This month brings the 100th birthday of pioneering aviator/astronaut (and N.H. native) Alan Shepard—and that means cake!
Shepard’s 100th birthday is Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. And yes, the Aviation Museum of N.H. will celebrate this important milestone with a very large sheetcake being created by our friends at the Bakeshop on Kelley Street in Manchester, N.H.
Starting when the museum opens on Friday, Nov. 17 at 10 a.m., all visitors can get a free slice of Alan Shepard’s birthday cake as long as the slices hold out. First come, first served!
Shepard, who grew up in Derry, N.H. and experienced his first flights at what is now Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, made history in 1961 as the first U.S. astronaut to fly in space and again in 1971 as commander of the Apollo 14 moon mission to the moon, during which he piloted the lunar module to the surface and also hit two golf balls.
Shepard died in 1998, but his career continues to inspire those who dream of following in his footsteps—perhaps to the lunar surface and beyond!
Visit the Aviation Museum on the weekend starting Friday, Nov. 17, and besides free cake (which you’ll get on the way out), you’ll get to learn more about the storied career of Shepard, at one time the most famous person in the U.S.A. For more info, visit us online at www.aviationmuseumofnh.org.
Below, volunteer Fred Okrent inspects a cake created in 2021 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Apollo 14.
