Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Names and faces
■ Admirers of astronaut
Neil Armstrong and space exploration have a chance to own artifacts and mementos that belonged to the modest man who became a global hero by becoming the first human to walk on the moon. The personal collection of Armstrong, who died in his native Ohio in 2012, will be offered for sale in a series of auctions handled by Dallas-based Heritage Auctions, beginning Nov. 1-2 and continuing in May and November 2019. Armstrong’s son, Mark Armstrong, said his father never talked to him about what he wanted done with the large amount of items he kept. “I don’t think he spent much time thinking about it,” Armstrong said. “He did save all the items, so he obviously felt they were worth saving.” Armstrong, who lives in suburban Cincinnati, said his father did keep all of his “flown” items together. The collection includes a variety of artifacts from Neil Armstrong’s 1969 lunar landing and private mementos that include pieces of a wing and propeller from the 1903 Wright Brothers Flyer that the astronaut took with him to the moon. Other items that went to the moon with Armstrong include a U.S. flag; a United Nations flag; various state flags; and some Robbins Medallions, which are sterling silver medallions paid for by the crews of Apollo missions. ■ Just past his 85th birthday, civil rights legend James Meredith could sit back, assured of a place in history. But he says he’s on a new mission from God: Confronting society’s “breakdown of moral character” by encouraging people to follow the Ten Commandments. Meredith says black people must lead the way for Christians of all races to have spiritual healing. “If the black Christians focus on teaching right, doing right, all other Christian religions would follow suit,” Meredith said during an interview at a public library in Jackson, Miss. “Instead of religion healing the blackwhite race issue, the race issue is going to heal everything and correct all the rest of our problems.” Meredith has long resisted neatly defined narratives. He shuns the title of “civil rights icon,” as if civil rights are different from other rights. Meredith integrated the University of Mississippi while braving mob violence in 1962 and was wounded by shotgun fire while marching for voting rights in 1966. Yet, he later worked for archconservative U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms, considered a foe by many in the civil rights movement.