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NASA News National Aeronautics and Space Administration
John F. Kennedy Space Center Kennedy Space Center, Florida 32899 AC 321 867-2468 For Release: Nov. 17, 2004
Mike Rein Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Phone: (321/867-2468)
KSC RELEASE: 89-04
NASA SPOKESMAN GEORGE DILLER EARNS NATIONAL SPACE CLUB AWARD
The National Space Club Florida Committee is honoring Kennedy Space Center Public Information Officer George Diller with the Harry Kolcum Memorial News and Communications Award for his excellence in “communicating the space story” along Florida’s Space Coast and throughout the world.
“When you work with George Diller, you understand what a true communications professional is,” said Jim Banke, vice chairman of the Florida Space Club Florida Committee. “George is a strong, steady and reliable voice for NASA, especially in unmanned launches and operations at KSC that usually don’t get a lot of attention.”
Diller has served at KSC in the Office of Public Affairs for 24 years. His primary responsibility is serving as the NASA spokesman for Expendable Launch Vehicles, and he has tremendous expertise in the areas of deployable spacecraft, tracking and telemetry, and weather.
As a launch commentator for both Space Shuttle and ELV missions, Diller has provided the countdown for such historic missions as Cassini, Gallileo, the Hubble Space Telescope, Magellan and the recent launch of the two Mars rovers. “George’s voice is a national treasure,” said Banke.
The award is named in honor of Harry Kolcum, the former managing editor of Aviation Week and Space Technology, who was the Cape Canaveral area bureau chief from 1980 to 1993 prior to his death in 1994. Kolcum was a founding member of the National Space Club Florida Committee.
"George has demonstrated dedication and professionalism to NASA for 20 years in communicating NASA's messages to the public. He has received many accolades from the media and his peers, including the late Harry Kolcum. George is deserving of this prestigious recognition," said Lisa Malone, director of External Relations at KSC.
Diller holds bachelor’s degrees in communications and business administration from the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla. Prior to joining NASA, he worked for more than a decade in radio broadcasting at stations in Clearwater, Tampa and Orlando, covering KSC as a newsman.
He is a native Floridian who grew up in Sarasota and Clearwater and has resided in Titusville, Fla., since October 1978.
The award is presented annually to a representative of the news media and a communications professional located on the Space Coast. Previous recipients include Julie Andrews, communications manager for Lockheed Martin Space Systems; Lisa Malone, director of External Relations at KSC; Mike Rein, chief of Media Services at KSC; Hugh Harris, retired NASA director of Public Affairs; and Jack King, who served as the “Voice of Apollo.”
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