hanging from

oranges in Florida). That morning my mom mentioned she thought the

flight had been cancelled again since it was still cold, but when I sat

down to watch TV I saw the launch.

The explosion literally blew me out of my chair. To this day, if I watch a

shuttle launch, I always brace myself around the 1:10 mark in

anticipation that something can soon wrong. It is still painful for me to

recall it each year, as January 28th also happens to be my birthday. I

always pause for a moment of silence and remember the crew.

jenx67.com

Dana Marlow Maryland Accessibility Partners

They grouped the three 4th grade classes together into the

largest classroom. We all sat on the floor while they wheeled in

a small TV on a cart for all of us to watch. We had been

discussing it for weeks and they tied it into science and math

class lessons. Then we watched. And gasped. And cried. They

wheeled the TV on the squeaky cart back out and the

teachers discussed it with us. It was so tragic and so sad.

jenx67.com

John E. Citrone Editor, Xomba.com

A sophomore at the University of Florida in Gainesville, I was

making my way home from class on the morning of Jan. 28,

1986. It was close to lunchtime, and I was headed to the

cafeteria near my dorm for a bite before what might have

been a long nap. But there was that monster of a cloud

above, spreading its tentacles and throbbing a pale orange.

I stood for a moment, trying to find my place in the moment,

then ran into the café, where the little wall-mounted TV

broadcast the horrible reality. The shuttle was gone, as were

her seven crew members…

jenx67.com

Sean M. Wood Texas

I was a freshman at Texas Wesleyan College in Fort Worth. I

was walking through the lounge of our dorm on the way to

the dining hall to eat an early lunch. The novelty of shuttle

launches was wearing off by this time, yet the networks were

not yet bored with them. So I stood there for a few minutes

watching the launch and I saw it blow up. I remember the

announcers being at a loss for words as the two smaller

rockets went spiraling off in different directions, a giant cloud

where the main booster and Challenger had been. I

continued to watch, not believing what had just happened. I

couldn't leave until I heard the announcers say the shuttle had

blown up…

jenx67.com

Tamara I was senior in high school in PE class waiting with a bunch of other girls

for the teacher to show up in the weight room. She was usually a

stickler for punctuality, not known for much compassion or being

fazed by much of anything. So when she showed up looking dazed

and confused, we knew something unusual had happened. She just

kind of stood mutely in the door with a blank stare swaying unsteadily.

Several of us asked her if she was OK...and then she dropped the

bombshell, "The Challenger exploded," she mumbled dazedly…

As the aftermath developed with the investigation, I would say all the

debate about the cause and the O-ring made me aware for the first

time that there is a lot of passing the buck in government… It was also

my introduction to the fact that in government operations, cost

cutting often supersedes safety or concern for human life and

welfare…

jenx67.com

jenx67.com

...And when the music plays

And when the words are

Touched with sorrow

When the music plays

I hear the sound

I had to follow...

—Your Wildest Dreams, The Moody Blues, 1986

D. Jill Pugh Seattle

I was a junior in high school in Bellevue, Washington, and I was in my

math class, taught by one of my favorite teachers Dan Reeder. We

did not have a TV in our classroom, but we all learned of the

Challenger explosion over the intercom system. Our teacher was

instantly shaken and had to step outside the classroom. As I recall, he

had been one of the finalists to be the teacher on that shuttle. I don't

know how far in the process he had gone…

My dad is an aerospace engineer, so I had been following the news

about the launch before this. It was very upsetting…I remember

watching the footage again and again as every news cast replayed

it, and thinking that could have been Mr. Reeder.

jenx67.com

Nichole Santoro I was in 8th grade and the school secretary wheeled in a

television to the classroom…when we saw it explode, we were

all confused until a kid asked, “So, are the astronauts ok?”

Visibly upset, both our classroom teacher and school secretary

tried to explain as best they could the tragedy that had just

occurred. It was my first experience really witnessing such a

horrifying national event. And one of the first times I witnessed

mentors who were just as shaken up as we were, not really

able to quite comprehend the meaning behind what had

happened. A couple years later, my mom began teaching at

Christa McAuliffe Elementary School, and always remained

inspired by Christa's bravery and leadership.

jenx67.com

Lucinda Ellison

I was a young newspaper reporter working in a bureau at The

Kansas City Star. I remember our bureau chief running out of

her office yelling, “Turn on the TV, the shuttle exploded!" We

turned on the television in the common area and gathered to

watch the coverage - the explosion was almost instantly

replayed. Of course, immediately, we were scrambling to call

any area experts to get local commentary. The tragedy and

magnitude of the event were somewhat delayed for me

personally as the adrenaline kicked in and I didn't have time

until that night to absorb the emotional impact to our national

psyche.

jenx67.com

Chris Ward Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc

I was 9 years old when the Challenger exploded. The school had set up a

television in the cafeteria at Whittier Elementary School…By this time I

aspired to be an astronaut myself. My uncle, a test pilot in the Air Force,

showed me pictures of shuttle launches as I grew up from infancy…

This was an unusual mission because Christa McAuliffe would be the first

teacher in space. My teacher, Mrs. Joy, let those of us who were interested

watch the launch. I was surprised by how few of the students were there…

like the rest of the world, watched in horror as the Challenger exploded.

