HEMPHILL, TX – While every artifact in the permanent collection of the Patricia Huffman Smith NASA Museum has a connection to Space Shuttle Columbia or its final crew, some loaned items carry special significance.
On Saturday, July 19, 2025, the ‘Remembering Columbia’ Museum was honored to host Keith Husband, the brother of STS-107 commander Rick Husband.
He traveled to Hemphill from his home in Arizona to hand-deliver a Columbia orbital vehicle (OV) flag from NASA’s Space Flight Awareness program.
This particular flag flew at the NASA Shuttle Logistics Depot at Kennedy Space Center during launch and the entire STS-107 mission in 2003.
The artifact will be displayed alongside other personal items donated by the Husband family and the other STS-107 crew families.
This weekend’s visit was the first for Keith Husband.
“I can not give enough praise for how wonderful the museum was, and the great job y’all have done,” he said.
Husband was accompanied on his trip to East Texas by several close friends.
“… From inception to present, the museum is a labor of love,” said Vivian Shirley. “You can tell that every effort was made to make sure it respects and honors the lives of all of the Columbia STS-107 crew members. The museum also gives a glimpse into how the people of Hemphill, Texas and other small East Texas towns all came together to initiate the recovery efforts to find the fallen astronauts.”
To learn more about the STS-107 Crew Gallery and other exhibits in the ‘Remembering Columbia’ Museum, click here.
The Patricia Huffman Smith NASA Museum ‘Remembering Columbia’ serves as a memorial to the 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy and as an educational facility dedicated to creating science and technology-inspiring learning opportunities for children and adults. Learn more at www.NASAColumbiaMuseum.com.
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Patricia Huffman Smith NASA Museum 'Remembering Columbia' 