Hawken grad`s family legacy blasts off

When the Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off recently, Dudley Humphrey, Jr. `68 will see a piece (actually, pieces) of him blasting off as well. Sunita (Suni) Williams, Cleveland native and member of the Discovery crew, requested that the Humphrey family`s famed Euclid Beach Park popcorn balls travel with her as she readied for a six-month stay at the International Space Station. This is the first time the popcorn has taken ethereal flight. NASA`s Space Food Systems Laboratory typically allows crewmembers their choice of snack items to add a bit of variety to their space diet. Williams is the only member of the crew that will stay behind at the ISS. \"Being on Space Station, so much of what is going on is beyond their control,\" said Vickie Kloeris, Johnson Space Center manager of Space Food Systems. \"And so food is just a comfort thing that they would like to feel they have some input on or some control over.\" Humphrey, who runs the century-old family business, said samples of the popcorn balls had to be sent to Houston for caloric testing in NASA`s food laboratory. Other than that, and double wrapping, Williams` hometown treats were good to go. And clearly, even the sky isn`t the limit.