By Paul Gattis
The U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville on Friday announced the largest financial gift in the museum’s history, a $10 million donation to support Space Camp programs.
Jared Isaacman, founder and CEO of Shift4 and who attended Aviation Challenge at the rocket center as a child, gave the donation.
According to the rocket center, the money will be used for a new Inspiration4 Skills Training Center. The planned concept is a 40,000-square-foot, hangar-style building that will include space and aviation simulators, an indoor pool, a netted drone space, classrooms and a challenge course for training the next generation of astronauts, pilots and engineers.
The Rocket Center said the donation allows the creation of a new state-of-the-art facility to bring together many of Space Camp and Aviation Challenges’ immersive, scenario-themed activities under one roof and update the Space Camp program that was founded in 1982 and is celebrating its 40th anniversary this week.
The announcement from the rocket center said Jared Isaacman is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, accomplished civilian pilot and commercial astronaut who attended Aviation Challenge as a 12-year-old. Isaacman holds several world records and has flown in more than 100 air shows. In September 2021, he commanded Inspiration4, the world’s first all-civilian mission to orbit, spending three days aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
The Inspiration4 mission raised more than $250 million for St. Jude, the Memphis-based pediatric cancer research hospital that does not charge the families of children for their treatment.
The Rocket Center is in the final site selection for the Inspiration4 Skills Training Center along with an architectural firm for the design. Once operational, this new facility will extend water and other weather-dependent outdoor activities year-round and enable Space Camp to increase the number of trainees that can attend each year outside the summer season.
A highlight of the new facility will be the display of an L-39 Black Diamond plane Isaacman is also donating to the Rocket Center.
