[ COMMEMORATIVE EDITION ]

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ASSOCIATED PRESS / 1986
Hawaii-born astronaut Ellison Onizuka, center back, prepares
to board the ill-fated space shuttle Challenger at Kennedy
Space Center in Florida on Jan. 28, 1986. The entire crew
of seven, including Onizuka, was lost in the explosion
73 seconds into the launch.

Pride turns
to pain during
explosion

Lost were two people whom
one woman says she admired

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Charlene A. Takeuchi,
Honolulu

I remember getting up (too) early that eventful day to witness history in the making of two special people, whom I fondly admired. The first, of course, Ellison Onizuka, and secondly Christa McAuliffe, a fellow educator. In the quiet of my living room, my heart pounded and filled with tremendous pride as I watched the fateful liftoff. My eyes filled with tears of pride and joy for a few moments, but like a sunshiny day suddenly turning black with thunderous clouds and lightning, I witnessed two people whom I felt I knew and loved like personal friends, perish with five others. All I heard soon after that was a scream in my head -- "No -- say this is not really happening!" -- in the quiet of my living room that morning.

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[ CHALLENGER EXPLOSION ]

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ASSOCIATED PRESS / 1986
The space shuttle Challenger lifted off Pad 39-B at Kennedy Space
Center at 11:38 a.m. EST on Jan. 28, 1986. Just over a minute
later, all seven astronauts aboard were killed in a
televised explosion of the shuttle.

Sub's crew couldn't hold back tears

I was on board the USS Brementon (SSN-698) during the Challenger explosion. We were tied up at Subic Bay Naval Base. We were watching the television in the morning on board about the Challenger's flight, everyone in the Crews' Mess were all excited as it took flight and with disbelief ... the explosion that followed. I couldn't hold the tears that I shed and (neither could) our crew. It was a day of sorrow. Then we kept quiet with a silent prayer.

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Pete Cueva, Ewa Beach

NASA
Big Island native and NASA astronaut Ellison Onizuka
has inspired many youngsters to shoot for the stars.

Work radio was harbinger of tragic news

I was at work when the secretary in the back said "Shh! Shh! Something happened." I said, "What? Someone went bomb someone again?" She held her finger up to her lips as she turned up the volume on her radio. That's how I found out about the space shuttle. And just by coincidence, my daughter's name is Christa, just like Christa McAuliffe's name.

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Carol Kadama, Honolulu