…It did not take long before the jokes came. I remember , “What does

NASA stand for? Need Another Seven Astronauts.”

We will never forget all those that give their lives in pursuit of space

exploration.

jenx67.com

John Boyd, Founder Meeting Wave

I remember that day well. I was hanging out on the first floor of Zeta

Psi's fraternity townhouse at Columbia U…with a friend who was close

to Ron McNair, who was a student of my friend's father at MIT, but also

the karate instructor of my friend, his brother and father. We were

watching since my friend was thrilled that his karate mentor and friend

was going to be on the flight.

I'll never forget the disbelief, shock and sorrow when we realized what

happened. It was a sad day for many. I also recall President Reagan's

speech shortly thereafter. “The crew of the space shuttle Challenger

honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never

forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they

prepared for the journey and waved goodbye and „slipped the surly

bonds of earth to touch the face of God…‟”

jenx67.com

Heather Minsky Nottingham Nottingham Consulting Group I remember it like it was yesterday. My father has worked for NASA for the past

24 years and seeing the shuttle launch was always so thrilling to me. I was in

second grade. Our class went outside to watch the shuttle take off and I

remember an intense anticipation because I knew that this was the year that

they had…the first teacher in space… As we saw the shuttle take off, it began

as normal as the rest of the launches we‟d seem. Then, something appeared to

go terribly wrong. There was an explosion and all you could see was an eerie

looking cloud of smoke.

I remember thinking that it did not look normal, and looked over at my teacher

to see the horrified expression on her face. We were all asking if that was

supposed to happen. I even saw what looked like parachutes coming down

from the area of the blast. I thought that maybe some of the crew had gotten

out alive. I later learned that the entire crew had perished in the explosion. It

was a very sad day.

jenx67.com

jenx67.com

Don't get me wrong

If you say "Hello" and I take a ride

Upon a sea where the mystic moon

Is playing havoc with the tide

Don't get me wrong

—From The Pretenders, 1986

Sarah Chicago Suburb, 1986

We were eating lunch in the junior high cafeteria when the

gym teacher came in to announce the explosion. Looking

back, I don't think any of us really absorbed what had

happened. Space travel had already become normal for us--

even the oldest kids in the room had been born after the

moon landing--to the extent that if Sally Ride, the first non-

astronaut on the shuttle, hadn't been involved, we might not

have noticed there was a launch at all.

jenx67.com

Kevin Johnson Tech Image

I'll never forget this moment. It was nondescript in that I was in my

apartment with my wife and infant son in Champaign, Illinois, but the

memory is seared because of what I was about to do. My wife and I

had just returned from a glorious three-day trip to New Orleans to see

the Chicago Bears triumph glorious in Super Bowl XX. In fact, I was sick

as a dog that morning. The revelry (too many Hurricanes) and the

drive back had wiped me out.

When I got up in the morning of January 28th, the first thing and only

thing on my mind to do was putting in the VCR of the game and

watching it from start to finish. I got out of bed...turned on the TV and

immediately put the tape in. By the time the tape had entered the

VCR and settled---that's when the image of the cloud of smoke

coming from the Challenger appeared on my TV screen...I didn't

watch the video of the Bears triumph until a few days later.

jenx67.com

D.J. Verret, MD Texas

I was in 4th grade at the time and doing some research in the

school library. The librarian had a television in her office and

she let us watch the space shuttle take off. I was actually

working on an Apple IIe computer at the time and still

remember the layout of the room to this day.

jenx67.com

Jessica Tryzna I was born in 1976 and was in 3rd grade when the Challenger went

up. We were in the midst of lunch in the cafeteria when it exploded.

The principle came on the intercom and made the announcement.

As soon as we got back, they wheeled TVs (with a fuzzy, grainy

picture) into our classrooms to watch...it made me...address death,

which was something I hadn't done at that point in my life.

