Sally Ride
Born on May 26, 1951 in Los Angeles, California, Sally Ride made history in 1983 as the first American woman to travel to space. Her early passion for science led to Stanford University, where she earned Bachelor of Science degree in physics and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature in 1970, a Master of Science degree in physics in 1973, and a Ph.D. in physics with a focus on X-ray astronomy in 1975.
While at Stanford, Ride played tennis for the school, even playing doubles against Billie Jean King in 1972. It was her love of tennis that introduced Ride to Tam O’Shaughnessy, her future life partner. Ride and O’Shaughnessy met on the junior tennis circuit in southern California when they were preteens. They remained friends and then were life partners for 27 years before Ride died of pancreatic cancer in 2012.
In 1977, Ride saw a newspaper article about NASA’s recruitment of new astronauts. She sent in her application and became one of the 208 finalists out of the 8,079 people that applied. After rigorous testing, she received a phone call on January 16, 1978 saying that she had been selected to be part of NASA Astronaut Group 8, the first to include women. She was one of six women in a class of 35 (which became known as the "Thirty-Five New Guys") that began their training the following summer at the Johnson Space Center.
Ride was the first woman to serve as a ground-based capsule communicator (CapCom), and did so for the second and third Space Shuttle flights. She also helped develop the Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (RMS), also known as the shuttle’s robot arm. By early 1982, NASA started looking towards scheduling the seventh space shuttle mission. Robert Crippen, who had flown on the first space shuttle mission, was chosen for command. NASA wanted a woman included in the mission, and since the mission involved the use of the RMS, the choices were Ride, Judy Resnik, and Anna Fisher, who were RMS specialists. NASA ultimately approved Ride for the mission, which was announced in April 1982.
NASA had a rough time figuring out how to adjust to having a woman astronaut. Engineers asked for her help developing a “space make-up” kit because they figured that women would want make-up while in space. Famously, they also asked Ride if 100 tampons would be the right amount for a six day mission. Ever cool, Ride simply responded with “No, that would not be the right number.” The media also bombarded Ride with ridiculous questions, including how space was going to affect her ability to reproduce and if she cried when things went wrong. Ride would just laugh and gesture to her crewmate Rick Hauck, asking the interviewers, “Why don’t people ask Rick those questions?” The Space Shuttle Challenger lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on June 18, 1983, and Ride became the first American woman, and youngest American, to fly in space.
Ride went to space a second time in 1984, carrying with her a white silk scarf that had been worn by another pioneer in flight - Amelia Earhart. Ride was scheduled for a third space mission in 1986, which ended up being canceled after the Challenger disaster. She was appointed to the Rogers Commission, the presidential commission investigating the disaster, and was the only space shuttle astronaut and current NASA employee on the commission. She also served on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board in 2003, making her the only person to serve on both panels.
Following the Challenger investigation, Ride led NASA's first strategic planning effort after she was assigned to NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. She went on to found NASA's Office of Exploration, which she headed for two months before her retirement in 1987.
On July 1, 1989, Ride became a professor of physics at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and director of the California Space Institute (Cal Space), where she stayed until 1996. She remained a professor at UCSD until 2007.
In 2001, Ride and O’Shaughnessy founded Sally Ride Science, a program that created entertaining science programs and publications for students, with a particular focus on fostering young girls’ interest in the sciences. They also wrote six childrens books together with the goal of encouraging kids to study science.
Ride was twice offered NASA administrator positions, under Clinton and Obama, but declined both offers. She did, however, serve on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, the Review of United States Human Space Flight Plans Committee, the National Math and Science Initiative, and the Educate to Innovate Initiative. During her life, she received the National Space Society's von Braun Award, the Lindbergh Eagle, the NCAA's Theodore Roosevelt Award, the NASA Space Flight Medal twice, Samuel S. Beard Award for Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years or Under, and was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame, the Astronaut Hall of Fame, the California Hall of Fame at the California Museum for History, Women, and the Arts, and the the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio. Posthumously, O'Shaughnessy received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama on behalf of Ride in 2013, and christened the US Navy RV Sally Ride in 2014.
