Cedar Rapids museum honoring life of astronaut Eugene Cernan

CEDAR RAPIDS — The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is remembering astronaut Eugene Cernan not only for his accomplishments, but for his contributions to the Cedar Rapids organization throughout the years.

Cernan, a veteran of three missions into space, the commander of the 1972 Apollo 17 lunar-landing mission and the last human to step foot on the moon, died Monday in Houston. He was 82.

Cernan was a member of the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library's National Advisory Council, a group that also includes former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Sally Mason, former University of Iowa president.

'It's something we're really lucky to have been connected to people who've made a difference in the world and in Czech and Slovak culture,' said Laura Formanek, director of marketing at the museum, 1400 Inspiration Place SW.

According to museum officials, Cernan began serving on the advisory council in the late 1990s.

'He will be greatly missed by both the council and the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library,' museum officials said in a news release.

Cernan, the son of a Slovak father and a Czech mother, donated several items to the museum's collection in 1997 and in 2004, Formanek said. Museum officials this week put several items on display, including an honorary doctorate from the Slovak Academy of Sciences given to Cernan in honor of his Apollo 17 mission and an Order of the White Double Cross, the highest state decoration from the Republic of Slovakia.

'It's really great that we have some of those items that we can bring out and share with people,' Formanek said.

Formanek said the display is set up in the Skala Bartizal Library, which is free for community members to visit. The library is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

'It's just really a unique way to involve people who know about him, but might not know about his Czech and Slovak history,' Formanek said. 'We want to spread more information on that throughout the community.'

Following the Flood of 2008, Cernan was also named as the honorary campaign chairman for the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library's Rebuilding the Future capital campaign leading up to the opening of the museum's permanent exhibit, 'Faces of Freedom: The Czech and Slovak Journey.'

In June 2013, Cernan was the featured guest speaker at the opening of the permanent exhibit. He talked about his experiences on the moon.

'It was really memorable for the museum to have him speak him about that,' Formanek said.

In years past, Cernan spoke about the museum and his Czech and Slovak heritage.

'My heritage is both Slovak and Czech and I credit the values my family instilled in me — hard work, determination and perseverance — for my success in life,' he said. 'The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is very important to me, and to the preservation and teaching of those values to new generations.'

Formanek said there are no long-term plans for the exhibit on Cernan.

For more information, call the museum at (319) 362-8500 or visit ncsml.org.

l Comments: (319) 368-8536; michaela.ramm@thegazette.com