Saturday, February 23, 2008
Stafford Air & Space Museum
Weatherford , OK
New Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford
Astronaut Commemorative Bench
The new, unique Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Stafford Astronaut Commemorative Bench was recently unveiled at the Stafford Air & Space Museum. Created by award-winning Houston designer and Weatherford, Oklahoma native Kelly Gale Amen, the bench features laser-cut spacecraft images drawn by General Stafford specifically for this project. Also incorporated into the design of the bench is General Stafford’s laser-cut signature.
General Stafford (left) and Designer Kelly Gale Amen (right) admire new bench
The Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Stafford Astronaut Commemorative Bench is the newest addition to the museum’s Stafford Public Bench Program. Stafford Air & Space Museum supporters have previously been able to purchase an “orbital blue” Kelly Gale Amen Design bench to honor someone special and have that bench permanently placed in the museum. Now, in addition to the blue bench, the new, brushed aluminum Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Stafford Astronaut Commemorative Bench may be purchased and displayed at the Stafford Air & Space Museum, or taken for home or business display. The proceeds from the sale of the benches will be used to improve the Stafford Air & Space Museum’s educational programs and interactive exhibits.
Astronaut Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford stated, “Kelly has again come to the front in support of the Stafford Air & Space Museum with this limited edition Stafford Commemorative Bench. It’s an exceptional way for supporters to be involved in the growth of the museum, and own a truly exclusive piece of functional art.”
Each Kelly Gale Amen Design Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Stafford Astronaut Commemorative Bench will be individually serial-numbered and come with a certificate of authenticity signed by General Stafford. More information on the bench is available by calling the Stafford Air & Space Museum at 580-772-5871.
Kelly Gale Amen (www.kellygaleamen.com), a University of Oklahoma graduate, is a well-known designer in Houston, Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, as well as Paris, France. His work has been featured in all media, from HGTV to nationally distributed books and magazines. His “1898 Weatherford, Oklahoma” bench is permanently displayed in the first floor, West Wing, of the Oklahoma State Capitol building as a part of the Oklahoma Arts Council’s Permanent State Art Collection gallery. This project honors the homesteading families of May and Caesar Folks and Emma and Casper Amen, and was presented as a gift from the City of Weatherford as a part of the Oklahoma Centennial Celebration.
Amen also designed The Susan G. Komen for the Cure Honoring the Promise Collectionwhich allows donors to dedicate a functional KGA art piece to those who have been touched by breast cancer. This special collection includes Kelly Gale Amen Design benches, planters, chairs and tables.
The Stafford Air & Space Museum is named in honor of Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford, who was born and raised in Weatherford, Oklahoma and graduated with honors from the United States Naval Academy. He piloted Gemini VI, and commanded Gemini IX, Apollo 10, and the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Mission. Stafford was the eighth recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
The Stafford Air & Space Museum boasts one of the few Titan II rockets displayed full scale. Also on display is the flight pressure suit General Stafford wore on Apollo 10, a mission that included the first flight of the lunar module near the moon. There are displays featuring numerous space-flown artifacts as well as several full-size aircraft, including a Russian MiG21R. Full-size replicas on display include the Wright Flyer, Spirit of St. Louis, Apollo Command Module, and Gemini space craft.
For more information visit www.staffordmuseum.com.
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An Unsolicited Comment
Great place to visit: KOJA, Weatherford, Oklahoma: But beware the bench!
Your first reaction has to be: you’ve gotta be kidding! We were heading in our Baron (awaiting Eclipse #443) from Boston to see the Grand Canyon, and routed south to avoid heavy thunderstorms in Kansas. I checked Airnav and KOJA’s fuel prices were great, and there was a mention of an aviation museum on the field. We called ahead, and they left us a Lincoln Town car on the ramp for our 7:30pm arrival. The FBO is great, and David Cleek took great care of us, the hotel in town (the Best Western Mark) was better than we had hoped, and from the signs around town we gathered that astronaut Thomas Stafford (Mercury/Gemini/Apollo-Soyuz, etc) was a native, so we figured the museum would be two rooms, one with high school photos, etc.
The real surprise came the next morning when we had set aside 15 minutes for the museum: wrong! The first room had the predictable hometown photos, but room after (big) room followed, with among lots of other displays, an actual (huge) Saturn 5 rocket motor, Russian and US fighter aircraft, a complete Titan II missile with the two things it carried: a nuclear weapon vehicle or a Gemini capsule. The museum just kept going and going (I guess if you retire as a 3-star you have enough clout to get some nice hardware) and will soon expand beyond 35,000 square feet to include (I believe) a working F-35 simulator, according to
Executive Director Lynne Thurman. Stafford’s friendship with a Russian cosmonaut resulted in a lot of Russian space hardware there as well. I have been to many air and space museums, and this one is top notch. We pushed our IFR clearance to stay longer.
( https://www.staffordmuseum.com )
But look out for the bench. Stafford has done a lot for his hometown, and still lives in Oklahoma. A Houston designer who grew up in Weatherford, Kelly Gale Amen, happened to be at the museum that day, and he has designed a brushed aluminum bench with laser-cut spacecraft images drawn by General Stafford of the LEM, the Command Service Module, and Apollo upper stages. The museum is offering them to help pay for educational programs, and my wife Jann and I took one look at it and had to get one. While it sure raised the cost of the visit from the $5 museum admission, it is a terrific looking piece, there just isn’t that much aerospace art out there, and the cause is a good one. Who knew an aerospace museum visit would morph into a furniture shopping trip?
Sorry to be gushy, but this stop was a very pleasant surprise.
Dave Tenenbaum
