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San Rafael boy gets letter from Neil Armstrong shortly before astronaut's death
Source: San Jose Mercury News
<snip>
"Sometimes when I look up at the moon, I wonder if my mom and dad are watching me," wrote Max Boddington, whose mother died in 2005 and his father in 2008. He ended his essay, written two years before Armstrong's death on Saturday: "My dream is to meet Neil Armstrong, the world's Number One space hero."
The boy's adoptive mother, Janet Boddington, kept the essay and submitted it to the 2012 Marin County Fair. After it won best of class in the junior creative writing/short essay category, Boddington tracked down Armstrong online and sent him the essay.
On Aug. 1 the astronaut, who commanded the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969, emailed her back:
"Thanks for sharing Max's essay with me," Armstrong wrote. "It is very poignant and surprisingly erudite for an 11-year-old. ... Tell Max I send him my very best wishes for good luck and success."
<snip>
Max wrote the piece in 2010 as part of an essay contest for alumni of Camp Erin, a network of 38 camps in the United States and one in Canada for children ages 6 to 17 grieving a significant person in their lives, typically a parent.
"Sometimes when I look up at the moon, I wonder if my mom and dad are watching me," wrote Max Boddington, whose mother died in 2005 and his father in 2008. He ended his essay, written two years before Armstrong's death on Saturday: "My dream is to meet Neil Armstrong, the world's Number One space hero."
The boy's adoptive mother, Janet Boddington, kept the essay and submitted it to the 2012 Marin County Fair. After it won best of class in the junior creative writing/short essay category, Boddington tracked down Armstrong online and sent him the essay.
On Aug. 1 the astronaut, who commanded the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969, emailed her back:
"Thanks for sharing Max's essay with me," Armstrong wrote. "It is very poignant and surprisingly erudite for an 11-year-old. ... Tell Max I send him my very best wishes for good luck and success."
<snip>
Max wrote the piece in 2010 as part of an essay contest for alumni of Camp Erin, a network of 38 camps in the United States and one in Canada for children ages 6 to 17 grieving a significant person in their lives, typically a parent.
Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_21416796/san-rafael-boy-gets-letter-from-neil-armstrong