One of the reasons our school and town was so interested was

because my second grade teacher, Mrs. Druck, had applied to be

the teacher to go into outer space on the Challenger...The year

before, when I was in her class, we spent a great deal of time learning

about space...It was just such a shock after all that, to see it blow up in

front of your eyes at 10 years of age.

jenx67.com

Richard Laermer 2011: Trendspotting for the next decade

Back then I was a writer for USA Today inside the penthouse of

the Sherry Netherland hotel where doyenne and theater

goddess Lucille Lortel lived. She was telling me about the

theater being named for her on Christopher Street---and what

types of awards and grants she would give. An aide walked in

(it was huge so we could hear footsteps for aisles!) and

announced the disaster. Lucille, since deceased, stopped

what I'd found to be insistent name dropping, and said to no

one: 'Oh dear. ' Then 'Now where was I?;

I'd never forget this.

jenx67.com

jenx67.com

No more sadness, I kiss it good-bye The sun is bursting right out of the sky

We've got no future, we've got no past

Here today, built to last

In every city, in every nation

From Lake Geneva to the Finland station

(How far have you been?)

—From the Pet Shop Boys and

West End Girls, 1986

Steve

I had just graduated MIT and was rooming with another MIT

grad student majoring in Aeronautics & Astronautics who had

hoped to become an astronaut. Beyond the shock everyone

felt that day, there was a profound sadness for his now

dubious future that he had worked so assiduously to

prepare for.

jenx67.com jenx67.com

Joanne Stanway Massachusetts I was working as an assignment editor for WLNE-TV in Providence,

Rhode Island in 1986...we had a live feed coming into the newsroom.

A group of us wanted to watch and knew instantly that something

had gone wrong.

I can still see the white pattern of smoke in my mind's eye and

remember how shocked we were, especially since Christa McAuliffe

was a New Englander and a teacher and a civilian. Christa's mother's

expression when she realized what happened is also something I'll

never forget…

The explosion did not change my view about the government or the

space program except that it was the first time I felt that the space

program was dangerous and not something perfect and magical…

jenx67.com

Amanda

I was 9 years old and in third grade when the Space Shuttle Challenger

exploded. Many of the students at my elementary school were excited

about the launch because our first grade teacher had applied for and

made it to the final interview process for the position that was given to

Christa McAuliffe. All of the students assembled in the auditorium where

the news coverage was projected on a larger screen.

As children who had never experienced a space shuttle launch, I don‟t

think we knew what to expect. However, our teachers knew right away

that something wasn‟t right when the fireball came onto the screen. At first

there was silence, then they quickly escorted us from the auditorium back

to our classrooms. There wasn‟t really any discussion about what

happened.

Its hard to believe that were approaching the 25th anniversary. Time really

does fly.

jenx67.com

Brian Schar California

I was going to college at the time, studying aerospace

engineering, believe it or not. A friend ran out of the dorm, as I

was walking in, to tell me the Shuttle just blew up. I thought he

was playing a prank, and didn't believe him, or believe that it

was possible. Then he took me into the lobby and showed me

what was on TV to prove it. I was shocked to say the least.

jenx67.com

Eileen Wolter I was 14, home watching on TV with my older sister, 15; younger bro, 6

and sis, 5. It was the most shocked I'd ever been. Weirder than

watching the whole Reagan thing unfold. Maybe because I was older

or because space travel still seemed (even now seems!) so sci-fi. Also

that a teacher was on board was even weirder as my mom was a

teacher. Nowadays there'd be grief counselors available for everyone

to talk to at school, but back then, and especially as my parents

aren't the kind to really discuss how outside events made you feel, it

wasn't really discussed in a way that connected to me personally. A

few years ago when my hub, son and I were at Walt Disney World we

saw a shuttle taking off over the lake at Epcot. I still found myself

doing a little atheistic prayer in my head that it wouldn't blow up.

jenx67.com

Larry Williams, Author Customer Service A to Z

The morning of January 28, 1986 was like any other morning for me, except for the fact that I

was just days away from completing my two-week notice with my current employer, The

Southland Corporation. I worked in the accounting offices and was excited because, just two

weeks earlier, I accepted a position to work in the Payroll Department of the Rockwell

International Corporation. Rockwell is the company who built the Space Shuttle Fleet for NASA.

Here on the West Coast, we were barely getting into our daily routine of the usual desk

assignments, telephone support and coffee when all of a sudden my accounting manager,

Bonnie, walked out of her office with a stunned look on her face and said, “The Space Shuttle

just blew up!” Of course, we all asked what happened and she filled us in. Next, all eyes turned

to me as my co-workers were aware of my job at Rockwell.

I too was stunned. I excused myself from work for the day and went home where I was glued to

the television set and the repeated replays of the disaster and aftermath of reported segments.

It was something that I just couldn‟t wrap my mind around. Space Shuttles just don‟t blow up.

By the following week, I had reported to work at Rockwell to a very solemn environment. There

was much consoling amongst employees as they tried to put their best face on to welcome

me, the new hire, to their department.

jenx67.com

jenx67.com

Once upon a time

Once beneath the stars

The universe was ours

Love was all we knew

And all I knew was you…

—From the Moody Blues and

Your Wildest Dreams, 1986

jenx67.com