Weatherford’s Stafford Air and Space Museum, located at 3000 Logan Road near historic Route 66, offers visitors an extraordinary journey through aviation and space exploration.

From airplanes to space craft
Weatherford’s Stafford Air and Space Museum, located at 3000 Logan Road near historic Route 66, offers visitors an extraordinary journey through aviation and space exploration. Its packed galleries showcase rockets, aircraft, space suits, engines, and other artifacts – many connected to Oklahoma’s celebrated astronaut, Lieutenant General Thomas Stafford. The museum traces the story of flight from the Wright Brothers to the moon landings, with more than 50 American and Soviet technological achievements arranged in rough chronological order. Plan at least two hours to take it all in. Let’s blast off.

The world of controlled, heavier-than-air powered flights started on December 17, 1903, when the Wright Brothers flew the Wright Flyer. A full-scale replica can be seen as well as other early aircraft like an actual Sopwith Pup and replicas of a Bleriot XI, Curtiss Pusher, and Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis. Visitors can use a “Star Tour Guide” handout to learn about each exhibit. Reflecting on the rapid pace of progress, Doug Schones of Canute remarked, “From 1903 to 1969, such a short time (one life time), so much technology.”
Rockets and Engines Take Center Stage
The heart of the museum lies in its space exhibits. Among them is an actual German WWII V-2 rocket, as well as F-1, J-2, and Soviet NK-33 engines. The mighty Saturn V moon rocket required five F-1 Rocketdyne engines, producing 7.6 million pounds of thrust, to send astronauts to the moon. A Titan II rocket, the same type Stafford rode into orbit during his Gemini 6 and 9 missions in 1965 and 1966, respectfully, is also displayed. Interactive exhibits let visitors hear-and almost feel – the immense power of rockets.

Houston’s Johnson Space Center contributed an authentic Mission Control Console used from the Gemini program through the Apollo, Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz, and the early Shuttle eras. Another highlight is the actual Gemini 6A spacecraft that Stafford and Wally Schirra flew during the first-ever rendezvous in space with Gemini 7 on December 15, 1965.

A towering, full-scale replica of the Apollo 11 Lunar Module (LM) “Eagle” is displayed. In 1969, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, Jr. piloted a LM like this to become the first humans to walk on the moon. Nearby, Stafford’s Apollo 10 spacesuit – composed of 18,000 parts – offers a tangible link to his historic mission in May 1969.

International Space Station
Space Station fans will enjoy seeing a 1/24th scale model that illustrates the complexity of the orbiting laboratory. Interactive displays explain its components and the multinational crews who have lived and worked aboard. Viewing the model, Angela Correll of Ponca City observed, “This (ISS) is what keeps us connected” because astronauts from many nations share the station. Visitors are encouraged to download the “Spot the Station” smartphone app to track its path overhead.

Cold War and Modern Aircraft
The museum has an impressive collection of fighter airplanes. Outside are four and inside, visitors encounter an F-86 “Sabre,” Soviet MIG-21R “Fishbed,” T-38 “Talon,” F-16 “Fighting Falcon” and 2024’s addition, a F-117A “Nighthawk” stealth fighter. The MIG-21R served as the Soviet Bloc’s front-line fighter during the Cold War. The F-117A, a stealth fighter which Stafford helped develop, flew combat sorties during Operation Desert Storm, Allied Force and Iraqi Freedom, according to the Star Tour Guide.

Honoring Thomas Stafford
General Stafford was born and raised in Weatherford. The museum’s website notes, “His mother came to Oklahoma in a covered wagon and lived to see her only child fly to the moon. His father was a dentist who taught his son to appreciate what he had by working hard for it.” With a lot of hard work and natural abilities, Stafford graduated at the top 10% of his class at the U.S. Naval Academy and later became “Chief of Astronauts at NASA, was appointed Head of Research and Development at the Pentagon, chaired the team that developed the Hubble instrument COSTAR (Corrective Optics Space Telescope Axial Replacement), worked at Area 51, and (was) responsible for Stealth Technology as we know it today.” His career included four historic space missions: Gemini 6A, Gemini 9, Apollo 10, and Apollo-Soyuz, where he commanded Apollo’s final flight. Lieutenant General Stafford lived from September 17, 1930 – March 18, 2024, reaching the age of 93.

Completing the Visit
Open seven days a week, the Stafford Air and Space Museum, blends history, technology, and human achievement into an unforgettable experience. Note. Museum personnel did not respond to requests for an interview. •
story and photos by Lt Col Richard Stephens, Jr., USAFR, Ret.

A new roof is one of the biggest expenses a homeowner will ever face—often the single most expensive replacement on a home.