Ride was never public about her relationship with O’Shaughnessy or her battle with pancreatic cancer because wanted to live her life out of the spotlight. According to her sister, Rev. Dr. Bear Ride, “[Sally] didn't comment much on 'how it feels to be the first American woman in space' - she just didn't think that way. She wanted to get the job done. Her personal feelings were just that: personal. Not right or wrong - simply Sally.” About her relationship, the Rev. Dr. said that her sister “never hid her relationship with Tam…Sally’s close friends, of course, knew of their love for eachother. We consider Tam a member of the family.”
Sally Ride’s quiet determination and commitment to science, education, and service left an indelible mark on history. She left behind a legacy as a pioneering astronaut, a dedicated educator, and a powerful role model for women in STEM.
While at Stanford, Ride played tennis for the school, even playing doubles against Billie Jean King in 1972. It was her love of tennis that introduced Ride to Tam O’Shaughnessy, her future life partner. Ride and O’Shaughnessy met on the junior tennis circuit in southern California when they were preteens. They remained friends and then were life partners for 27 years before Ride died of pancreatic cancer in 2012.
In 1977, Ride saw a newspaper article about NASA’s recruitment of new astronauts. She sent in her application and became one of the 208 finalists out of the 8,079 people that applied. After rigorous testing, she received a phone call on January 16, 1978 saying that she had been selected to be part of NASA Astronaut Group 8, the first to include women. She was one of six women in a class of 35 (which became known as the "Thirty-Five New Guys") that began their training the following summer at the Johnson Space Center.
Ride was the first woman to serve as a ground-based capsule communicator (CapCom), and did so for the second and third Space Shuttle flights. She also helped develop the Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (RMS), also known as the shuttle’s robot arm. By early 1982, NASA started looking towards scheduling the seventh space shuttle mission. Robert Crippen, who had flown on the first space shuttle mission, was chosen for command. NASA wanted a woman included in the mission, and since the mission involved the use of the RMS, the choices were Ride, Judy Resnik, and Anna Fisher, who were RMS specialists. NASA ultimately approved Ride for the mission, which was announced in April 1982.
NASA had a rough time figuring out how to adjust to having a woman astronaut. Engineers asked for her help developing a “space make-up” kit because they figured that women would want make-up while in space. Famously, they also asked Ride if 100 tampons would be the right amount for a six day mission. Ever cool, Ride simply responded with “No, that would not be the right number.” The media also bombarded Ride with ridiculous questions, including how space was going to affect her ability to reproduce and if she cried when things went wrong. Ride would just laugh and gesture to her crewmate Rick Hauck, asking the interviewers, “Why don’t people ask Rick those questions?” The Space Shuttle Challenger lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on June 18, 1983, and Ride became the first American woman, and youngest American, to fly in space.
Ride went to space a second time in 1984, carrying with her a white silk scarf that had been worn by another pioneer in flight - Amelia Earhart. Ride was scheduled for a third space mission in 1986, which ended up being canceled after the Challenger disaster. She was appointed to the Rogers Commission, the presidential commission investigating the disaster, and was the only space shuttle astronaut and current NASA employee on the commission. She also served on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board in 2003, making her the only person to serve on both panels.
Following the Challenger investigation, Ride led NASA's first strategic planning effort after she was assigned to NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. She went on to found NASA's Office of Exploration, which she headed for two months before her retirement in 1987.
On July 1, 1989, Ride became a professor of physics at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and director of the California Space Institute (Cal Space), where she stayed until 1996. She remained a professor at UCSD until 2007.
In 2001, Ride and O’Shaughnessy founded Sally Ride Science, a program that created entertaining science programs and publications for students, with a particular focus on fostering young girls’ interest in the sciences. They also wrote six childrens books together with the goal of encouraging kids to study science.
Ride was twice offered NASA administrator positions, under Clinton and Obama, but declined both offers. She did, however, serve on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, the Review of United States Human Space Flight Plans Committee, the National Math and Science Initiative, and the Educate to Innovate Initiative. During her life, she received the National Space Society's von Braun Award, the Lindbergh Eagle, the NCAA's Theodore Roosevelt Award, the NASA Space Flight Medal twice, Samuel S. Beard Award for Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years or Under, and was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame, the Astronaut Hall of Fame, the California Hall of Fame at the California Museum for History, Women, and the Arts, and the the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio. Posthumously, O'Shaughnessy received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama on behalf of Ride in 2013, and christened the US Navy RV Sally Ride in 2014.
