Ronald J. Garan

Ronald John Garan Jr. (born October 30, 1961) is an American retired NASA astronaut. After graduating from State University of New York College at Oneonta in 1982, he joined the Air Force, becoming a Second Lieutenant in 1984. He became an F-16 pilot, and flew combat missions in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Before becoming an astronaut he was the Operations Officer of the 40th Flight Test Squadron (FTS). He first flew in space as a mission specialist on the May 2008 STS-124 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). He is married to Carmel Courtney. They have three sons.

His father, Ronald Garan Sr., resides in Yonkers with his wife Yisela Garan. His mother, Linda Lichtblau, resides in Port St. Lucie, Florida, with her husband, Peter Lichtblau.

Garan serves on the advisory council of Represent.Us, a nonpartisan anti-corruption organization and is on the Board of Advisors or Board of Directors of the following organizations:

Constellation Foundation (Chair) Desert Oasis Inc. (Chair) Manna Energy Foundation (Chair) New Epoch Publishing (Chair) Space for Humanity Titan Space Technology Corporation Urban Sky Theory Inc. DBA Urban Sky Adventure Headquarters Sweet Sense Inc. DBA Verridy

Education Garan graduated from Roosevelt High School in Yonkers, New York in 1979. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business economics from the State University of New York College at Oneonta in 1982, a Master of Aeronautical Science degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 1994, and a Master of Science degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Florida in 1996. Writer and mentor for Unreasonable.is since September 2013, a social entrepreneurship hub founded by Daniel A. Epstein

Garan is the founder of the Fragile Oasis project, aimed at further integrating space and planetary sciences and the promotion of user projects "connecting space and Earth". He is also the vice president of Spaceship Earth Grants, whose mission is to make space more accessible through human spaceflight and parabolic flight awards to individual applicants.

Awards and honors Garan's military decorations include the Distinguished Flying Cross for Combat Valor, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal, Aerial Achievement Medal, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor, National Defense Service Medal, Humanitarian Service Award, Kuwait Liberation Medal, NASA Superior Accomplishment Award, NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal, and various other service awards. He received the Distinguished Graduate and Top Academic Award USAF Fighter Weapons School; was twice selected as Top Academic Instructor Pilot: USAF Weapons School; USAF Weapons School and USAF Weapons and Tactics Center: Lt. Gen. Claire Lee Chennault Award; Distinguished Graduate Squadron Officers School; Top Academic Award F-16 Replacement Training Unit (RTU). He received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from the State University of New York. Ron Garan completed his first space flight in 2008 on STS-124 as mission specialist 2 for ascent and entry, and has logged over 13 days in space and 27 hours and 3 minutes of EVA in four spacewalks. His Soyuz TMA-21 launch craft was named Gagarin in honor of the 50th anniversary, eight days after its launch on April 4, of the first human spaceflight by Yuri Gagarin. Garan participated in the last space-shuttle-based spacewalk during the STS-135 mission, accumulating an additional 6 hours and 31 minutes of Extra-vehicular activity time. He returned to Earth aboard TMA-21 on September 16, 2011.

The Soyuz TMA-21 "Gagarin" descent module is in permanent exhibition at the German Titov Museum in Polkovnikovo, Altai Kray, Siberia.

Spirituality Before his flight aboard Discovery in 2008, Garan asked the religious women of a Carmelite community in New Caney, Texas, for their prayers and told them he could take an item into space for them. The sisters gave him relics of St. Thérèse of Lisieux and quoted her words:

I have the vocation of the Apostle. I would like to travel over the whole earth to preach Your Name and to plant Your glorious Cross on infidel soil. But O my Beloved, one mission alone would not be sufficient for me, I would want to preach the Gospel on all the five continents simultaneously and even to the most remote isles. I would be a missionary, not for a few years only but from the beginning of creation until the consummation of the ages.

Garan is the founder of the Manna Energy Foundation, which is assisting the villages of Rwanda to make potable water.

On June 24, 2009, Garan met Pope Benedict XVI at his general audience.

On February 23, 2016, World View Enterprises has announced that Ron Garan will be chief pilot for current robotic flight operations and upcoming human spaceflights via balloon.

Awards and decorations

Air Force

Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor device Meritorious Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters Air Medal Aerial Achievement Medal Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with Valor device National Defense Service Medal with bronze service star Humanitarian Service Medal Air Force Longevity Service Award with silver oak leaf cluster Air Force Training Ribbon Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait)

NASA

NASA Exceptional Service Medal NASA Space Flight Medal with bronze oak leaf cluster