Glenn, who died in 2016, was the first American to orbit Earth, making him a national hero in 1962. Before that, he served as a military fighter pilot in World War II and the Korean War and set a transcontinental air speed record. The John Glenn Centennial Celebration Friday to Sunday was a collaboration between Cambridge, where Glenn was born on July 18, 1921, and nearby New Concord, where he grew up and met his late wife, Annie, who died last year at 100 of complications from COVID-19. Edward and Jill Schuck wrote to John Glenn letting him know they’d be naming their son after him, not expecting a response. John Glenn made sure to have signed photos sent to Schuck to commemorate the historic occasion.

Source: ABC News July 18, 2021 15:22 UTC