American astronaut takes holocaust drawing on mission to space

On February 1, 2003, Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon tragically passed away along with the special memento he was taking to space to honor his family who died during the Holocaust. Ramon packed a copy of a drawing from Petr Ginz, an artistic prodigy who lived in the Terezin Ghetto in the Czech Republic during the holocaust. Sadly, Ramon's shuttle exploded, but his attempt to bring an amazing piece of Czech history into space has inspired present day astronaut Andrew Feustel to finish what Ramon started almost twenty years ago.

Feustel is a very successful American astronaut who has completed multiple missions during his career. He, alongside his Czech born wife Indira Feustel, decided to honor Petr Ginz by taking a copy of Ginz's Moon Landscape on Feustel's upcoming mission to the International Space Station.

"Ilan Ramon and I worked together for a short period of time prior to 2003," Feustel told us. "I was touched when I discovered that Ilan planned to take Petr Ginz's illustration to space, as we have close family and friends in the Czech Republic. I feel honored to commemorate Petr, Ilan, and all the victims of the Holocaust."

(News of the Czech Center Museum Houston, March 2018 Issue )