[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 1]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 705]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            REMEMBERING THE SPACE SHUTTLE ``COLUMBIA'' CREW

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                       HON. MADELEINE Z. BORDALLO

                                of guam

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 1, 2006

  Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remember the astronauts of 
Mission STS-107 who lost their lives on February 1, 2003, when our 
Nation lost the Space Shuttle Columbia. The crew included Rick Husband, 
William ``Willie'' McCool, Michael Anderson, David Brown, Laurel Clark, 
Kalpana Chawla, and Colonel Han Ramon.
  Commander William ``Willie'' C. McCool was a son of Guam. Commander 
McCool, who attended Dededo Middle School and John F. Kennedy High 
School on Guam, was the pilot of the Columbia on Mission STS-107. He 
proudly carried the Guam flag with him on the mission. Commander 
McCool's life and service to our Nation and our world holds special 
meaning to the people of Guam.
  STS-107, like other Space Shuttle missions, sought to broaden our 
understanding of the world in which we live and of the heavens beyond. 
That mission, and the work of STS-107, represents the best of human 
endeavor. Willie McCool understood this. On January 29, 2003, Commander 
McCool reported from orbit high above the Earth, ``From our orbital 
vantage point, we observe an Earth without borders, full of peace, 
beauty and magnificence, and we pray that humanity as a whole can 
imagine a borderless world as we see it and strive to live as one in 
peace.'' Willie McCool gave his life in pursuit of that dream. It is a 
dream that should be honored, and one that should be an inspiration to 
us as well as our children.
  For that reason, on February 11, 2003, I introduced H.R. 672, a bill 
to rename the Guam South Elementary/Middle School after Commander 
McCool. The President signed H.R 672 into law on April 11, 2003. And 
today, as namesake to the Commander William C. McCool Elementary/Middle 
School, Willie McCool's dream of a borderless world of peace lives on.
  Exploration of space is exciting and inspiring. Rocketing into the 
heavens and returning to Earth represents the best of American 
ingenuity and courage. Manned space travel was once only a science 
fiction writer's dream. Our Nation made it a reality. Landing a man on 
the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth was thought to be 
impossible. Our Nation proved the critics wrong. Routine missions to 
space flown by the Space Shuttle were considered frivolous. But our 
Nation remains proud of the Space Shuttle program, the Astronaut corps, 
and the contributions to science, to other fields of study, and the 
practical applications of technology that regular space travel have 
made possible. With the perspective that only orbiting the Earth can 
provide a man, Willie McCool was inspired to dream of a borderless 
world of peace. That dream makes me proud. And achieving this dream 
should be the foundation upon which future manned spaceflight is based.
  Let us renew our commitment to space exploration and manned space 
flight on the occasion of the anniversary of this mission and the loss 
of the Columbia crew. We also honor the memory of the Challenger, 
Mission STS 51-L, and the Apollo 1 crews, and all pioneers who have 
lost their lives in the mission to explore space.

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