GK village named after US astronaut

When US astronaut William Cameron "Willie" McCool died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003, his mother-in-law, Filipina Atilana Rambayon, thought of the best way to preserve his legacy. She donated a one-hectare piece of land to Gawad Kalinga (GK) in Moncada, Tarlac in his honor.

Before McCool, 42, died in the tragic explosion (Columbia disintegrated over Texas while re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere on Feb. 1, 2003), his dream was to see a borderless world – a world without poverty – where people, especially the poor, are given equal opportunities.

"From our orbital vantage point, we observe an Earth without borders, full of peace, beauty and magnificence, and we pray that humanity as a whole can imagine a borderless world as we see it, and strive to live as one in peace," he said in one of his poignant messages to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) station.

Thus, Rambayon, whose daughter Lani was married to McCool, vowed to keep the astronaut’s legacy by providing the poor in Moncada with land they could call their own.

Rambayon, a GK volunteer herself, believes in the vision and mission of Gawad Kalinga.

"From one man’s death, hundreds will now gain new life," she said in donating the Moncada property.

Because kindness begets kindness, GK volunteers Filipino-Americans Tony and Marietta Pascua built 50 homes on the donated land and the community was named the "Willie McCool GK Legacy Village."

Gawad Kalinga, which means "to give care," is an alternative approach to poverty not only in the Philippines but in the world.

GK’s vision is a slum-free, squatter-free Philippines by providing land to the landless, homes to the homeless, food to the hungry, thus giving dignity and peace to every Filipino.

Together with its partners, Gawad Kalinga is now in the process of transforming poverty-stricken areas with the goal of building 700,000 homes in 7,000 communities in seven years (2003-2010). 

To date, Gawad Kalinga is in over 2,000 communities all over the Philippines and in other developing countries, too.

Incidentally, Tony Pascua took part in building the Space Shuttle Columbia way back in the 1980s. Initially, he was unaware that the Moncada land where they decided to build GK houses was donated in honor of the pilot of the same shuttle that he helped build early on in his career.

For the Pascuas, God seemed to have carefully planned the events like a puzzle falling into place at His perfect time.

Today, the GK residents live harmoniously and productively in the Moncada village.

There are plans to build a mini-science museum in the village that will harness the science and math skills of the children. Rambayon said this was also McCool’s vision when he was still alive, enabling technology for the future.

"And the folk who are going to use that technology and then continue the wheels turning are the children today. There’s no greater experience, at least in my career thus far, than to see the excitement and the eyes light up when you talk to kids about experiments," McCool said in an interview before he went into space.

Top US astronaut

McCool first served as US Navy commander and a test pilot before becoming an astronaut at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

He graduated second in a class of more than 1,000 at the US Naval Academy in 1983. He went on to get three science degrees, including those in computer science and aeronautical engineering.

On Jan. 16, 2003, McCool joined seven crewmembers for the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia mission STS-107, of which he was the pilot. The Columbia mission was McCool’s first space flight.

While in space, the Columbia crew performed 80 experiments during the 16-day scientific mission. But before landing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Columbia exploded during its re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.

But before he died, McCool was able to articulate his sublime view of the Earth while in space and his aspiration for a borderless world.

McCool’s final message left an indelible imprint in Rambayon’s mind and she became more determined to push her son-in-law’s vision for a borderless world in a unique way.

It is not surprising if the Moncada children will follow in the footsteps of McCool one day, the man who gave them hope and a new life through the GK village, Rambayon said.

"It is not impossible to dream that the first Filipino astronaut to conquer space might even come from this GK village as they continue and get inspired by McCool’s legacy," she said.