The following is a press release from Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) announcing the offer of a special label for the 2021 Christa McAuliffe commemorative. The commemorative dollar coin honors the late NASA and Space Shuttle Challenger astronaut who was killed 73 seconds in the STS-51L mission in 1986.
Professional Coin Grading Service (www.PCGS.com) is offering a Special Label emblazoned with the Astronaut Memorial Foundation (www.amfcse.org) logo in honor of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Astronaut Christa McAuliffe, who is featured on a special 2021 United States Mint Commemorative Silver Dollar. McAuliffe, a civilian high school teacher, was among a crew of seven who were killed when NASA Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after launching from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 28, 1986.
McAuliffe is seen in three-quarter view on the obverse of the coin, while the reverse of the coin shows a group of high school students looking up at the stars, with McAuliffe depicted as a teacher and pointing upward to the star-filled heavens. The reverse also carries the special inscriptions “I TOUCH THE FUTURE. I TEACH.” These words, hearkening to McAuliffe’s background as a teacher, speak to her dreams of inspiring the young to pursue futures in science and technology.
“PCGS is honored to remember Christa McAuliffe and the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger through a special collaboration with the Astronaut Memorial Foundation,” says PCGS Director of Marketing Heather Boyd. “May coin collectors, teachers, and all who lay their eyes on this coin reflect upon McAuliffe’s legacy and the potential each one of us has to help lead the next generation to their dreams.”
The PCGS Special Labels bearing the logo representing the Astronaut Memorial Foundation (AMF), an organization partnered with NASA that was founded shortly after the Challenger tragedy. AMF’s mission is to honor the lives of astronauts who sacrificed all in missions to explore space while educating and inspiring others through the Center for Space Education. Approximately 50% of the fees for this PCGS Special Label will be donated to the AMF.
For more information about the limited-edition PCGS Labels for the 2021 Christa McAuliffe Commemorative Silver Dollar, please visit www.PCGS.com/labels.
About Professional Coin Grading Service
Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) is a third-party coin and banknote grading company that was launched in 1986. Over 35 years, PCGS has examined and certified more than 45 million U.S. and world coins, medals, and tokens with a combined value of over $41.7 billion. For more information about PCGS products and services, including how to submit your coins for authentication and grading, please visit www.PCGS.com or call PCGS Customer Service at (800) 447-8848.