I haven’t had a chance to really talk about the most amazing part of this experience which was the amazing people I met from all over the world. By the end of the week, I was tired and exhausted and really ready to come home and start summer break (since the two weeks leading up to Space Camp I had been at Summer Institute and still working.) But leaving was bittersweet because I know there is a chance that I will never see these awesome people again that I truly bonded with during our time.
Cindy was our crew director from Huntsville. She teaches 4th grade, and we joked with her about being our mom all week, but she really was! Very rarely did any of us have the schedule or any idea of what was next. Cindy politely steered and lead us around all week.
We had three people who currently teach in Mexico. Diane and Diana are from the Pacific Northwest but both teach at an international school in Guadalajara right now. They were also my AMAZING roommates all week. Diane teaches middle school science and Diana teaches middle school math. Viviana was also from Mexico but from Mexicali. She has two girls of her own and in her free time drives an off-road race car.
From the states, we had Jessica who lives in Portland and teaches science to middle schoolers. She has a twin sister and has traveled all over the world. Michelle and Mary are both math teachers. Michelle is from New Hampshire, and Mary is from New Jersey. Mary’s parents are from Egypt, and Michelle was my “grew up in a small town” buddy. Sean was also from New Jersey where he teaches science and also runs an observatory and teaches astronomy. Andrew was our last U.S. resident, and he was from Chicago where he teaches science and social studies to middle schoolers. Andrew recently got married and is going on his honeymoon after he goes to Costa Rica to play rugby when camp is over. Liam lives in North America but north of the border in Canada. He teaches on a native reservation and lives nearby there with his wife and three kids.
Gabriel was our European teacher as he lives in Romania where he teaches physics. Gabriel had to miss his son’s middle school graduation to join us on this adventure. Kirill was from St. Petersburg, Russia, where he left his wife and young daughter. Kirill teaches computer science to high schoolers. Kiran is an administrator at her high school in India. I loved watching Kiran try many things this week that she had never done before. She and I had conversations during the week about how there were very few opportunities for girls when she was growing up (like learning to swim!) and how things have changed so much in India. Sik Mei is a science teacher from Malaysia. She is small and mighty and so very smart. And rounding out the Asian contingency was Glen from the Phillippines (goofy Glen!) Glen kept smiling all week and kept all of us laughing.
All total that is 16 people from 8 different countries and so much brain power. We worked together, laughed together, ate together, danced together, and I am really going to miss hanging out with these amazing educators who taught me so much. Thanks for flying me to the moon and making memories!
Cindy was our crew director from Huntsville. She teaches 4th grade, and we joked with her about being our mom all week, but she really was! Very rarely did any of us have the schedule or any idea of what was next. Cindy politely steered and lead us around all week.
We had three people who currently teach in Mexico. Diane and Diana are from the Pacific Northwest but both teach at an international school in Guadalajara right now. They were also my AMAZING roommates all week. Diane teaches middle school science and Diana teaches middle school math. Viviana was also from Mexico but from Mexicali. She has two girls of her own and in her free time drives an off-road race car.
From the states, we had Jessica who lives in Portland and teaches science to middle schoolers. She has a twin sister and has traveled all over the world. Michelle and Mary are both math teachers. Michelle is from New Hampshire, and Mary is from New Jersey. Mary’s parents are from Egypt, and Michelle was my “grew up in a small town” buddy. Sean was also from New Jersey where he teaches science and also runs an observatory and teaches astronomy. Andrew was our last U.S. resident, and he was from Chicago where he teaches science and social studies to middle schoolers. Andrew recently got married and is going on his honeymoon after he goes to Costa Rica to play rugby when camp is over. Liam lives in North America but north of the border in Canada. He teaches on a native reservation and lives nearby there with his wife and three kids.
Gabriel was our European teacher as he lives in Romania where he teaches physics. Gabriel had to miss his son’s middle school graduation to join us on this adventure. Kirill was from St. Petersburg, Russia, where he left his wife and young daughter. Kirill teaches computer science to high schoolers. Kiran is an administrator at her high school in India. I loved watching Kiran try many things this week that she had never done before. She and I had conversations during the week about how there were very few opportunities for girls when she was growing up (like learning to swim!) and how things have changed so much in India. Sik Mei is a science teacher from Malaysia. She is small and mighty and so very smart. And rounding out the Asian contingency was Glen from the Phillippines (goofy Glen!) Glen kept smiling all week and kept all of us laughing.
All total that is 16 people from 8 different countries and so much brain power. We worked together, laughed together, ate together, danced together, and I am really going to miss hanging out with these amazing educators who taught me so much. Thanks for flying me to the moon and making memories!