One Man's Inspiring Journey from Migrant Farmer to Astronaut
José Hernández shared the inspirational story of his journey from migrant farm worker to astronaut during a recent visit to Air Products’ Corporate Headquarters in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Hernández was invited to speak at Air Products by the Hispanic Organization of Latinos and Amigos (HOLA), an Air Products’ Employee Resource Group (ERG). Students from the nearby Bethlehem Area School District were also invited to attend.
During the session, Hernández told the students and Air Products’ employees of his time growing up in California where he worked as a migrant famer with his family and how watching TV news clips of the Apollo 17 mission as a 10-year-old boy inspired him to want to be an astronaut.
He also stressed the importance of persistence, noting that he had been rejected 11 times for the NASA astronaut program before being selected in 2004.
Following his selection, Hernández went through several years of additional training before being chosen for a mission to the International Space Station. For the mission, Hernández was part of the crew on the Space Shuttle Discovery tasked with delivering approximately seven tons of equipment to be installed at the International Space Station in 2009. Air Products provided liquid hydrogen used by the shuttle to fuel its mission.
Air Products has a long history of working with NASA, stretching from the beginning of the United States’ space program, to the Apollo 11 moon landing, and to more recent missions to study Mars. In 2023, Air Products announced it was awarded several supply contracts from NASA totaling more than $130 million to provide liquid hydrogen for several NASA locations including the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, and other NASA facilities.
HOLA is one of 12 Air Products’ ERGs, which play a pivotal role in building a positive employee experience. HOLA’s mission is to help the company achieve its goal of being the world’s safest, most diverse and most profitable industrial gases company by raising awareness of the crucial role and impact of the Hispanic community in the company; building strong bonds between the Hispanic community and others; facilitating guidance and networking opportunities; and championing achievements to promote and empower others to achieve successful careers.
To learn more about Air Products’ ERGs, visit the Air Products Belong and Matter webpage.
