North Carolina astronaut among honorees for state’s highest honor

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — NASA astronaut Christina Koch is one of eight recipients to receive the North Carolina Award this year, which honors individuals who have made significant contributions to their respective fields, including public service, literature, science, and the arts.

Koch, a native of Jacksonville, NC, and a North Carolina State University alumnus, said she is bursting with pride.

astronaut Christina Koch to be honored with North Carolina Award for Science

"I am so honored and humbled," she said. "Something like this makes me think about what it means to have accomplishments to be proud of."

Koch told CBS 17 she's always had big dreams.

"Every time I told the teacher, whether in kindergarten or the coach, no one discouraged me, which is amazing coming from a small town," Koch said.

This big dream came true in 2013 when NASA selected Koch as an astronaut and flight engineer, but it wasn't until 2019 when she blasted off into space.

"There was this moment where it was consolidation of every experience I have ever had," she said. "Every single time I have failed and got back up."

Gov. Roy Cooper emphasized the importance of Koch's next big mission, which span 10 days and be a significant milestone for the Tar Heel State.

"In 2025, she'll be one of four astronauts heading to the moon on the Artemis II Mission, becoming the first woman to participate in a lunar mission," Cooper said.

Said Koch, "It is the second and first crewed mission of the Artemis campaign, which is bringing us back to the moon."

The mission will be the first to take humans to deep space in over 50 years. Koch hopes her journey will inspire others to dream big.

"Follow your own path, find your own fulfillment, do the things that make you truly happy, and give you meaning for giving back," Koch said.

The North Carolina Award honors individuals in public service, literature, science, and the arts.

The other North Carolina Award winners this year include:

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Chancellor Emeritus Harold L. Martin Sr. (Public Service)

Environmental lawyer Thomas W. Earnhardt (Science)

Orchestral conductor William Henry Curry (Fine Arts)

New York Times columnist Frank A. Bruni Jr. (Literature)

Folk-rock musicians, the Avett Brothers, Scott and Seth (Fine Arts)