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Make-A-Wish®
Child Spends Day with Astronaut Buzz Aldrin
at
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
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Cape
Canaveral, FL – October 2015 / Newsmaker Alert / Make-A-Wish®
arranged for Ethan Jogola and his family to enjoy a fun-filled educational
day at Kennedy Space Center
Visitor Complex on Thursday, October 1. Ethan, from Alberta, Canada,
suffers from cystic fibrosis, a life-threatening lung and digestive system
disorder. When he expressed his love for space and wish to meet Apollo
astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Make-A-Wish contacted Aldrin’s nonprofit, ShareSpace
Foundation, and Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to coordinate the
meeting.
The
wish family experienced multiple attractions at the visitor complex, including
a stroll through the Rocket Garden, where Ethan’s passion for space was
evident as he named almost all the rockets from memory and climbed into
a replica Gemini capsule with his brother Matthew. They toured Space Shuttle
Atlantis (SM) and spent nearly two hours exploring the attraction including
a ride on the Shuttle Launch Experience®, which simulates a real shuttle
launch.
Finally,
Ethan’s wish came true when astronaut Buzz Aldrin greeted him by the Apollo
11 gantry in the Rocket Garden; the same gantry that Buzz walked before
launching atop a Saturn V rocket to the moon in 1969. Buzz and Ethan walked
the gantry together while Buzz shared stories about his days as an astronaut.
As an additional surprise, Ethan and his family discovered they would eat
lunch with the former moonwalker, then attend a special panel discussion
and VIP premier screening of the highly anticipated movie: “The Martian.”
“Working
with the Make-A-Wish foundation to foster the dreams of children like Ethan
is very important to us,” said Therrin Protze, chief operating officer
at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. “Seeing Ethan’s excitement for
space was encouraging and mirrors our mission to inspire future generations
of space explorers.”
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ShareSpace
Mission
Buzz
Aldrin’s ShareSpace Foundation
(SSF) addresses science literacy by igniting children’s passion for science,
technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) through delivering hands-on
activities, inspirational messages, educational visits, giant Mars Maps
and Innovation Kits.
ShareSpace
inspires children to have a lifelong, life-changing love of STEM, coupled
with artistry (STEAM), at an early impressionable age. By putting unique
Buzz Aldrin Innovation Kits in the hands of young people, ShareSpace gives
them the opportunity to innovate, discover, experiment and create. The
National Research Council states that early exposure to STEM supports children’s
overall academic growth, develops early critical thinking and reasoning
skills, and enhances later interest in STEM study and careers. Even more
so, by integrating Art and Design into STEM education, children will be
even more equipped and inspired to become innovators of the 21st century.
About
Make-A-Wish®
Make-A-Wish®
grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions
to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. Based in Phoenix,
Arizona, Make-A-Wish is the world’s largest wish-granting organization,
serving children in nearly 50 countries on five continents. With the help
of generous donors and more than 32,000 volunteers worldwide, Make-A-Wish
grants a wish somewhere in the world every 21 minutes on average. Since
1980, it has granted more than 350,000 wishes to children around the world.
For more information about Make-A-Wish America, visit www.Wish.org
and for more information on Make-A-Wish International, visit www.WorldWish.org.
About
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
Kennedy
Space Center Visitor Complex brings to life the epic story of the U.S.
space program, offering a full day or more of fun and educational activities,
including the Kennedy Space Center Tour featuring the Apollo/Saturn V Center
with an actual Saturn V moon rocket, the new Space Shuttle Atlantis (SM),
Shuttle Launch Experience®, IMAX® Hubble 3D and Journey To Space
films, Astronaut Encounter, Journey to Mars: Explorers Wanted, Rocket Garden
and many other interactive exhibits. Admission also includes the U.S. Astronaut
Hall of Fame®, featuring historic spacecraft and the world’s largest
collection of personal astronaut memorabilia, which opens daily at noon
and closing times vary by season. Only 45 minutes from Orlando, Fla., Kennedy
Space Center Visitor Complex opens daily at 9 a.m. with closing times varying
by season. Admission is $50 + tax for adults and $40 + tax for children
ages 3-11. Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex offers multiday admission
starting at $75 + tax for adults and $60 + tax for children ages 3-11.
For more information, call 877-313-2610 or visit www.KennedySpaceCenter.com.
Follow
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex on Facebook,
Twitter,
YouTube,
Instagram,
Google+
and Pinterest
About
Delaware North
Delaware
North is one of the largest privately-held hospitality and food service
companies in the world. Founded in 1915 and owned by the Jacobs family
for 100 years, Delaware North has global operations at high-profile places
such as sports and entertainment venues, national and state parks, destination
resorts and restaurants, airports, and regional casinos. Our 60,000 employee
associates are dedicated to creating special experiences one guest at a
time in serving more than 500 million guests annually. Delaware North has
annual revenue of about $3 billion in the sports, travel hospitality, restaurants
and catering, parks, resorts, gaming, and specialty retail industries.
Learn more about Delaware North at www.DelawareNorth.com.
Contacts:
Kennedy
Space Center Visitor Complex
Andrea
Farmer
Public
Relations Manager
321-449-4318
Make-A-Wish
Jamie
Sandys
602-245-4044
Photo
Credit: Make-A-Wish / Haleigh Dunn
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