What many Oklahomans don’t realize is that the Oklahoma Insurance Commission underwrites a program that can provide up to a $10,000 grant for homeowners who install a FORTIFIED roof. The program is called the Strengthen Oklahoma Homes Program. Information can be found online at ok.org, or by searching “Strengthen Oklahoma Homes” using voice search on your phone.

A FORTIFIED roof may realistically be a lifetime roof. When properly installed, 30 years or more of service life is a reasonable expectation.

My name is Jack Werner. I’ve been in construction for 50 years, hold a degree in construction, and own A to Z Inspections. In my professional opinion, the two most important advancements in residential construction over the last 50 years are Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs) and the FORTIFIED building program.

A FORTIFIED roof meets standards developed and tested by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. These standards are based on years of research into high wind and hail performance. Simply put, it is the toughest composition roof a homeowner can install.

As just one example out of hundreds of required details:
Standard roofs typically use OSB or plywood decking fastened at wider intervals. A FORTIFIED roof requires roof decking to be fastened to rafters every 4 inches using #8 screw-shank nails. That dramatically improves wind uplift resistance—and that’s only one of many enhanced requirements.

Will $10,000 pay for a new roof?
Usually not.
However, on a small, single-story home, roughly 1,000 square feet, with decking already in good condition, it is possible. Even when it doesn’t cover the full cost, the grant typically represents a substantial portion of the expense.

As a veteran myself, I want to be sure Oklahoma veterans are fully aware of this opportunity.

For additional information, I can be reached at 405-412-7861.

Visit us here: A to Z Inspections, Fortified Evaluator

Jack Werner

A to Z Inspections, Fortified Evaluator

Note: Jack Werner served with the 4th Infantry Division, K Company, 75th Airborne Rangers, completing two tours in Vietnam. Each of his sons has also served in the United States military. Jack holds a degree in construction and is the owner of A to Z Inspections.

The Charles Bachlor’s WWII Story

Charles “Ray” Bachlor, born in Tulsa in 1927, spent part of his teenage years in Houma, Louisiana, between 1940 and 1942, attending high school as a sophomore and junior. His family moved frequently. “We followed the oil fields,” he recalled. His father, Roy, managed a supply store for an oil field supply company. Located 57 miles southwest of New Orleans on the Gulf of Mexico, Houma was a quiet oil town-until the war arrived.

A ‘secret’ war on the Gulf
During WWII, German U-boats prowled the Gulf of Mexico. “Houma soon found itself in the midst of a ‘secret’ war-one in which one or more oil tankers were being torpedoed each week near Wine Island after being loaded with oil,” wrote Bachlor after the war. “The ‘U-boat’ would fire an explosive torpedo to spread the oil and then an incendiary to light it. Merchant seamen would have to dive into the burning oil. Sometimes the sub would surface and machine gun survivors. Those who managed to survive… were picked up by our shrimp boats and brought to the hospitals in Houma and Morgan City.”

“Ellender Hospital in Houma was overwhelmed, and folding cots covered the grounds outside the hospital. The sweet smell of burning flesh permeated the air long before you reached the hospital. Women of the town-including my mother-volunteered to help the overworked hospital staff.”

Kimberly Guise, a curator at the National WWII Museum, confirmed these accounts. Bachlor recorded a grim tally: between 1942 and 1943, 88 tankers sunk and 1,471 dead-Americans killed just offshore.

Back to Tulsa
Bachlor finished high school in Sand Springs in 1943 and briefly attended Tulsa University. He tried to enlist in the Navy but was drafted into the U.S. Army on March 1, 1945, as a private.

Basic training
He began basic infantry training at Camp Livingston, Louisiana, in March for seven weeks. One day, a paratrooper visited. The man’s appearance and the unique duty of an elite organization intrigued him. “I was afraid of heights so I joined the paratroopers to overcome that fear,” Bachlor admitted.

Paratrooper training
Transferred to Fort Benning, Georgia, he entered paratrooper training. “Our first week was in the sawdust pits where we were doing nothing but PT. Fifty minutes of PT and 10 minutes rest and 50 minutes more… And every day we’d go on long runs.”

The second week brought a new challenge: “We were jumping from a 34-foot tower… the scariest of all, because you dropped 34 feet and then this cable caught you after (falling 19 feet), then you go down a line to a sawdust pit.” All this to overcome a fear of heights!

By the third week, they were packing their own parachutes and, “We’d hang harnesses and learn to guide ourselves, pulling on our shroud lines.” That week, they were also dropped from 250-foot towers.

“Fourth week we jumped every day. And then we made a night jump and then we got our wings…So, we had to make two marches in combat situations and C-47 to came in, picked us up, and we would make a simulated combat jump. And, so then you graduated.”

