Local Pastor Living In Space Capsule For A Week

WEST MIFFLIN (KDKA) - Fifty-three years after astronaut John Glenn circled the world in a space capsule, a plywood replica stands at Walnut Grove Christian School in West Mifflin.

Rev. Bill Galus greets us after 24 hours of capsulation. The pastor of Walnut Grove Assembly of God will spend seven days in cramped quarters, recalling the Mercury Seven astronauts of the '60s.

"All my food is freeze dried," he says. "So I just heat water, and add that."

Pastor Galus' mission is to raise money for his church's youth program, serving teenagers from Nepal, among others. Meanwhile, the school kids get a lesson in history.

"Who can tell me who was the first man on the moon?" teacher Debbie Ciocca asks her sixth grade class.

The school is using the "capsule" as a learning experience. Although, the longest a Mercury astronaut was confined was a day and a half, Pastor Galus will be holed up till Sunday morning.

"We'll actually have an outdoor service," he says, "and I'll preach something God gives me in my time in here."

In the meantime, he says, "My one luxury is on my iPad. I am watching the movie "The Right Stuff."

The capsule, named "Glory 7," was built to simulate the Mercury Space Capsule, which was the United States' first manned venture into outer space.

The pastor's "mission" is being used as a fundraiser to sponsor the community youth program that does ministry and outreach work in the West Mifflin area.

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