Dean Kamen issues 'call to action' to promote coins honoring Christa McAuliffe

Sep. 28—Dean Kamen is flummoxed. Flabbergasted, even.

Typically measured in his speech and manner, the Bedford inventor and entrepreneur was recently venting his frustration and chagrin at what he sees as a missed opportunity for New Hampshire to celebrate someone who was universally admired: Concord's own Christa McAuliffe.

After years of behind-the-scenes work by Kamen and members of New Hampshire's Congressional delegation, Congress in 2019 approved a commemorative coin honoring McAuliffe, the Concord High School teacher who inspired the world and who died in the Challenger disaster on Jan. 28, 1986.

President Donald Trump signed the bill into law, and the U.S. Treasury issued the commemorative silver dollar earlier this year.

By law, a $10 surcharge on each coin sold goes to benefit the FIRST robotics program, the international engineering challenge that Kamen created decades ago to inspire youngsters to pursue careers in science and engineering.

The FIRST logo is depicted on the reverse side of the commemorative coin, along with an image of McAuliffe with schoolchildren, and the teacher's famous words: "I touch the future. I teach."

Here's why Kamen is so upset:

"I guess I just assumed that it would be a huge, huge point of pride, and everyone in the state would want one," Kamen said. "And certainly every school would give one to at least one teacher."

"I just assumed everybody's going to want one of these things."

But that hasn't happened, and the coin is only being minted through the end of this year. An uncirculated silver dollar is selling on usmint.gov for $74.

"There will never be another one made," Kamen said.

After this year, only collectors will be able to buy and sell the coins, he said.

"This could be the biggest lost opportunity for this state to take appropriate pride in an extraordinary thing," Kamen said. "We had a teacher, the first ever to be invited to space, who gave her life."

Kamen said he donated $5,000 worth of the coins to the Concord planetarium that was built in McAuliffe's honor. He'll also donate coins to the SEE Science Center he created in the Manchester Millyard.

But Kamen issued a "call to action" for others to act before it's too late.

He's willing to work with any group — businesses, teacher's unions, educational associations, PTAs, civic organizations, anyone else — that wants to spearhead a campaign to promote the coins, he said. The holidays are coming up, too; wouldn't a commemorative coin be a unique gift, he asked.

He does not get any financial reward from the FIRST program, Kamen said. "I can assure you, in 30 years, money goes one way between me and FIRST," he said. "It goes out of my pocket into theirs."

He's happy to host a brainstorming session to come up with a proper campaign, Kamen said. But it has to happen quickly.

"Let's form the Christa McAuliffe Commemorative Coin Committee," he said. "Let's get it done."

"This is an incredible opportunity for New Hampshire to shine and to be proud," he said.

For more information, contact dkamen@dekaresearch.com, or call 603-669-5139.