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Interview With June Scobbe-Rodgers
Aired January 28, 2004 - 14:48 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: CNN has learned that NASA in a little while will officially rename Opportunity's landing site the, Martian Rover Opportunity on Mars, in honor of the Challenger astronauts.
Where were you 18 years ago on this day? Today is the 18th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger tragedy. In 1986, of course, the Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center killing all seven aboard.
June Scobbe-Rodgers is the widow of Challenger's commander, Dick Scobbe. She joins us on this solemn anniversary from her home in Chattanooga, Tennessee. June, good to see you again.
JUNE SCOBBE-RODGERS, WIDOW OF CHALLENGER COMMANDER: Hello, Miles. It's great to see you, thanks.
O'BRIEN: And NASA remembering your family members on this day by naming the opportunity site the Challenger Memorial Station, a nice token. I'm curious what your thoughts are on that and just in general on this day.
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Special announcement from NASA. What an honor for the Challenger crew. All the families I've talked with about this, and we're really over the moon about the Opportunity's landing site being named for the Challenger crew.
O'BRIEN: Over the moon and all the way to Mars. Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: We've talked about this many times and frequently on this day you like to focus on the future and on your mission with the Challenger Centers and the education. But you've had an opportunity to talk to all the family members, I know, over the past couple days. How is everybody holding up, now 18 years later?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Every one's great. Lovely families, children and grandchildren galore. Marriages coming up for some of our children in the next few months. So we're moving on and living a very exciting life as we continue this mission for our loved ones.
O'BRIEN: What -- as you continue it, of course, a lot of that raw emotion, I'm sure, came back a year ago, almost precisely a year ago, a year ago Sunday when the Columbia tragedy occurred. How has that changed the way the families are dealing with things? And how much contact have you had with the Columbia families? SCOBBE-RODGERS: Of course, we wanted to comfort the Columbia families in any way that we could to let them know that it was a national tragedy and to help them separate their very personal loss from this national effort.
And as my daughter said so beautifully, the nation wanted to say goodbye to American heroes. And the children just want it say goodbye to their daddy or their mother.
It's -- it was a very difficult time. But today, we are rejuvenated with space exploration, with new vision for the future. And it's exciting as we move forward.
O'BRIEN: I want to talk to you a little more about that. But I'm curious what sort of advice do you give the Columbia families when you're asked?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: They're very dear people, very special, loving. They're articulate. But they were hurting a very personal loss that is separate from this national loss that so many can identify with. And we wanted to comfort them in that way.
And, you know, if words can really bring back their loved ones, we would speak volumes. But words couldn't. Just our presence to let them know that we love and care for them. And many times over, they've said to see us doing well helped them in their grieving.
We're all individuals as we go down this path of grief. And to acceptance. And they're marvelous people.
O'BRIEN: You and the other family of Challenger have focused so much on education. It was, after all, the mission of Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher to fly in space. And the Challenger Learning Centers, since that time, which you have spearheaded their growth, have really evolved into something special for middle school students.
They're now -- you say you're about to open your 51st center. How does that help on a day to day basis for the families knowing that there's this vibrant mission out there of education?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Isn't it tremendous that that mission does continue of exploration and to learn and to inspire? And that every day youngsters return to the moon, or they have a mission to Mars, rendezvous with a comet.
And to see that these youngsters are enjoying something very much that our loved ones were willing to risk their life for is reward in itself. So their mission continues through the inspiration of these youngsters.
And today a youngster might be flying a mission to Mars and actually -- in a simulation at the learning center and actually be someone whose steps are on Mars. So it's a tremendous effort.
O'BRIEN: Just a final thought then. When you heard the president offer up his new initiative for space, was there a lot of support among the Challenger families for that idea?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: It certainly does rejuvenate this whole space exploration thing. And the opportunities, not only for our communities to inspire youngsters to study math and science, but our nation, it's a bonding activity for all of us to think about America and moving forward in space exploration and for our planet.
Just talk to any astronaut who's flown in space, who looks back at this little vulnerable planet that's in orbit. And you want to come back and help this homeland, this environment that we have been given a chance to live on.
It is truly a wonderful opportunity for all of mankind. And you can't pick up a cell phone and talk without thinking about space exploration benefiting us or an MRI at a hospital or new opportunity for energy. It's all derived from space exploration.
So we -- I think it's a marvelous opportunity for our nation to lead the way in space exploration again.
O'BRIEN: June Scobbe-Rodgers, the widow of Dick Scobbe, commander of Challenger, on this the 18th anniversary of the Challenger disaster. Thanks for taking a little bit of time with us. And my best to you and your family and all the Challenger families on this day.
