Written by Sally Ride
First Book would like to send our condolences to the friends and family of Sally Ride, the 1st U.S. woman in space, who died of pancreatic cancer yesterday. In spite of being one of a very elite group of people who’ve been through the space program – and jettisoned into and back from space – she was extremely modest. She was that person who had it all – left brain and right brain smarts. In other words, an engineer who could also communicate. She was a physicist who knew what mattered. A woman who spent much of her post-space life supporting and encouraging students – especially girls, to study science, math and engineering through Sally Ride Science.
She will be missed.
In honor of Sally’s legacy, we wanted to share some books that are available on the First Book Marketplace that inspire an interest in space and science.
If you or someone you know works with kids in need and would like to get brand-new books, please register with First Book.
When I was in middle school (approx. 27 years ago), I spent an afternoon working at the Girl Scout booth at the Western Washington Fair (aka The Puyallup Fair) collecting notes to Sally Ride. The Girl Scouts were attempting to break the world record for the longest letter (most words) ever written. I still remember the responses of people walking by our booth, as we called out and invited them to write to Sally Ride, the First US Woman in Space. Naturally, I never met Sally, and unfortunately we did not succeed in breaking the world record, but after that afternoon spent encouraging others to write to her, and writing to her myself, I always felt a bond with her. Her death creates a small vacuum in my inner space. If I could write to you now, Sally Ride, I’d say thank you for the encouragement you gave to countless women, young and old, to step out and do what they were capable of doing.