The Mike Fox Story

There is a saying in the Space exploration business that we stand on the shoulders of giants. Mike Fox was one of those giants. During the Gemini and Apollo programs when tests to be performed were too dangerous or too great a risk for the Astronauts, Mike would be the first to volunteer. He was a test subject in every space suit before it flew in space. Mike touched so many lives at the Johnson Space Center that we will never know the magnitude of the positive impact he made and his contribution to exploration of Space. He dedicated his life to his country from his service in the Korean War and the Vietnam War as a combat medic, to his 36 years at NASA. Mike was truly part of the greatest generation. In the end it was his exposure to Agent Orange that caused the closure of Mike’s extraordinary life. 

—Ronald Lee, Office of Emergency Management, NASA Johnson Space Center

Mike Fox’s wonderful, dry sense of humor and his fearless love of adventure were famous among the astronauts, but my strongest memory of Mike was his tireless obsession to train as many of our JSC folks as possible to perform CPR. He lobbied long, hard and successfully to have AED defibrillators installed in every building at JSC, and to have an adequate number of people certified to use them. He trained countless JSC employees, and all the astronauts, to perform CPR, and that training saved lives on several occasions. When my first grandchildren were born, he volunteered on the weekend to train my entire family on proper resuscitation techniques for newborn babies. Mike’s concern for others made him a wonderful role model for everyone. 

—Michael Coats, former astronaut and Director, NASA Johnson Space Center, 2005 to 2012