Principal Jill Sack and Astronaut Buzz Aldrin
Buzz Aldrin and Ron Bolandi chat under the new sign of the renamed Buzz Aldrin Middle School.
Mount Hebron officially renamed Buzz Aldrin Middle School at a dedication ceremony on Fri., Sept. 16 after the Montclair native and astronaut. Community members gathered at the outdoor ceremony which took place on the steps of the middle school to catch a glimpse of Aldrin and other dignitaries. Students were treated to an earlier all-school assembly prior to the dedication.
During the dedication, Hillside's Drums of Thunder gave a drumroll as the signage was unveiled.
Bob Caggiano, a Mt. Hebron alumnus and vice president of sales at Annin Flagmakers in Roseland, presented Aldrin with an American flag that flew at Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, for the 70th anniversary event marking the D-Day invasion of Normandy. It was Annin Flagmakers that supplied the flag Aldrin and Neil Armstrong planted on the moon during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission.
At left, Drums of Thunder let it rip and, at right, Bob Caggiano of Annin Flagmakers, suppliers of the flag planted on the moon, speaks while Bolandi and Aldrin examine the historical flag presented to the school.