Challenger Astronaut McNair Will Be Buried in His Hometown in S. Carolina

Astronaut Ronald E. McNair, who was killed in the explosion of the shuttle Challenger, is to be buried in his hometown on Saturday.

A funeral service is scheduled for Saturday morning at Lake City’s Wesley United Methodist Church, spokesmen at Graham & Godwin Funeral Home said. A memorial service for the 35-year-old laser physicist was held at the church in February.

McNair and six other crew members were killed Jan. 28 when the space shuttle exploded shortly after liftoff.

McNair, who grew up in Lake City, was regarded as a hero in his hometown. A parade was held here and a street named in his honor in April, 1984.

Ronald McNair Boulevard, a part of U.S. 52, is Lake City’s most traveled highway. The South Carolina General Assembly recently designated all of U.S. 52 through Florence County as Ronald McNair Memorial Highway.

McNair once said he hoped someday to return to South Carolina to teach at the University of South Carolina.

The remains of the Challenger crew, recovered from the ocean off Kennedy Space Center, Fla., were flown to the military mortuary at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware last month to be prepared for burial.