Georgianne

She had, I'm assuming a sabbatical. I don't know. She didn't like clear it with the nine-year-olds, what was happening with her release time, but she wasn't there. She would come back and give us updates on the training that she was doing with the space program. And we had little experiments that we got to design that the teacher in space was going to take up on the challenger.

So of course we were so sad that she wasn't selected to be the teacher in space.

So of course we were so sad that she wasn't selected to be the teacher in space.

So of course we were so sad that she wasn't selected to be the teacher in space.

Yes. So January 28th, 1986, I will never forget, Ms. Cheever came in the classroom and told us to... come to the carpet. We knew, of course, that Ms. Laughlin hadn't been selected, but we were excited because we were told that our experiment was still going on board the shuttle and that Krista McAuliffe was going to come to our school and share all of the findings from our experiment.

Yes. So January 28th, 1986, I will never forget, Ms. Cheever came in the classroom and told us to... come to the carpet. We knew, of course, that Ms. Laughlin hadn't been selected, but we were excited because we were told that our experiment was still going on board the shuttle and that Krista McAuliffe was going to come to our school and share all of the findings from our experiment.

Yes. So January 28th, 1986, I will never forget, Ms. Cheever came in the classroom and told us to... come to the carpet. We knew, of course, that Ms. Laughlin hadn't been selected, but we were excited because we were told that our experiment was still going on board the shuttle and that Krista McAuliffe was going to come to our school and share all of the findings from our experiment.

I'll never forget sitting on the carpet and watching her chin quiver as she told us what had happened, that the Challenger had been lost.

I'll never forget sitting on the carpet and watching her chin quiver as she told us what had happened, that the Challenger had been lost.

I'll never forget sitting on the carpet and watching her chin quiver as she told us what had happened, that the Challenger had been lost.

No, because our principal, it was such a big deal for our school and our community that she had this foreboding feeling like if something terrible happened, she didn't want us all watching this collective traumatic experience. I was devastated, as were so many of our class, sad for our teacher and for those families.

No, because our principal, it was such a big deal for our school and our community that she had this foreboding feeling like if something terrible happened, she didn't want us all watching this collective traumatic experience. I was devastated, as were so many of our class, sad for our teacher and for those families.

No, because our principal, it was such a big deal for our school and our community that she had this foreboding feeling like if something terrible happened, she didn't want us all watching this collective traumatic experience. I was devastated, as were so many of our class, sad for our teacher and for those families.

And then for me, too, I'd been so excited that I don't have to choose between being an astronaut and a teacher. I can do both like Miss Laughlin. And a little part of that dream died for me that day. So by the time I got home from school, I was nearly inconsolable. And my mom owned a flower shop and we lived in an apartment above the flower shop. I'm just sobbing by the time I get off the bus.

And then for me, too, I'd been so excited that I don't have to choose between being an astronaut and a teacher. I can do both like Miss Laughlin. And a little part of that dream died for me that day. So by the time I got home from school, I was nearly inconsolable. And my mom owned a flower shop and we lived in an apartment above the flower shop. I'm just sobbing by the time I get off the bus.

And then for me, too, I'd been so excited that I don't have to choose between being an astronaut and a teacher. I can do both like Miss Laughlin. And a little part of that dream died for me that day. So by the time I got home from school, I was nearly inconsolable. And my mom owned a flower shop and we lived in an apartment above the flower shop. I'm just sobbing by the time I get off the bus.

And she says, I want you to go upstairs, just take a breath, get a snack. It's going to be okay. About an hour, hour and a half later, I come bouncing down the stairs and she's like, Georgianne, you seem so much better. I'm like, why am I called NASA? And she's like, you did what? I said,

And she says, I want you to go upstairs, just take a breath, get a snack. It's going to be okay. About an hour, hour and a half later, I come bouncing down the stairs and she's like, Georgianne, you seem so much better. I'm like, why am I called NASA? And she's like, you did what? I said,

And she says, I want you to go upstairs, just take a breath, get a snack. It's going to be okay. About an hour, hour and a half later, I come bouncing down the stairs and she's like, Georgianne, you seem so much better. I'm like, why am I called NASA? And she's like, you did what? I said,

Yeah, I called NASA and I talked to my teacher and she told me she was okay and that I'm okay and I feel better. I remember very vividly marching up the little stairs. I pulled out the yellow pages from under our counter. So Monica, other young people, it was this big book of phone numbers.