Library Services

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      When Karen and Clark McCombs recently contacted the Friends to ask if we would be interested in picking up a large collection of books left behind by her recently deceased father, Lee McMillion, our team of volunteers couldn’t get there fast enough.

      And, when we got there, we found a lot more than an eclectic collection of wonderful books. We found a very interesting backstory about the man who had amassed the books over a lifetime.

      Lee Newman McMillion could have been the protagonist in a Tom Clancy novel. After attending Princeton on an ROTC scholarship, he served six years in the Navy. And then, during a chance tour of NASA, he was hired on the spot and built the first space suit for the Mercury 7 astronauts.

      He began a 27-year career in the world of intelligence in 1966 as part of the Corona Project, which was the successor to the U-2 program that saw Francis Gary Powers shot down while spying for the CIA over Russia in 1960. Both the Corona Project and his first spacesuits are in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

      But, no matter how busy his career kept him, he always maintained his love for history, reading, music, and conversation. It was inevitable, then, that books would be a constant companion in his life-long commitment to learning. Lee passed away in November of 2023 after 67 years of marriage to his high school sweetheart, Lynn. The books he left behind are just part of the wonderful legacy of a life well lived.

      “The Friends are grateful to Karen for sharing her father’s collection of books and his amazing life story with us,” said Joe David, Friends president. “He made an important difference during his life and continues to do so today.”

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