From Ailsa Craig to Artemis II: Reflecting on Jeremy Hansen’s journey
- 16 hours ago
- 4 min read
By Dan Rolph
When the Apollo missions went to the moon, generations of people were inspired by their display of human ingenuity and perseverance.
Now, more than 50 years after humans last stepped onto the lunar surface, humanity is returning to Earth’s only natural satellite. And for the first time in history, a Canadian was part of the crew of trailblazers launching into the final frontier.
That Canadian, Jeremy Hansen, was one of four astronauts serving on the Artemis II crew that not only saw humans make their way around the moon, but sent them further into space than anyone before.
Hansen, who served as a mission specialist on the crew, spent many of his formative years in southwestern Ontario, where his early experiences helped shape the steady and grounded person he is known as today.
Born in London and raised on a farm outside Ailsa Craig, Hansen’s local roots run deep. From Kindergarten to Grade 8, Hansen attended McGillivray Central Public School, graduating from the school before he and his family moved to Ingersoll during his teenage years.
Hansen’s career in aviation began when he was just 12 years old, joining London’s 614 Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron. At 16, he earned his Air Cadet glider pilot wings, then his private pilot licence andwings just one year later.
His journey would take him to the Canadian Armed Forces, starting with basic training in 1994 and leading to him becoming a CF-18 fighter pilot. In 2009, Hansen successfully weathered the intense Canadian Space Agency astronaut recruitment campaign, making him one of two candidates to do so that year.
Though he has seen a lifetime of successes born from his tenacity and steadiness, one of Hansen’s teachers from his McGillivray days, Drew Robertson, said he could have never imagined one of his former students would reach such heights.
However, Robertson said the signs of the traits that would lead to his success were already there from a young age.
“Did I ever think he’d be in space? No,” said Robertson. “But I knew, regardless of what he was going to do, he was going to be successful simply because he met the challenge at hand.
“I am so exceedingly proud of him.”
Robertson described Hansen as a deeply humble and reliable individual, though he said it is difficult for him to recall how Hansen was in the classroom academically, having taught thousands of students throughout his career.
“He obviously had dreams as a young boy,” he said. “He’s realized those dreams.
“I think for anybody to have realized their dreams is a great thing. We all dream.”
It was by chance that Robertson would run into Hansen several years after he left McGillivray Central. The two crossed paths at a shopping mall in London while Hansen was an Air Cadet, already taking to the skies in gliders.
“I told him it was one of my lifelong dreams to glide,” said Robertson. “He said ‘well look, I’ll take you up.’”
Weeks later, Robertson was meeting a young Hansen in Centralia, where the pair hopped into a glider together. Though Robertson said it started as a nerve-wracking experience, he ultimately came to enjoy the flight.
“Off we went, pulled up by the tow rope. It was this teenager flying me through the sky in this glider,” said Robertson. “But he was the kind of kid you could trust.
“He had my life in his hands.”
Decades later, the pair would reunite once again in Parkhill when Hansen received the North Middlesex Sesquicentennial Inspiration Award in 2018. Though decades had passed, Robertson said Hansen continued to show humility, speaking with respect to both children and adults as they asked him questions.
“Yes, he was an astronaut. Yes, he spoke about space, though it was well before his time in space. But he spoke openly, freely and humbly.”
While speaking about his thoughts as he followed Hansen’s journey into space, Robertson said it showed his steady nature as he served in the Artemis II mission alongside three other astronauts who relied on him succeeding to return home.
“He had that commitment, and he fulfilled it. That speaks so highly to him as an individual.”
Though it’s been decades since Hansen lived in the area, Robertson said the astronaut has continued to maintain connections with the tight-knit community of McGillivray.
Meanwhile, the community has shown its own lasting connection to Hansen, and to his story.
Students at McGillivray Central were able to look to Hansen as an inspiration, learning about the former student’s history at the school while following his journey to the moon.
“This experience has shifted how our students see themselves,” said McGillivray Central principal Michelle Koop. “They’re seeing that important journeys can begin right here. Jeremy
Hansen’s story has become part of our story and has helped our students think more broadly about what’s possible.”
Robertson echoed Koop’s sentiment. He said he wonders what kind of impact Hansen’s story will have on a new generation of bright young minds who may lead remarkable lives of their own with that spirit of science and adventure shown to them through Hansen’s story, much like the Apollo astronauts did.
“How many kids today may have had some seed sown in their heads because of what he’s done? He’s such an ordinary, down-to-earth and sincere person,” said Robertson. “They can say ‘if he can do it, I can do it.’ I think that’s the important part.”
Even as he stepped onto the world stage, Hansen seemed to carry himself with the same quiet humility and down-to-earth sincerity that the community knows him for.
As he stood in front of a crowd alongside his crew when they answered questions after their return to Earth, Hansen said the science of the mission was exciting. However, he said it was the human experience of Artemis II that he and the crew found most interesting. He shared the love he has for his crewmates, how they worked to find joy in their mission and how people around the world could see themselves in the four-person crew that went farther from Earth than anyone before.
“We are a mirror reflecting you,” said Hansen. “If you like what you see, then just look a little deeper. This is you.”
From a farm outside Ailsa Craig to the far side of the moon, Hansen’s journey is a reminder that big dreams can begin in small places.
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