The war ends
Bachlor trained for a possible airborne assault on Japan. Then, the United States demolished Hiroshima on August 6 and Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, with atomic bombs. National leaders wanted to avoid at least 500,000 American casualties during a land invasion of Japan. “There were a lot of people that were in the military that were happy about dropping the bomb…and I think it was only later that a lot of people had second thoughts about how terrible the bomb was…but in the end run, it saved a lot of lives,” he said. “It shortened the war.”

Japan officially surrendered on September 2, 1945. Bachlor’s orders to join the 13th Parachute Division at Fort Lewis were canceled. Instead, he remained at Fort Benning as a parachute school instructor, earning the rank of Staff Sergeant.

A Long military career
After leaving the Army in 1948, Bachlor earned an Engineering Physics degree, was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1950 and taught infantry basic training at Fort Chaffey, Arkansas, until May 1951. He later worked for the Security Advisory Group-Japan from 1952-1954 and taught at the Command & General Staff College, Ft. McArthur, Calif.

When Colonel Bachlor retired in 1979, he had served 34 years-rising from private to colonel, an achievement few attain. His life story stands as a testament to courage and dedication. He lives in Tulsa. •
story and photos by Lt Col Richard Stephens, Jr., USAFR, Ret.

By Jill Stephenson.

Army PFC Jon Townsend of Claremore was killed September 16, 2012 while actively serving in Afghanistan. He was 19 and left behind a wife and many loving family members and friends. One of those family members was his sister Jennifer, who was six years older than Jon. I interviewed her for this article.

Before Jon started school it was clear he was smart and patriotic. He could recite the pledge of allegiance, sing Amazing Grace and knew his multiplication tables. He was actively involved in 4H where he won numerous awards and was influenced by a band teacher to play almost any instrument he picked up, including the trumpet, drums and guitar.

As a young boy, one of Jon’s heroes was the tv character, “ Walker, Texas Ranger”. He admired his heroism in fighting bad guys and saving good girls. According to Jennifer, he would also walk around in a beat up cowboy hat and kick things like a cowboy would. Jennifer said she would call him Noj just to annoy him and that many people called him Jon Ross.

Jon was actively involved in his church and enjoyed sharing his faith with others. He was a talented musician and tutored other kids in his band class. He also played football during high school and was seen playing with the band while wearing his football uniform. Days after graduating from Sequoyah High School in May of 2011, Jon left for bootcamp.

While overseas, he took to the children and asked his family to send candy and wet wipes for them. He said he wanted them to know he was a good guy. Before Jon left for his deployment he married his sweetheart and made a video to watch in the event of his death. He had also been mentoring several youth from local churches. They would meet in a peaceful spot overlooking Claremore Lake where they shared personal issues with him they didn’t feel comfortable talking about in church. After Jon was killed, his family collaborated with his friends to create a memorial in that place to honor him. Jennifer remarked that to this day, it is the place where she feels the closest to him. In December of 2015, a one mile section of highway 88 between Oologah and Jon’s church was dedicated as the PFC Jon Ross Townsend Memorial Highway. Jennifer drives by this often and says it makes her feel good that people still place memorial items there in his honor. She would like people to know that Jon believed in what he was doing. He was there to share God’s word and to help people that couldn’t help themselves. He led several of his fellow soldiers to God. They called him, “God’s soldier” and “Preacher Boy.” After his death, one of the wives of his brothers in arms had a patch made that said “God’s Soldier” on it. They wore them under a flap on their uniform in his honor.

I asked Jennifer why she thinks it’s important for the public to know about our fallen heroes. She said there are many reasons. They gave the ultimate sacrifice – not just for those they know, but for people they never met, for the possibility and hope for a better life, and to know that what they’ve done will make a difference.

To keep his memory alive, Jennifer still talks about her brother to her children. She reminisced of the great hugs he gave and said her son now gives her the same kind. Her son was four and oldest daughter was two when Jon died. She has since had another daughter. She has been honest about what happened to him and shared with them that Jon loved God and his family and friends and he died serving his country. If he was still here he would do it all over again.

Jennifer stated that Jon grew up without a dad and believes this is why he made the switch with a fellow soldier the night he died. Jon said to him, “You need to be able to stay in and get some rest and call your kids. I’ll take your turn and you can take mine later.” He saw the importance of being a father because he grew up without one. He would pay with his life so children he never knew would still have a father.

PFC Jon Ross Townsend is laid to rest next to his grandfather, who was his father figure, at Lone Chapel Cemetery in Pryor. He is loved and missed every day. •
story by Jill Stephenson, Gold Star Mother.