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Author
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Topic: Wally Funk, Mercury 13 astronaut (1939-2026)
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thisismills
Member Posts: 626
From: Michigan
Registered: Mar 2012
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posted 07-11-2026 07:12 PM
   
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hlbjr
Member Posts: 607
From: Delray Beach Florida USA
Registered: Mar 2006
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posted 07-12-2026 02:46 PM
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Henk Boshuijer
Member Posts: 481
From: Netherlands
Registered: May 2007
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posted 07-13-2026 01:17 PM
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cddfspace
Member Posts: 740
From: Morris County, NJ, USA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 07-13-2026 02:44 PM
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dss65
Member Posts: 1439
From: Sandpoint, ID, USA
Registered: Mar 2003
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posted 07-13-2026 05:53 PM
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Kite
Member Posts: 1236
From: Northampton UK
Registered: Nov 2009
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posted 07-14-2026 05:19 AM
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David Carey
Member Posts: 1100
From:
Registered: Mar 2009
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posted 07-14-2026 10:31 AM
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eurospace
Member Posts: 2693
From: Berlin, Germany
Registered: Dec 2000
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posted 07-15-2026 06:11 PM
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RockyMnWay
Member Posts: 141
From: Westminster, CO, USA
Registered: Jul 2011
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posted 07-16-2026 08:09 AM
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FFrench
Member Posts: 3332
From: San Diego
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 09-02-2026 12:21 PM
I was honored to be the "token man" (as LouAnne put it) invited by those close to Wally Funk to the memorial service for her yesterday (Sept. 1) just outside of Dallas. I was indeed the only guy in a group of about a dozen self-described western cowgirls — mostly pilots, but also former DEA agents and others with fascinating backstories — there to remember my dear friend of three decades. There were space folks at the church memorial service, open to a wider circle — astronaut Eileen Collins delivered a moving eulogy, astronaut Cady Coleman attended, and a contingent of Blue Origin folks included twice-flown spacefarer Sharon Hagle. But most movingly, the room was filled with women in pilot uniform — some military, but mostly commercial jets. So many of them had been Wally's students, as she was incredibly successful at teaching generations of women how to fly. There really can be no better tribute than seeing how many of us stood up when it was asked how many had ever flown an airplane with Wally. As Eileen put it when describing her own selection as an astronaut, "We stood on Wally's shoulders." But the same could be said for most people in the room. Hard to imagine a better legacy.  
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