Ride was never public about her relationship with O’Shaughnessy or her battle with pancreatic cancer because wanted to live her life out of the spotlight. According to her sister, Rev. Dr. Bear Ride, “[Sally] didn't comment much on 'how it feels to be the first American woman in space' - she just didn't think that way. She wanted to get the job done. Her personal feelings were just that: personal. Not right or wrong - simply Sally.” About her relationship, the Rev. Dr. said that her sister “never hid her relationship with Tam…Sally’s close friends, of course, knew of their love for eachother. We consider Tam a member of the family.”
Sally Ride’s quiet determination and commitment to science, education, and service left an indelible mark on history. She left behind a legacy as a pioneering astronaut, a dedicated educator, and a powerful role model for women in STEM.
Reverend Dr. Bear Ride is a Presbyterian minister in Southern California known for her commitment to social justice and advocacy within the Presbyterian Church. She is the younger sister of the late Sally Ride, the first American woman to travel into space. Following in her sister's footsteps, though in a different field, Rev. Dr. Ride has carved her own path of leadership, focusing on inclusivity, equity, and support for marginalized groups.
With both a Masters and Doctorate of Divinity from San Francisco Theological Seminary, Rev. Dr. Ride has been a passionate voice for progressive values in the church, often working to bridge the gap between faith and activism. She is particularly dedicated to causes related to LGBTQIA+ rights, and was one of 78 arrested in 2000 at the Soulforce demonstration against church policies that excluded LGBTQIA+ individuals from church leadership at the 212th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. Her work is rooted in the belief that faith should be a driving force for positive change in the world.
In addition to her pastoral duties, Rev. Dr. Ride is a sought-after speaker and advocate, lending her voice to both religious and civic causes. Throughout her career, she has remained dedicated to continuing her sister Sally’s legacy of empowerment, becoming the “Intergalactic Field Organizer” with her sister’s outreach to middle school girls through Sally Ride Science.
Currently, she serves as the Chairperson of the Board for Trans HeartLine, a nonprofit out of San Francisco that helps trans people recover from surgery, as well as provide community education and advocacy.
With both a Masters and Doctorate of Divinity from San Francisco Theological Seminary, Rev. Dr. Ride has been a passionate voice for progressive values in the church, often working to bridge the gap between faith and activism. She is particularly dedicated to causes related to LGBTQIA+ rights, and was one of 78 arrested in 2000 at the Soulforce demonstration against church policies that excluded LGBTQIA+ individuals from church leadership at the 212th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. Her work is rooted in the belief that faith should be a driving force for positive change in the world.
In addition to her pastoral duties, Rev. Dr. Ride is a sought-after speaker and advocate, lending her voice to both religious and civic causes. Throughout her career, she has remained dedicated to continuing her sister Sally’s legacy of empowerment, becoming the “Intergalactic Field Organizer” with her sister’s outreach to middle school girls through Sally Ride Science.
Currently, she serves as the Chairperson of the Board for Trans HeartLine, a nonprofit out of San Francisco that helps trans people recover from surgery, as well as provide community education and advocacy.
- Additional Reading:
National Women's History Museum biography of Sally Ride
NBC News article: Why Sally Ride waited until her death to tell the world she was gay
NASA Obituary for Sally Ride
UC San Diego Today article: 20 Things You Might Not Know About Sally Ride
Wikipedia article on Sally Ride
Presbyterian Historical Society article: #Pride: The Ride Sisters, Sally and Bear
Trans HeartLine - Meet the Chairperson of the Board
|
Proud Member of:
|
|
|
|
|
Physical Address:
730 W Pullman Rd. #3 Moscow ID 83843 |
Mailing Address:
PO Box 8205 Moscow ID 83843 |
|
We acknowledge that Inland Oasis is located on the ancestral homelands of the Nimiipuu (Nez Perce) and Schitsu’umsh (Coeur d’Alene) tribes. We acknowledge that the region in which we live is named after the Palus (Palouse) tribe, who refused to cede their land and were wiped out by the US Government. We acknowledge the tribal history here, and work to respect their ancestors, as well as the diverse and vibrant Native communities who make their home here today.
Web Design by Inland Oasis, Inc.- All Rights Reserved