“The stars don’t look bigger, but they do look brighter.”  –Sally Ride

News reporter Lynn Sherr became friends with Sally Ride during her years of coverage of NASA and the space program.  This friendship continued for thirty years.  Her biography Sally Ride: America’s First Woman in Space will be our next Moveable Feast book group selection at Nobo Restaurant (18 Boston Road) in Chelmsford on Saturday, March 17th from 2pm – 4pm.

In a short video from Biography.com (Hi5tory in Five), Lynn Sherr shares five facts about Sally:

1. Sally originally wanted to be a professional tennis player, not an astronaut.
2. Sally was the first American woman in space, but not the first woman in space.  This distinction goes to Valentina Tereshkova, who on June 16, 1963, became the first woman, from Russia, to fly in space.
3. At the age of 32, Sally became the youngest American astronaut (of both men and women), when she embarked on her first 7 day flight on June 18, 1983.
4. Sally was an extremely private person, and compartmentalized many aspects of her life.  She preferred small gatherings of one or two people, rather than a large gathering.  Her partner of 27 years, Tam O’Shaughnessy, was never discussed, which may be attributed to NASA’s bigotry/homophobia during that time in history.  Sally was protecting her career, and maintaining her long term relationship with Tam.
5. Sally was an inspiring educator, and wanted middle school girls to get excited about science, particularly math and engineering.  She co-founded Sally Ride Science (SRS) which is now affiliated with the University of California, San Diego.  SRS’s mission was “to support and sustain girls’ natural interests in science and technology, and to catalyze a change in cultural perceptions of girls and women in these endeavors.”

Please consider joining us at Nobo Restaurant to continue our discussion of Sally’s biography, and to enjoy the restaurant’s relaxing dining room.  For any additional questions email Lisa at: lfrancine@chelmsfordlibrary.org

Our next book The Glass Universe: How the Ladies of the Harvard Observatory Took the Measure of the Stars by Dava Sobel  will be on Saturday April 12th with our location still to be determined.