News reached us just before the launch that Carl

McLawhorn of Semroc Astronautics Corporation

passed away last month. We only knew Carl from

the brief interactions we had with him at rocketry

events, but he was always kind, helpful and

enthusiastic about the sport. He took extra time

with us when Christopher was young to point

out how certain kits should be built and how to

get them to fly the best.

The company he led produces by far the best kits

in the industry in terms of the quality of materials

and thorough, well written instructions. They have

always been my favorite kits to build and some of

the most fun to fly. We dedicated a flight to him

of one of our favorite Semroc kits: the Retro-Repro

Centruri Space Shuttle. It was a beautiful flight and reminded us of how much care he put into all of the products he produced.

The rocketry community has lost a great asset to the sport and a wonderful man.