- By Eleanor Seidenglanz -
Lee Scherer was born in Charleston, SC, and raised in Kentucky. He studied at the U.S. Naval Academy and graduated in 1942. He was a fighter pilot in WWII. He went on to receive a Master’s Degree in Aeronautical Engineering at Cal. Tech.
In 1952 he transferred from the Navy to the National Aeronautical and Space Administration [NASA] where he worked for 18 years.
While there he directed the unmanned Lunar Orbital Program, which made close-up pictures of the moon’s surface to assist in selecting landing sites for the manned mission to follow.
He became Director of the Apollo Lunar Exploration office and was responsible for the experiments performed on each Apollo mission. His next assignment was to direct the Flight Research Center to test experimental aircraft. His final assignment was as Director of the Kennedy Space Center, and in five years he launched 66 missions, including Apollo Soyuz, the first joint U.S./Soviet space flight.
In 1980 after retiring from the government, he worked for 10 years as a consultant at General Dynamics for the Department of Commerce and Transportation.
Lee came to our community in February, 2010, and resides in Canyonview. He is married and the father of 4 children, has 9 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren.
It was an impressive experience for me to meet a gentleman who did so much for the world through his work on the space program. We welcome him to La Costa Glen.