August 17 is Eugene F. Kranz Day in Ohio
This Thursday, August 17 has been declared “Eugene F. Kranz Day” in Ohio, in honor of NASA flight director and 1951 Central Catholic graduate, Gene Kranz. The day is also his 90th birthday. Since the passing of a bill sponsored by state Reps. Lisa Sobecki (D., Toledo) and Mike Sheehy (D., Oregon), each year going forward, August 17 will honor Kranz in this way.
“His contributions ranked alongside former senator and astronaut John Glenn, the Apollo 11 astronauts - Ohio's Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins,” Ms. Sobecki said. “...Too often these men and women behind the scenes are overlooked and do not always get the recognition they truly deserve.”
Kranz worked with NASA’s Mission Control for 34 years, from Project Mercury through STS-61, the first Hubble servicing mission. He began his career in the U.S. Air Force, flying high-performance jet fighters. He became assistant flight director for Project Mercury with the NASA Space Task Group at Langley, Virginia. He assumed flight director roles with Project Gemini and eventually the Apollo program, including Apollo 11.
Kranz’s leadership during the Apollo 13 crisis became well known to subsequent generations thanks to the popular film, Apollo 13 (1995), as well as Kranz’s own book, Failure Is Not an Option, and his public speaking. He continued providing expertise for many other NASA missions throughout his career, including the Skylab Program and Space Shuttle operations. In 2007, Kranz received the Ambassador of Exploration Award from NASA. The award includes a piece of the moon and has been on display at Central Catholic High School.
He selected Central Catholic to exhibit his award because, as he explained, “Central Catholic is where it all began for me.” As a student at CCHS, Kranz wrote a term paper entitled, The Design and Possibilities of the Interplanetary Rocket, obviously before any space travel was possible. He had been interested in flight since childhood and was thrilled that many of his ideas came to fruition later in the space program.
In 2021, Kranz received the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum Michael Collins Trophy for Lifetime Achievement. Established in 1985, the award recognizes outstanding achievements in the fields of aerospace science and technology and their history.
“Mankind is in a better place due to the amazing work of Gene Kranz and NASA,” said CCHS Head of School Kevin Parkins. “Central Catholic High School is proud of Gene and all of our alumni who take us to new heights.”
On May 22, 2021, the Toledo Express Airport was renamed in his honor. Kranz humbly described the naming of the Toledo Express airport in his honor by saying, “I don’t see it as having it named after me, but as a tribute to the team of people that helped me get to where I ended up. I wanted to be a pilot, and I had many mentors who inspired and challenged me, starting with the sisters at CCHS, my family, and my NASA co-workers. They are all a part of my success, and this honor is a tribute to everyone who helped me along the way.”
Kranz has returned to Central Catholic to speak to students on numerous occasions, most recently addressing the Class of 2021 at their Senior Honors Assembly. He encouraged the students to be bold, courageous, and steadfast in the face of challenges, to set goals that will ultimately determine their destiny, and to take risks. “Without risk, there is no achievement or impossible dream to conquer,” he explained. “There is no obstacle that cannot be overcome with determination and faith in yourself.”
The students at Central Catholic High School can follow the example that Eugene Kranz set for them. Knowing that he attended this same school in Toledo and went on to overcome many obstacles and achieve greatness can inspire them daily as they determine their futures.
