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Hawthorne Press Tribune
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 61, No. 29 - July 18, 2019
Inside
This Issue
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................5
Calendar of Events.............3
Classifieds............................2
Entertainment......................2
Hawthorne Happenings....3
Lawndale..............................4
Legals............................. 4,6,7
Pets........................................5
Real Estate...........................8
Weekend
Forecast
Friday
Partly
Cloudy
67˚/62˚
Saturday
Partly
Cloudy
68˚/62˚
Sunday
Partly
Cloudy
70˚/63˚
The Weekly Newspaper of Hawthorne
Hawthorne Students Enjoy Tour
and Overnight Stay at CSUDH
A group of students from the Hawthorne as well as Inglewood Unified and Torrance Unified school districts participated in the sixth annual “A Day in the Life of a College Student” at California State
University, Dominguez Hills that included a campus tour, workshops and overnight stay from July 9-10. The ongoing event is part of the South Bay Promise program made possible through partnerships
of the Hawthorne and Inglewood Teen Centers, South Bay Workforce Investment Board and CSUDH. Photo: SBWIB
Exploring Local Aerospace’s
Role in Putting Men on the Moon
By Rob McCarthy
Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and
Buzz Aldrin made history 50 years ago this
week landing on the moon. The perilous
239,000-mile journey to explore the lunar
surface is being celebrated this week in the
South Bay, where the lunar module and other
critical contributions to the Apollo 11 mission
happened.
The Columbia Memorial Space Center in
Downey is commemorating the historic moon
landing and safe return to Earth by the trio of
astronauts, including Michael Collins, who flew
the command module and rendezvoused with
the lunar module carrying Neil Armstrong and
Buzz Aldrin plus 48 pounds of moon rocks and
particles they collected. Reminiscing about the
historic mission to the moon, Collins recently
gave a thumbs up to the 300,000 people who
worked in support of Apollo 11 leading up to
the July 20, 1969 exploration of the moon’s
surface. “They all did their jobs so properly,”
Collins said in an interview.
A 50th anniversary celebration is underway
at the Space Center, off the 105 freeway in
Downey. Admission is free this week to view
the newest exhibit about the Apollo 11 program.
The exhibit highlights the important contributions
that Southern California made in getting
the U.S. space program and its astronauts to
the moon. The story and photos of the mission
can be viewed Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m.
to 5 p.m., through October.
Tonight is a chance to rub shoulders with
the former engineers on whose shoulders the
success of the Apollo 11 mission rested. The
Lunar Pub night offers the public a chance to
explore some of Downey’s historical “watering
holes that many of the Apollo engineers frequented
after long days,” the center promises.
Plus, at each stop there will be former engineers
waiting to “share a pint regaling what working
on the Apollo program was really like.” Meet
from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Stardust Club, 7643
Firestone Blvd., and from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at
Stox Bakery and Bar, 9518 Imperial Highway.
Both are in the city of Downey.
A recent article in the New York Times
identified the property that houses the Space
Center as an important contributor to the
Apollo voyage. The Apollo capsules “rolled off
the assembly line” in Downey, on a 160-acre
parcel that was twice the size of Disneyland.
The bustling space was home to factories,
offices and test facilities for mission-critical
systems that NASA depended on for flight,
guidance and re-entry of its Apollo 11 crew.
Gerald Blackburn, who was one of the more
than 25,000 people who worked at the Downey
property at the height of Apollo program in
the mid-1960s, called it “a magical place.”
He recalled, “We worked at the spaceship
factory. We were all part of a team -- Team
Apollo.” The property since has been redeveloped
into stores, movie theaters and restaurants.
Friday is NASA Day at the center, which
will broadcast segments from the Space Center
on NASA TV and Discovery Science channel.
The day will feature hands-on activities, original
performances from the Chalk Rep theater
company, projects from the Space Center’s
young Apollo Summer campers and girls in
STEM Club. Historical Apollo artifacts and
Apollo alumni will be available to talk and
answer questions. Admission to this one-day
event is free.
Saturday is Apollo 11 Landing Day at the
center. Visitors can revel in the far-reaching
feat achieved 50 years ago when the first men
reached the moon. Astronauts Armstrong and
Aldrin made good on President John Kennedy’s
promise that America’s space program would
put men on the moon and return them home
safely before the end of the decade. Raytheon
has provided Apollo-themed activities, and
guests will be treated to dramatic performances
portraying life in the Apollo Program while
watching “live” as Neil Armstrong takes his
first “giant leap for mankind.”
Visitors on Saturday can snap a photo of
themselves jumping on the moon, and share
the image with family and friends on social
media to commemorate the first successful
voyage to the moon -- 239,900 miles away.
The movie Apollo 11 will be screened outdoors
on Saturday. Filmmaker Todd Douglas
Miller calls it “a cinematic event 50 years in
the making.”
The festivities continue on Tuesday for
Splashdown Day, with the center opening
its doors at 10 a.m. to recognize the return
of the Apollo 11 capsule carrying the three
U.S. heroes aboard with moon rocks, which
are on display at the Smithsonian Museum
See Local Aerospace’s Role, page 6