The astronaut Lieutenant Colonel William G. Gregory, who in 1995 piloted the Space Shuttle Endeavor on a record-setting mission of more than 16 days in space, completing 262 orbits and traveling nearly 7 million miles, is of Albanian heritage!
The establishment of an Albanian Orthodox autocephalous church had been one of the principal objectives of (Albanian) patriots since 1880. Sami Frashėri rated it next to the Albanian language in importance. He urged the Albanians to rid themselves of their dependence on the Greek, Bulgarian, and Serbian churches...
"Shiko, erdha ne Amerike pasi kisha degjuar se rruget ishin te shtruara me flori. Por, kur erdha ketu, pashe tri gjera: se pari nuk ishin te shtruara me flori; se dyti, disa rruge nuk ishin fare te shtruara; dhe se treti, me prisnin t'i shtroja une."
"Look, I came to America because I heard the streets were paved with gold. But when I got here, I found out three things: first, the streets weren't paved with gold; second, some of the streets weren't paved at all; and third, I was expected to pave them."
