Dedication of the Michael P. Anderson Statue
The dedication of the statue will take place on Sunday, June 12, 2005 at 2:00pm. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the ceremony taking place in the breezeway between the Opera House and the Convention Center in downtown Spokane. Participating in the celebration will be the Anderson family, sculptor Dorothy Fowler, muscal entertainment and community leaders.
Donations to the Michael P. Anderson Memorial Statue Fund can now be made at any of the eight branches of Spokane Teachers Credit Union.
Jessie Wuerst, public relations committee member for the memorial fund, said an account was opened at Spokane Teachers to make it convenient for donors to give to the memorial for the Spokane astronaut who died tragically in the 2003 Columbia space shuttle disaster. In addition, she said, "The credit union has a strong partnership with school districts that play an active role in collecting funds through school fund-raisers."
A bronze statue memorializing the late Lt. Col. Michael P. Anderson will be completed in June. Details on the dedication ceremony will be released later.
More than $1,000 was raised through the "Gravity Funnel" located in front of the statue exhibit in River Park Square, Wuerst said. "STCU came through by counting coins donated to the campaign. When the funnel was emptied, the credit union counted $1,128."
A native of Spokane, Anderson gave his life doing what he dreamed of since he was a small boy -- exploring space. He perished along with six other heroes in the Columbia shuttle tragedy on Feb. 1, 2003.
"Together we can keep Michael Anderson's dreams alive by funding a bronze statue as a permanent memorial to him and his life," Wuerst said.
If you would like to make a donation to the memorial, visit any STCU branch location in Spokane, Spokane Valley, Cheney, or Newport, Wash.
Personal Data: Born Dec. 25, 1959. Died Feb. 1, 2003. Married with two daughters.
Education: Graduated from Cheney High School, class of 1977. Bachelor of Science in physics/astronomy from University of Washington, 1981. Master of Science in physics from Creighton University (Omaha), 1990.
Experience: Anderson was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1981, following graduation from the University of Washington. After completing technical training at Keesler AFB, Mississippi, he was assigned to Randolph AFB Texas where he served as chief of communication maintenance for the 2015 Communication Squadron and later as director of information system maintenance for the 1920 Information System Group. In 1986, he was selected to attend Undergraduate Pilot Training at Vance AFB, Oklahoma. Upon graduation, Anderson was assigned to the 2nd Airborne Command and Control Squadron, Offutt AFB, Nebraska as an EC 135 pilot, flying the Strategic Air Command's airborne command post named "Looking Glass." 1991 to 1992 he served as an aircraft commander and instructor pilot in the 920th Air Refueling Squadron, Wurtsmith AFB, Michigan. From 1992 to 1995 he was assigned as an instructor pilot and tactics officer in the 380 Air Refueling Wing, Plattsburgh AFBA, New York. Anderson logged over 3,000 hours in various models of the KC-135 and the T-38A aircrafts.
NASA Experience: Selected by NASA in December 1994, Anderson reported to the Johnson Space Center in March 1995. He completed a year of training and evaluation and was qualified for flight crew assignment as a mission specialist. Prior to the Columbia flight, he had logged over 211 hours in space. Anderson served aboard the STS-89 Shuttle Endeavor mission, January 22-31, 1998, the eighth shuttle-Mir docking. During this mission, the crew transferred more than 9,000 pounds of scientific equipment, logistical hardware and water. This mission traveled 3.6 million miles in 138 orbits of the earth.
