WASHINGTON D.C., DC — What’s in a name can hold family history – or in this case – human history.
On the eve of her 50th birthday, and the 50th anniversary of mankind’s monumental leap, a woman began to tell the story of her name, forever tied to the greatest adventure of our time.
“My name is Regina Lunar Heard, and my brother is Ronald Apollo Gravitt. We were born July 20, 1969, the day the first man walked on the moon.”
Her mother didn’t know she was having twins, and she also didn’t know the world would change on a sweltering Sunday night in 1969.
“My mom was put to sleep, and when she woke up, she was told she had twins,” Ms. Heard said in an interview Tuesday. When she woke up, she would see the indelible images of Neil Armstrong stepping onto the surface of the moon.
It was Ms. Heard’s uncle, an academic within the District’s public school system, who insisted his new niece and nephew be named after the awe-inspiring night.
And so they were – Regina Lunar and Ronald Apollo – born at Columbia Hospital for Women.
Ms. Heard serves as the informal family spokesperson for the celestial story. Her brother now lives in Seattle, and plans to make his way to the nation’s capital for their birthday extravaganza Saturday.
The celebration is elevated by the immense projection and pageantry on the National Mall – a 363-foot life-size image of the Saturn V rocket glowing on the eastern face of the Washington Monument.
The projection dazzled on its debut night, with Ms. Heard retelling her story framed by a perfect view of the monument before sunset.
“At first, I did not understand, why my mother would name her kids middle names Lunar and Apollo, at all,” Ms. Heard said. “I thought, ‘you could've named me anything. Linda. Or anything.’ But my brother always embraced his name. Unlike me at first."
Yet the weight of what happened on her birthday didn’t sink in until she was seven years old. It took a field trip to a certain museum with her elementary school class to change her perspective.
"I remember going to Air and Space and looking up, seeing this display, and saying, 'wow, that's my name.’”
It was a room devoted to the lunar landing – with her middle name, in lights. Treasures of spaceflight preserved, for all to see.
“That’s the first time I felt a real pride about how my name came to be.”
Ms. Heard expressed a genuine American pride unique to her own story, a moment in time with which her identity will be forever tied.
Only hours after she shared her story for the first time outside close friends and family, the Saturn V spotlights illuminated the imaginations of the crowd that converged on the Mall.
“What a way to celebrate a great 50 years, and I’m looking forward to another 50,” Ms. Heard said. “Lunar tells a story of who I am. And I’m very proud to share and celebrate it at this point in my life.”