Chris sent me this picture when he showed up at NASA in 1992. He'd been given a desk in a large room that held several other desks, and one of them was Young's. The photo is poor because the internet was fairly new then.
Chris' email expressed a feeling of wonder, that he could actually be there, with his own desk across from Young's. He had the sense of being a very small french in a very large pond. Sharing space with a giant.
What's remarkable about Young is that he was ruthlessly focused on safety (except maybe that time with the corned beef sandwich). After a mission, when everybody was in a euphoric glow, he would lead the de-brief, and relentlessly seek out what DIDN'T work. He punctured a lot of balloons. Management didn't really like him, although he was useful enough in that category -- with the stature -- to last until he was 70.
That sort of thing is not fun. It's always negative, even if the goal is overwhelmingly positive. He took it upon himself to do a thankless task. He was needed, and he responded.
Godspeed.
Dave
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