Hemphill NASA museum hosting 21st memorial ceremony for Columbia shuttle Thursday

HEMPHILL, Texas (KTRE) - The 21st anniversary of the Columbia space shuttle breaking apart in East Texas is almost here. It’s an event that some East Texans know all too well. Veronica Thomas, a board member for the Patricia Huffman Smith NASA museum expects groups of people to come even though the commemoration won’t be as large as last year’s 20th. “Last year we had approximately 4,000 people come, although it was the 20th anniversary and we did a three-day event,” Thomas said. The memorial ceremony is Thursday, Feb. 1 at 7:45 a.m., which is the day and time the shuttle broke apart across the skies of East Texas. “It’s important that we are here. It’s important that the story is told. It’s our history,” Thomas said. The museum serves as a place to remember the seven astronauts, the recovery team ... including the two men who lost their lives during the search, as well as the shuttle itself. The museum does serve another purpose, as well. “Our main focus is education,” Thomas said. “The family members said if there must be a museum, it has to focus on education, because they all believed in education.” The ceremony is free and open to everyone. The museum is located at 375 Sabine St., Unit B, in Hemphill.