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mathematician
and Greenbrier
County native,
Katherine
Johnson, passes
away.
59 News Reporter
Claudia Sessa
spoke with
members of the
White Sulphur
Springs
community about
the impact she
made.
VO
Katherine
Coleman Johnson
made history when
she became a
ground-breaking
mathematician for
NASA.
Johnson was
essential to NASA
during the Space
Race against the
Soviet Union --
prompting a
character in the
movie "Hidden
Figures" which
portrayed her and
other black women
who were
instrumental in this
mission.
But -- what many
people don't know
she was from a
small city right
here in southern
West Virginia.
Katherine
Johnson was born
in White Sulphur
Springs in 1918.
LLOYD
HAYNES/CITY
MANAGER,
WHITE SULPHUR
SPRINGS:
"when I was mayor
is when I actually
found out about
Mrs. Johnsons
accomplishments
and I had no idea
she was a lady
that came from
White Sulphur
Springs."
VO
According to
Johnson's NASA
profile, she
skipped several
grades due to her
QUOTE: "intense
curiosity and
brilliance with
numbers."
In fact, her profile
states she
attended the
historically black
West Virginia
State College at
age 13.
BRUCE
BOWLING/MAYO
R, WHITE
SULPHUR
SPRINGS:
"she was too
smart for us, that's
for sure. It's a real
sense of pride for
us. We named the
Library after her
and we're very
proud to say she
grew up here."
VO
Johnson was
integral when it
came to several
NASA projects --
including Alan
Shepard's May
1961 mission --
Freedom 7.
America's first
human
spaceflight.
Johnson provided
trajectory analysis
for the mission.
In 2015, President
Barack Obama
awarded her the
Presidental Medal
of Freedom -- the
highest civilian
honor in America.
LLOYD
HAYNES/CITY
MANAGER,
WHITE SULPHUR
SPRINGS:
"and because of
her activity, she
was a good role
model for black,
white, and all in
between, people
throughout the
entire world."
VO
Johnson passed
away on February
24, 2020 at 101
years old.
Reporting in
Greenbrier
County, Claudia
Sessa, 59 News.
Riley
Still to come...
We'll see how the
Mountaineers are
doing on the court
this year.
That's coming up
next in your WVI
Report.