July 26, 2019
Last Friday I wrote about my short career as one of the 400,000 folks who had worked on the Apollo project. After one week on the job, due to my total lack of drafting skills, I was transferred to the Polaris Missile team in the same Honeywell building on Stinson Boulevard in North Minneapolis. I was assigned as an engineer aid to Nevin Jahns.
When I left in March of 1965 to go off to college, they had a going away party. I was able to find the Polaris Submarine tie clasp and the compass set that they had gifted me, but I must have worn out the briefcase lugging books. (that is a joke).
Now here is where it gets weird. On Saturday, my daughter Kerry threw her annual “summer birthdays” party at her place in Upsala, the old parsonage that was built in 1892 by the Swedish Mission Church members. My brother Bill came to the party and he presented me with an envelope that contained many cards that had once been given to me. A collection of 21st birthday cards and even some 40th birthday cards. I have no idea how it was that he had them in his house. On Sunday I took the time to go through the stack. One of the cards was a Bon Voyage card from the Polaris Missile team. On the back of the card, Carol had written the names of all 38 members of the team. The only two names that I had recalled where those of the engineer that I was assigned to, Nevin Jahns and the boss Ralph Webb. There was also a birthday card signed by Carol and Ardyce. That is how I was able to identify her handwriting on the back of the Bon Voyage card. Weird huh?
Live from Here this week is a rebroadcast. The next live show is from New York City on September 7th. You can listen to old shows on the web: livefromhere.org
“Think all you speak, but speak not all you think. Thoughts are your own; your words are so no more.” Patrick Delany
Category : General 