PR: Astronaut Autograph Club To Raise Funds For College Scholarships

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Linn LeBlanc, Astronaut Scholarship Foundation
(321) 269-6101* x6176

ASTRONAUT AUTOGRAPH CLUB TO RAISE FUNDS FOR COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS
Astronaut Scholarship Foundation Debuts Autograph Subscription Service
With 13 Astronauts

Titusville, Fl., -- Soon after the United States selected their first
seven Mercury astronauts in 1959, NASA reported being flooded with so
many autograph requests from children, collectors, and enthusiasts
that the space agency had to employ a mechanical signature machine to
keep up with the demand. Thousands of these "signed" astronaut
portraits were framed and hung on the walls of bedrooms, school
classrooms, and offices as a reminder that with determination, even
the sky is not the limit.

Today, the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (ASF), the non-profit
organization founded by those same Mercury astronauts, announced an
exclusive opportunity for the next generation of students, as well as
collectors and enthusiasts, to receive mail from some of their
favorite astronauts -- this time with a guaranteed authentic
autograph.

The Astronaut Autograph Club (AAC), presented by the Astronaut
Scholarship Foundation in cooperation with collectSPACE.com, will
deliver each month a full-color, 8 by 10 inch autographed photograph
from an Astronaut Hall of Fame inductee. Accompanying each photograph
will be a personalized letter from the astronaut describing the scene
depicted in the photograph and other aspects of his historic
mission(s).

Among those lending their signatures and stories are Mercury
astronauts John Glenn and Walter "Wally" Schirra; two of the 12 men to
walk on the Moon, Edgar Mitchell and Charles Duke; first Space
Shuttle pilot Robert Crippen; and Skylab Space Station astronauts Owen
Garriott and Paul Weitz.

Limited to the first 375 to subscribe, AAC members will also receive a
handsome photo box to store their autographs and two "Maximum Access"
badges to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida,
including admission to the Astronaut Hall of Fame.

As an incentive to join early, those who subscribe before December 5
will receive their first installment by December 15 with a bonus rare
autograph and letter set from Apollo 13 commander James Lovell.

Available through the ASF beginning today, the Astronaut Autograph
Club can be ordered for a recurring charge of $49.95 per month or save
$100 when making a one-time payment of $499.

All funds raised by the AAC will go to fund scholarships for
exceptional college students pursuing advanced degrees in science or
engineering. Through the years, the Foundation has awarded more than
$1.5 million in scholarships to 158 college science and engineering
students. ASF currently awards $144,500 annually to 17 students.

About the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation

The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation is a non-profit organization
established in 1984 by the six surviving members of America's original
Mercury astronauts and Mrs. Betty Grissom, widow of the seventh, Gus
Grissom, William Douglas, Project Mercury M.D. and businessman Henri
Landwirth. The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation's goal is to
facilitate the United States in retaining its world leadership in
science and technology by providing scholarships to upper level
college students and those pursuing masters or doctorates in the
fields of science and engineering. The ASF's headquarters is located
at the Astronaut Hall of Fame, which is adjacent to Kennedy Space
Center in Titusville, Florida. For more information, call 321-269-6119
or visit http://www.AstronautScholarship.org/

About collectSPACE.com

Founded on July 20, 1999, the 30th anniversary of the first Moon
landing, collectSPACE.com is the leading website dedicated to space
memorabilia and artifacts. The site features an exclusive astronaut
appearance calendar, original news articles and interviews, a
directory of space collectors worldwide and an online memorabilia
consignment shop, buySPACE.

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