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Widow: Israeli astronaut, crewmates were heroes
HOUSTON, Texas (CNN) -- Wearing a pendant of the space shuttle around her neck, the widow of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon said Tuesday their family remembers him as an optimist and a hero who died with six other talented and unique crew members. "He was a very happy person and we think about Ilan with all the heroism -- that big astronaut, big fighter pilot," said Rona Ramon. Ilan Ramon, 48, was a colonel in the Israeli air force who fought in the 1973 Arab-Israeli war. He had a degree in electronics and computer engineering from the University of Tel Aviv, and joined NASA as a payload specialist in 1997. "For us, he's just a father, very loving husband, and optimist -- and smiling," his widow said. Ramon's oldest son, Asaf, wore a royal blue windbreaker with his father's NASA patch sewn onto it. As he put his arm over his mother's shoulder, Asaf exposed the T-shirt he was wearing, printed with a picture of the Columbia crew. "From the beginning, I wanted to be a fighter pilot because I grew up with it and have just been surrounded by it, and it looks like a lot of fun and my dad did it," Asaf said. "He was one of the best guys that did it. So that inspired me, too. And now -- now I want to go to space, like my dad." Asaf said his favorite memory of his father is also his optimism, and that he "always smiled and was happy, always." Mrs. Ramon spoke well of her husband's crew mates on Columbia, who shared a special bond with one another. "This whole crew was just incredible together," she said. "They're all angels. They're all together, and that's the way they're going to stay." Tuesday's memorial service for the seven astronauts touched the family, she said, especially because it included prayers in both Hebrew and English. "It touched everyone -- whatever religion, whatever nation -- all over the world," she said. "And that's what we feel. We feel like one big family." Words of support coming in from all over the world are also helping to comfort the Ramons and give them strength, she said. "My plans and our plans are just to take it step by step," she said. "We have wonderful, wonderful support from family, from friends -- dear, dear friends -- [and] from NASA. They're just incredible, doing incredible work." Rona Ramon said her husband's journey into space marked a milestone not only for their family -- Ilan Ramon's mother is a Holocaust survivor -- but also for the state of Israel, since he was the first Israeli astronaut. "Here he is, going to space to a better future for higher technology. It's just -- it was obvious that we have to make something for our tradition, our very long history." She said it is important that NASA continue to fly space missions and that Israel continue to participate. Ramon's son said he will remember his father as "a heroic dad." "He was a wonderful dad," said Mrs. Ramon. "God picked the best to stay with him, and I think he made a right choice. Oh, this crew -- this crew is just the top of the top. Incredible people. And they will stay together, forever young, forever beautiful. Together."
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