From the Editor in Chief
Dear Teachers,
Our March issue of Scholastic News featured an article entitled "My Mom Is an Astronaut," about Columbia Mission specialist Dr. Laurel Clark and her son, Iain. After the space shuttle disaster on February 1, we sent you a letter recommending that you not use the issue in your classrooms. Since then, we have been in touch with Dr. Jonathan Clark, Laurel's husband and Iain's father. After reading the article, Dr. Clark was so moved by the issue that featured his wife and son, he was inspired to write this letter to you.
We're honored to be able to share Dr. Jonathan Clark's heartfelt letter with our Scholastic News teachers. You may want to share his thoughts and insights with your students, if you think the article is appropriate for your classroom.
Sincerely,
Rebecca Bondor
Editor in Chief
Scholastic Classroom Magazines
My wife, Laurel Clark, and our son, Iain, wrote the article called "My Mom Is an Astronaut" in the March 2003 Scholastic News. As many of you may know, the space shuttle Columbia (STS 107 mission) broke apart in the upper region of the Earth's atmosphere on the morning of February 1, 2003. The crew and their space shuttle were all lost in an instant. Fortunately, they did not suffer, and in their last moments they were probably all thinking of the wonders of space after a very successful 16-day mission, and looking forward to seeing all their friends and family back on Earth.
My family hopes that you will consider using this Scholastic News issue in your classroom, even though this may remind everyone of this great loss. Laurel loved children and education was her passion. She would have wanted children to see this article as well.
The many teachers in our family showed me the precious cards from their students. We were all overcome with how much expression and creativity was generated by young minds in the face of the tragedy. Although we were all deeply saddened that Laurel and her crew were lost, it was a special joy to know that their legacy was not lost. In the hour after the shuttle was lost, astronaut and teacher Barbara Morgan comforted me with the words "our children will get us through this." Although at the time I doubted it, I have to say she was right. My son, Iain, and the other Columbia kids gave us strength beyond our imagination.
Life is fragile and so precious, and sometimes a loss like this allows us to look at it differently. As far as risk and danger are concerned, life has many ups and downs. We could never have discovered new places and things without some risk. We can do what we can to reduce risk, like wearing a seatbelt in a car, or wearing a helmet while riding a bike, but we will still do those things. What makes us alive often involves some risk. One of Laurel's favorite quotes was: "A ship in harbor is safe-but that is not what ships are for."
Although this was a terrible loss for my son and me, as well as the rest of the Columbia families, and the nation and the world, we felt extremely proud that Laurel was an astronaut whose mission was to help make new discoveries to help humankind. So many emotions and issues are tied with this article now: sadness and hope, exploration and discovery, challenge and risk, to name a few. It is now up to the educators and parents to pass this spirit on to our legacy and future, our children.
Jonathan B. Clark M.D.
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