From 1st to Last, Columbia to Altantis

These side by side pictures are of Chris Bray and his father Kenneth. The one on the left shows 13-year-old Chris with then 39-year-old dad looking through binoculars at the space shuttle Columbia's first launch on April 12, 1981, from the Kennedy Space Center. Last week they went to the last shuttle launch & recreated the scene at the 1st.

Chris told the Washington Post “We’ve always loved that first photo. Taking a similar one for the last launch seemed like the perfect opportunity to celebrate the shuttle program and our relationship by putting the time passed in perspective, celebrating the interests we share, and illustrating the father/son bond we’ve maintained over the years.”

OK, I'll admit I am a bit envious. I would have loved to attend at least 1 launch of any space flight, not just the shuttle. But what is really at the heart of this story is family. Esp that of fathers doing things like this with their sons. & that is something of value that will last a lifetime.

Source: Chris Bray and his father watch NASA history, 30 years ago and four days ago