Vol. 14, No. 24
Thursday March 24, 2022
Opelika, Alabama
FARRIS BONDURANT
Covering Lee County, Alabama
An award-winning publication created 'For local people, by local people.'
166 N Gay Street, Suite 12, Auburn, AL 36830 334-821-5050
Investments | 401K Rollovers
166 N Gay Street, Suite 12, Auburn, AL 36830 334-821-5050 Investments | 401K Rollovers
U. S. Space Force Presents Flags to V.F.W. Posts On March 15, the E.W. Allgood VFW Post 5404 hosted Lt. Col. Jennifer Beisel from the United States Space Force and Technical Sergeant Aharon Smith from the United States Air Force. This event was to inform and educate local veterans about the mission of the newly created US Space Force which was established on Dec. 20, 2019. As liaison between Delta 13 and the Jeanne M. Holm Center for Officer Accession and Citizen Development located at Maxwell AFB, Beisel oversees USSF interests in the Officer Training School (at Maxwell AFB), Reserve Officer Training Corp (College Program) and Junior Officer Training Corp (High School Program). Smith, a seasoned recruiter with the Air Force, helps fill positions in this newest entity of the Department of
Defense. These recruits are called Guardians and the structure of ranks is based on the Air Force structure. Currently there are 13 career fields offered for the Enlisted side and six for the Officer side. Civilian positions are available as well to work with active duty personnel. The challenge is to find people who are the right fit. They are looking for people with a technology and scientific background, but more importantly who can think outside the box to come up with ways to overcome the challenges that are inherent with a new and unfamiliar battlefield. The post learned that the main mission is to focus on intelligence and cyber warfare to defend U.S. interests and laws in the region of the outer space near Earth called geo-space. This includes the upper atmosphere, ionosphere, as well as the magnetosphere. It can be called the domain of the Sun-Earth
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED TO THE OBSERVER
CONTRIBUTED BY JERRY DAKINS AND ANDREA SANDERS
After the briefing, Beisel presented a Space Force Flag to each local post in attendance. Damon Wallace received the flag for Post 5404 in Auburn.
interactions. This is not what one might envision through Hollywood movies such as Star Wars, Star Trek or even Space Balls. Their mission is much more complicated and
takes special skills to combat, for instance, satellites that control operations on ground. So, the knowledge to operate, maintain and even build technologically advanced systems is a
Opelika Real Estate Developer Named to US Space and Rocket Center Board of Directors Edmund Rasha (Race) Cannon, area real estate developer and longtime Opelika resident, has been reappointed by Gov. Kay Ivey to the board of directors of the United States Space and Rocket Center, the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission, in Huntsville, Alabama. The board oversees the U.S. Space & Rocket Center (USSRC), the largest spaceflight museum in the world and Alabama’s top tourist attraction, located on the Redstone Arsenal campus. Among its 1500 artifacts are Explorer I, America’s first satellite, the Saturn V Moon Rocket, the Apollo 16 Command Module, an Apollo 12 Moon Rock
Race Cannon has been named to a second term on the US Space and Rocket Center Board.
and next generation space vehicles like Dream Chaser. Cannon’s duties include oversight and direction of USSRC’s Space and Advanced Space Academies, Aviation Challenge Camp Programs, Robotics Camp, and the expansion of Cyber and Advanced Cyber Academies which
draw thousands of students ages 9 to 18 each year from all over the world. “Space travel and habitation are the next frontier for human exploration,” Cannon said. “That we in Alabama play such a pivotal role in this future is daunting. I’m certainly honored to be a part of
this immense endeavor with the USSRC Board. As a child, Cannon regularly attended Space Camp and Space Academy. “I don’t think I would have become as fascinated with space and cyber security had it not been for those camp experiences,” he said. “Now, as we meet around Werner von Braun’s original conference table, our Board’s mission is to develop educational curricula and hands-on experiences that will inspire and educate the next generation of space and cyber explorers.” Cannon is a partner in Cannon Ventures real estate development in Auburn/Opelika, a member See DIRECTORS, page A2
CONTENTS OPINION.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 OPINION
SPORTS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B1
SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY. . . . . A7
POLITICS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B9
RELIGION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A14
CLASSIFIEDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B10
COMICS.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A16 COMICS
PUBLIC NOTICES. . . . . . . . . . . . B13
hence the close relationship between them and the U.S. Air Force. This is very much reminiscence of the history with the Air Force when it first forged See SPACE FORCE, page A3
Opelika’s Azalea and Dogwood Trail Opens PHOTO BY ROBERT NOLES/ THE OBSERVER
CONTRIBUTED TO THE OBSERVER
must. This is just a sliver of the responsibilities of the U.S. Space Force. As does most organizations in their infancy, the Space Force needs logistic and administrative support,
CONTRIBUTED BY KEEP OPELIKA BEAUTIFUL
Keep Opelika Beautiful will kicked off the Azalea and Dogwood Trail on Monday, March 21. The Trail begins at corner of 2nd Avenue and 8th Street and winds throughout the historic district and other
neighborhoods of Opelika. Keep Opelika Beautiful has partnered with Lee County Master Gardeners to include the Salem-Shotwell Bridge and Caroline Dean Wildflower Garden in the Azalea & Dogwood Trail. This will give visSee AZALEA, page A2