SIAMO UNA FAMIGLIA

AMHS Member Recalls Work on Apollo 11 Project

By Joann Novello

The fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing triggered many memories for those of us who lived during that historic moment, but perhaps to no one more than AMHS member Joe Novello, who worked on the support system for the project. In 1955, Joe as a young boy arrived in the United States from Montazzoli, Abruzzo, Italy, with his family. The move offered the promise of a life of opportunity in the New World, especially to this boy with big dreams. In the fourteen short years from the time of his emigration until his contribution to Apollo 11, Joe excelled in school and accepted a coveted position with NASA at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. At Goddard, he wrote the program that directed the antenna to track the Gemini and Apollo spacecrafts. He fulfilled his dream by participating in that “giant leap for mankind” on July 21, 1969. In his unassuming assessment, Joe says that he was “lucky” and “at the right place at the right time, with the right skill set and the right attitude” to be able to do his part in the success of the program.

Not everyone shares that modesty, though; most who know Joe express great pride in his 40 year NASA career, and, in particular his role in Apollo 11. Joe’s second cousin and childhood companion, Renato Novello, who still resides in Montazzoli, was asked by a reporter from “Il Messagero” to offer his view of Joe’s success. He indicated that he always expected great things from his relative and schoolmate. A cousin in the U.S., Tony Novello, contacted Joe as the anniversary approached, recalling his memories of family talk of Joe’s NASA career. Tony acknowledged “how Joe contributed to this miracle of man’s accomplishments. My father, Lorenzo, [Joe’s father’s second cousin] was very proud of Joe’s contribution … to this miraculous achievement that he had a part of.”