COOKEVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — On Thursday, Tennessee Tech University honored alumnus Barry "Butch" Wilmore after he attended his first in-person meeting of the Board of Trustees since returning home from space. 

Wilmore left for what was supposed to be a roughly 8-day trip in June 2024 and ended up getting stuck in space for 286 days. 

“I flew into Nashville a couple days ago and visited with my dad a little bit, then up here in Cookeville — the rolling hills — this is God's country," Wilmore told News 2. "It's a place that I grew up — a place I feel comfortable. I love it here."

News 2 spoke with Wilmore one-on-one about the delays during his return home. 

“Something like this was completely out of our control. We didn't cause it. We didn't instigate it," Wilmore said. "We had nothing to do with what we did, and there's nothing we could do to change it, so why fret over that?"

During the board meeting, Wilmore received a surprise recognition from TTU's president: Wilmore is now the second person in university history to receive the Order of the Eagle Award. A new campus pedestrian walkway was also named “Wilmore Walk."

In addition, he was presented with a gold medal from Nashville Special Olympian Pam Inman, who followed Wilmore's journey. 

“I told my mom I was going to write him a letter because he was stuck in space so long, and then, I was going to give him one of my gold medals because he was so brave, so I decided to write him a letter and send him one of my gold medals,” said Inman, who is also a breast cancer survivor.

Wilmore credited his training as a Navy test pilot as helping him endure his 10-month stay in space, in addition to his faith. 

“We're content and comforted that the Lord’s in control, and he's working out his plan and his purpose for His glory and our good and how we fit into that in any circumstance is what we base it on," Wilmore said.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/butch-wilmore-honored-ttu/