One Small Step for a Man

American Minute from William J. Federer

"One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind," stated Neil Armstrong, JULY 20, 1969, as he became the first man to walk on the moon.

He, along with Colonel Aldrin, landed their lunar module, the "Eagle," and spent a total of 21 hours and 37 minutes on the moon's surface before redocking with the command ship "Columbia."

Addressing a joint session of Congress, September 16, 1969, Commander Neil Armstrong stated: "To those of you who have advocated looking high we owe our sincere gratitude, for you have granted us the opportunity to see some of the grandest views of the Creator."

Years later, April 21, 1972, Astronauts Charles Duke and John Young also explored the moon's surface during Apollo 16's mission to the rugged highlands of the moon's Descartes region.

On June 22, 1996, Astronaut Charles Duke spoke of this experience at a Prayer Rally during the State's Republican Convention in Lila Cockrell Theatre, San Antonio, Texas: "I used to say I could live ten thousand years and never have an experience as thrilling as walking on the moon. But the excitement and satisfaction of that walk doesn't begin to compare with my walk with Jesus, a walk that lasts forever."

William J. Federer is a nationally recognized author, speaker, and president of Amerisearch, Inc, which is dedicated to researching our American heritage. The American Minute radio feature looks back at events in American history on the dates they occurred, is broadcast daily across the country and read by thousand on the internet.