Caribbean News
Blast off!! First Caribbean Mother-Daughter pairing to space
Rashaed Esson
Staff Writer
#AntiquaandBarbuda, August 11, 2023 – The mother and daughter duo from Antigua who after winning tickets through a Virgin Galactic and Omaze sweepstake, went to space on Thursday August 10th, 2023.
They made the trip on Virgin Galactic’s second commercial spaceflight called ‘Galactic 02,’ on the Galactic’s VSS
People from around the world were able to tune in to the launch which was streamed on Virgin’s Website.
Also, the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority had two public watch parties in both Antigua and Barbuda as the country’s first astronauts travelled to space.
The mother is Keisha Schahaff, 46 years old and a health and wellness coach in Antigua, and her daughter, Anastatia Mayers, 18 years old and currently a second-year undergraduate studying philosophy and physics at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.
After a successful trip, they are now the first mother-daughter duo to travel to space together, Mayers being the
In preparation for the trip, which was around 90 minutes long, they both received hands-on training in New Mexico this past weekend.
Additionally, former British Olympian Jon Goodwin, 80 years old, also joined Schahaff and Mayers, making him the second person ever to fly to space with Parkinson’s Disease.
Hundreds of people came to the watch party at the Antigua Recreation Grounds to see them blast off, which started at 10 am and the support was amazing.
Latrishka Thomas, News Reporter with the Antigua Observer Newspaper gave some insight into what it was like among the crowd.
She expressed that the sense of comradery and patriotism was high and that the waving of the Antiguan flag frequented the event, showing off its beautiful colors.
“The Antigua flag is full of vibrant colors, we just saw a sea of just colors filling the fields, hundreds of individuals just supporting the entire event,” she highlighted.
Thomas further spoke of the excitement which exuded from the people, referencing one person who arrived at 6:30 am, nearly 4 hours before the watch party started.
Additionally, she added that some people said they would never do what Schahaff and Mayers did, but wanted to show up to support and witness the historic event which is expected to “go down in the books for Antigua and Barbuda,” as expressed by Thomas.
The dignitaries who were present at the event were also evidently excited for the occasion, Thomas later stated.
Many dignitaries were present including, Gaston Browne, the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Rodney Williams, Governor General, members of the opposition, other MPs and Sir Richard Branson, as well as Jamaican-American Christopher Huie who earlier this year became the 19th Black astronaut.
The Prime Minister, Thomas said, gave a speech as well as Branson, and they exchanged gifts, as the Prime Minister gave Branson a wooden carving of a boat with Antigua and Barbuda written on it and he, in return, received a model of the spaceship that took the women to space.