Thanks to everyone!

June 23, 1997

Walking around the floor today, rereading all the good wishes we have posted everywhere, I'm struck again by the support that has been offered so freely by so many. From the sheets signed by the Mars Global Surveyor personnel wishing us a "nominal day" for our launch, to the huge poster from the Galileo team, everyone at JPL has been positive and upbeat.

But it doesn't stop there--letters from school children to their congress critters asking for more support for the space program, the "Martian Driver's License" sent to our rover drivers by one class, the enormous rocket with students' pictures and a "piece of Mars" for it to land on, the advice, the good luck wished to us by children, students, and people from all over--it's been overwhelming.

I just hope that when that first picture comes down from Mars next Friday, everyone who has written, drawn, sculpted, or otherwise conveyed their support for our team understands that they have been a part of it; not just in taxes paid, but in the emotional energy, the reaching out, the curiosity, the drive to know more. Yes, spacecraft require money to be built, but they also need people--those cheering and watching no less than those with the wrenches and those at the keyboards. Knowing how much everyone believes in us and is pulling for our success really brings out the best in us. Thanks so much!