Caribbean News
Space Tourists draw Hundreds at Hometown Watch Party
Latrishka Thomas
#AntiguaandBarbuda, August 18, 2023
Q&A with Latrishka Thomas, the Antigua & Barbuda Daily Observer
Q: So tell us what it was like on the ground there in Antigua, we see the crowds turned out strong for the watch party?
A: “Yes, so there was a watch party that happened this morning at the Antigua Recreation Grounds from 10 a.m, well Antigua time.
There were many dignitaries present including the Prime Minister, the Governor General, members of the opposition, other MPs.
Sir Richard Branson was there, the founder of Virgin Galactic and a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot of children were there;
You see we would see the Antiguan flag just waving, the entire morning and the Antigua flag is full of vibrant colors and you just saw a sea of colors just filling the field, hundreds of individuals just supporting the entire event.
A lot of persons would have said, they were so excited about it. So one person even showed up 6:30 in the morning, which is almost four hours before the actual start time because she was so excited to witness the historic event.
A lot of persons spoke to how blessed they think Antigua is for having gotten such an opportunity.
Now persons also said they would never do it, but they were there because they wanted to support our fellow country
The Big Deal
On August 10, an Antiguan woman and her daughter literally lifted off to space with the first private Astronaut Mission, ‘Galactic 02’.
Keisha Schahaff, 46, got the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream when she entered the Virgin Galactic and Omaze Sweepstakes in July 2021, and won two tickets worth $450,000 each from space tourism company, Virgin Galactic.
The duo pair made history as the first Caribbean people to visit space, the first mother and daughter and were among the first tourists into outer space, some Virgin Galactic hopes will become the norm in the near future.
Q: We also learned that the watch party attracted high ranking officials and a special guest?
A: “The dignitaries present were also evidently excited to be there. Prime Minister Gaston Brown would have given a speech. Sir Richard Branson would have given a speech at the end as well and they even exchanged gifts.
The Prime Minister would have given Sir Richard Branson a wooden carving of a boat with Antigua and Barbuda written on it and he would have received somewhat of a model of the spaceship that the women would have went on.
It was just a moment that you needed to be there to just feel that patriotism that everyone had, it was just a beautiful beautiful moment.”
Interview by Rashaed Esson, Magnetic Media
Special Thanks to Latrishka Thomas