Ceremony in Towson to Honor Astronaut Reid Wiseman

Reid Wiseman, who recently returned from the International Space Station, will land in Towson this week for a special ceremony in his honor.

Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz is presenting the NASA flight engineer with a “Baltimore County Hero Pin” on Tuesday.

The Baltimore County Council, Maryland Aviation Museum Director Bob Byrnes and Wiseman’s family will be in attendance at Wiseman’s pinning ceremony at the Towson courthouse, according to Baltimore County officials.

In a statement Monday, Kamenetz had this to say about the astronaut:

Wiseman, a Dulaney High School graduate, launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station (ISS) last May. As flight engineer, he spent six months conducting experiments and making repairs to the station.

He created quite a sensation on Twitter during his space mission, tweeting hundreds of pictures and videos of space, as well as various points on Earth (which he referred to as “Earth Art”), and his insights from life on the space station.

The hero pin was created after Hurricane Isabel in 2003 to recognize people for their life-saving efforts, according to The Avenue News.

In 2013, Kamenetz presented the hero pin to Bruce Woods, who saved a Catonsville family from a house fire he saw while on the job as a trash collector; in 2012, two Parkville sisters received hero pins for their response to their grandfather’s fall, and so did the 911 dispatcher who took their call.

The hero pin presentation to Wiseman will take place at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10, at the Baltimore County Courthouse, Room 118, 400 Washington Avenue, in Towson.

On Wednesday, Feb. 11, Wiseman will make an appearance at the Maryland Science Center, where he will answer questions about space from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Photo Credit: @astroreid

Related:

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• Dulaney Grad Returns from International Space Station
• Dulaney High School Alumnus to Launch into Space
• Baltimore County Astronaut Soars as Twitter Sensation