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Thank you so much, Miles.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 28, 2004 - 14:48 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: CNN has learned that NASA in a little while will officially rename Opportunity's landing site the, Martian Rover Opportunity on Mars, in honor of the Challenger astronauts.
Where were you 18 years ago on this day? Today is the 18th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger tragedy. In 1986, of course, the Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center killing all seven aboard.
June Scobbe-Rodgers is the widow of Challenger's commander, Dick Scobbe. She joins us on this solemn anniversary from her home in Chattanooga, Tennessee. June, good to see you again.
JUNE SCOBBE-RODGERS, WIDOW OF CHALLENGER COMMANDER: Hello, Miles. It's great to see you, thanks.
O'BRIEN: And NASA remembering your family members on this day by naming the opportunity site the Challenger Memorial Station, a nice token. I'm curious what your thoughts are on that and just in general on this day.
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Special announcement from NASA. What an honor for the Challenger crew. All the families I've talked with about this, and we're really over the moon about the Opportunity's landing site being named for the Challenger crew.
O'BRIEN: Over the moon and all the way to Mars. Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: We've talked about this many times and frequently on this day you like to focus on the future and on your mission with the Challenger Centers and the education. But you've had an opportunity to talk to all the family members, I know, over the past couple days. How is everybody holding up, now 18 years later?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Every one's great. Lovely families, children and grandchildren galore. Marriages coming up for some of our children in the next few months. So we're moving on and living a very exciting life as we continue this mission for our loved ones.
O'BRIEN: What -- as you continue it, of course, a lot of that raw emotion, I'm sure, came back a year ago, almost precisely a year ago, a year ago Sunday when the Columbia tragedy occurred. How has that changed the way the families are dealing with things? And how much contact have you had with the Columbia families? SCOBBE-RODGERS: Of course, we wanted to comfort the Columbia families in any way that we could to let them know that it was a national tragedy and to help them separate their very personal loss from this national effort.
And as my daughter said so beautifully, the nation wanted to say goodbye to American heroes. And the children just want it say goodbye to their daddy or their mother.
It's -- it was a very difficult time. But today, we are rejuvenated with space exploration, with new vision for the future. And it's exciting as we move forward.
O'BRIEN: I want to talk to you a little more about that. But I'm curious what sort of advice do you give the Columbia families when you're asked?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: They're very dear people, very special, loving. They're articulate. But they were hurting a very personal loss that is separate from this national loss that so many can identify with. And we wanted to comfort them in that way.
And, you know, if words can really bring back their loved ones, we would speak volumes. But words couldn't. Just our presence to let them know that we love and care for them. And many times over, they've said to see us doing well helped them in their grieving.
We're all individuals as we go down this path of grief. And to acceptance. And they're marvelous people.
O'BRIEN: You and the other family of Challenger have focused so much on education. It was, after all, the mission of Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher to fly in space. And the Challenger Learning Centers, since that time, which you have spearheaded their growth, have really evolved into something special for middle school students.
They're now -- you say you're about to open your 51st center. How does that help on a day to day basis for the families knowing that there's this vibrant mission out there of education?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Isn't it tremendous that that mission does continue of exploration and to learn and to inspire? And that every day youngsters return to the moon, or they have a mission to Mars, rendezvous with a comet.
And to see that these youngsters are enjoying something very much that our loved ones were willing to risk their life for is reward in itself. So their mission continues through the inspiration of these youngsters.
And today a youngster might be flying a mission to Mars and actually -- in a simulation at the learning center and actually be someone whose steps are on Mars. So it's a tremendous effort.
O'BRIEN: Just a final thought then. When you heard the president offer up his new initiative for space, was there a lot of support among the Challenger families for that idea?
SCOBBE-RODGERS: It certainly does rejuvenate this whole space exploration thing. And the opportunities, not only for our communities to inspire youngsters to study math and science, but our nation, it's a bonding activity for all of us to think about America and moving forward in space exploration and for our planet.
Just talk to any astronaut who's flown in space, who looks back at this little vulnerable planet that's in orbit. And you want to come back and help this homeland, this environment that we have been given a chance to live on.
It is truly a wonderful opportunity for all of mankind. And you can't pick up a cell phone and talk without thinking about space exploration benefiting us or an MRI at a hospital or new opportunity for energy. It's all derived from space exploration.
So we -- I think it's a marvelous opportunity for our nation to lead the way in space exploration again.
O'BRIEN: June Scobbe-Rodgers, the widow of Dick Scobbe, commander of Challenger, on this the 18th anniversary of the Challenger disaster. Thanks for taking a little bit of time with us. And my best to you and your family and all the Challenger families on this day.
SCOBBE-RODGERS: Thank you so much, Miles.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
