by Linda M. Zielinski
This will not be a technical writing about the NASA/MSFC, but rather a personal perspective of the time I was employed there.
In the spring of 1960, I was working for the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) on Redstone Arsenal in Bldg. 4488. I worked in the classified documents section which was a restricted area. A few times I forgot my badge and there was no getting in without it, my badge would be in Tennessee and I in Alabama. I was required to be cleared, processed in and escorted by an armed guard to my desk or either drive 100 miles roundtrip to get my badge. That wasn’t feasible since I was in a carpool in someone else’s auto. So, I usually suffered the humiliation silently and was escorted into my work station. (However, all was not lost, since one of the military policemen escorts I met was single and good-looking and I later ended up marrying him.)
My ABMA supervisor, Harold Wainscott, came in one day and said, Jan, how would you like to work for NASA? I replied, what is NASA and why, he explained and said he was transferring over and trusting him, I said count me in. What a great decision that was, I never looked back. NASA became the dream of a lifetime for a little Tennessee girl who hadn’t ventured far outside of Fayetteville. Mr. Wainscott always teased I had one leg shorter than the other from walking around those Tennessee hills. He was an unforgettable character. One day I had worked on a project and a supervisor said I would have to redo it because I had abbreviated too much. They had said to abbreviate and I really did. I was complaining because I’d have to redo it (complete redo, no computers then), Mr. Wainscott smiled and said, Jan, you get paid the same amount for a do over as for the original. I never forgot his sage advice!
I began my NASA career in classified documents in Bldg. 4484 in March 1960 before MSFC officially opened in July and then moved to the new 4200 Bldg. ground floor when it opened in the early 60’s. I was the 82ndemployee hired at MSFC. I began my stint in 4200 in the “basement” and eventually ended up on the 10th floor, 4200 Penthouse, with a few stops in between. I was asked to compete for the position of Receptionist/Conference Control Clerk for Dr. Wernher von Braun and got the job in von Braun’s Penthouse Center Conference Room. This is where I learned what NASA was actually about. There were daily conferences/meetings with people from all walks of life, the v. Braun team of scientists, science and engineering specialists, presidents, vice presidents, first ladies, government officials, entertainers, dignitaries, astronauts, and also everyday people like me who came to that Center Conference Room.
Many days at meeting breaks, Dr. von Braun sat on my desk and talked with attendees. He was, in my opinion, a very warm individual, a people person, who valued others’ ideas. He was intelligent, handsome and debonair. One fault though, he was always running late. The men employees warned me up front to watch out or he’d run over you. Guess I didn’t listen well, he came up the 9th floor stairwell onto the 10th floor, running, I was in his way and couldn’t react fast enough so he literally ran over me. When he came back down to earth he was very apologetic, helped me to my feet saying, “so sorry, so sorry!” I wised up and it only happened once. A few years prior, he had been in a hurry coming to work one morning. At the time, my husband, Jim, was a military policeman. He saw this little Karman Ghia speeding down Rideout Road and pulled him over, then as he approached he saw who it was. He went ahead and ticketed him. Bonnie Holmes, his secretary, remembered. She said he came into the office complaining in his accent, “I got ta ticket, I got ta speeding ticket!” She asked, “well, what are you going to do about it?” He said, “Nothing, I was speeding!” To me that showed his true character, he could have had it fixed but he did the right thing.
Bonnie was a tremendous asset to Dr. v. Braun. She would call me and say get him out of the meeting, he has a flight. I’d discreetly pass him a note, he would nod. She’d call again, “did he come out?” As usual, ”no!” I went in for the 3rd time one day and he screamed, “I know, I know!” I told her and up those steps from the 9th floor she came running! She went in and dragged him out “kicking.” He didn’t mess with her, she kept him in line in a very nice and professional way. They were quite the pair.
The astronauts who visited the Center conference room would leave the meetings and come outside to my desk for a break and to talk. They said they weren’t that enthralled with technical aspects and specifics, just the actual flight into space. I told them I couldn’t believe they wanted to do that since I didn’t even like flying in a plane. They said it was their life’s ambition. They were always nice, “down to earth” and friendly, one of them asked if I would like some autographed pictures of the astronauts for my sons. I believe he was Anders, a nice guy. After they left and about a month later, I was called to the Shuttle Office where they had a big box of autographed pictures for me, I was shocked, I had already forgotten but the astronaut didn’t. He later orbited the moon. Kept both promises, sent the photos and flew into space. What an experience to intermingle with such heroes and celebrities.
While working at NASA, I saw President Eisenhower dedicate the new MSFC Center to General George C. Marshall, I saw Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, also, saw Hubert H. Humphrey. Later Lady Bird Johnson came to the 10th floor conference room to rest on her visit to MSFC. Each time a high profile visitor was coming, Security Office would be there first and go over everything with a fine-toothed-comb, never took any chances.
Some entertainers who were space-oriented would visit and we’d be allowed to meet them and Dennis Keim, and other MSFC photographers would get shots of us, usually we didn’t know it until we received a copy after the visit. John Denver was there and Dennis caught a picture of him pinching my cheek, he couldn’t resist my little fat face, I guess. We met Lee Greenwood, also, on his initial visit to 4200. Neither of them sang, they were promoting the Space Program and took a backseat, they weren’t promoting themselves. Also, I have pictures made with various astronauts. When the original astronauts visited, they came to Bldg. 4488. John Glenn, Alan Shepard, etc. and others were there one day and we decided to walk over and to get a glimpse of them. I told my friend, Josephine Troy, that we should act very nonchalant like we were just passing through and to not act like they were celebrities. She said ok. We started to get on the elevator as they were getting off, she pointed at them and screamed “there they are!!” I was so embarrassed I could have gone through the floor. They just smiled, guess they were used to it! Years later my husband and I were at Cape Kennedy to witness John Glenn’s return to Space!
In 1968, the DOD sent my husband to Germany to help with the RFCU banking system for the American soldiers. We were there during the moon landing and I was devastated that I couldn’t be with my NASA people during that world-renowned event. Know it was great here, however, we stayed up all night and celebrated on base in Stuttgart, Germany with our new friends from Colorado!!
After returning to the USA, I worked for the MSFC Legal Office, Forms and Procedures, and Technology Utilization Office. Then I was hired as the MSFC Directives Manager for MSFC. I worked for Lois Robertson and then Annette Tingle. I traveled to most of the Centers to meet with my counterparts. We kept the NASA/Marshall rules and regulations updated and in sync. We also updated and rewrote the NASA Correspondence Manual. When computers arrived at MSFC, our committee automated the MSFC directives system, we were the first Center to accomplish this and were used as a pilot for all of NASA. I was asked by NASA Hdqtrs. to come to Washington and spearhead the automation of the entire NASA-wide Directives system. Jim Pruitt, Anne Marie Hall, Topsie Davis and Sharon Banholzer helped with the automation at MSFC, also.
There are so many memories surrounding my time at MSFC. My husband and sons were always involved in the activities there with me, then later my grandchildren were. One grandson said the other day, I always enjoyed my visits to NASA, picnics, Christmases, movies, the ASRC, etc. He remembers this as a child and appreciates all that NASA provided our family.
I am thankful for the opportunities that came my way, for the NASA government knowledge, the educational travels, the lifelong friends I made, the monetary lifestyle, and for the overall experiences it provided for me and my family. I would do it again in a heartbeat!! Thank you, NASA!!
Jan Zee (or Linda M. Zielinski, MSFC employee #82)
