Apollo XIII 40th Anniversary Gala
The Apollo 13 Anniversary begins with a VIP photo session with Lovell, Haise and Kranz (shown here with famed NASA Pad Leader Guenter Wendt)
Apollo 13 Back Up LM Pilot Charlie Duke (and Apollo 16 Astronaut) guides one of the buses on a VIP tour of the Apollo launch pad
Guests listen intently while Duke tells the behind-the-scenes story of Apollo 13's launch
Capt. Lovell guides another bus on the launch pad tour
Guests got a rare, close up look at the launch pad during the tour
Guests arrive at the Apollo Saturn V Center — First order of business, ASF Executive Director Linn LeBlanc introduces the astronauts and special guests in attendance
KSC rolls their famous Firing Room show
Guests enter the awe-inspiring Apollo Saturn V Center for dinner
Lovell, Gemini and Apollo astronaut Tom Stafford and KSC Director and Space Shuttle astronaut Robert Cabana (far right) pose for a photo with a guest
Apollo 13 NASA Spacecraft Project Engineer Bob Sieck with friend Mary Ann
ASF Chairman and Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden, LeBlanc, Kranz and ASF Communications Director Beth Higdon
Kranz with ASF Patrons John and Carol Tyler
ASF Patrons Fran and Mary Jane DuCoin with LeBlanc
The Auction is a huge success, raising almost $20,000 for the scholarship program
Dotty Duke chooses her dessert before the program begins
Worden opens the program
Cabana gives a heartfelt speech about how Apollo 13 inspired him to become an astronaut
The Apollo 13 Panel — Duke, Kranz, Haise, and Lovell with moderator Worden
Haise and Lovell answer tough questions
Lovell explaining how he felt after the explosion
Kranz never uttered the words, "Failure is not an Option," but said it was their attitude
To commemorate the 40th Anniversary of Apollo 13, the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation hosted a special event on April 9, 2010 at Kennedy Space Center, FL. Astronaut crewmembers Jim Lovell and Fred Haise, Launch Director Gene Kranz and many other astronauts from the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and Space Shuttle Programs joined the celebration, taking nearly 400 guests on a behind-the-scenes journey through the venue that launched NASA's most "successful failure" mission into the history books. The event raised close to $100,000 for the scholarship program.