During its long history Lee Brothers has been in involved in many special projects but probably the most unusual
was the NASA/Jeanie Johnson Medal.

When the Space Shuttle Columbia blasted off from the John F. Kennedy Space Center on April 4th 1998
on Mission STS-83 it included in its payload a specially commissioned medal made by Lee Brothers.

The shuttle Commander James Halsell had requested to bring a memento from Ireland on the mission.
Each crew member of each shuttle mission is allowed to bring a personal memento with him/her.
The item must be small owing to the enormous expense incurred to propel
each additional ounce out of the Earth’s atmosphere.

Shuttle Commander James Halsell had met a Co. Kerry businessman at the previous years Olympic Games in Atlanta and through this friendship had requested an item from Ireland to bring into space. At the time the Jeanie Johnson project, based in Co. Kerry, was starting up and the connection was made between the shuttle voyage and the historic voyage of the ship. It was decided to strike a medal with the mission crest on the obverse and the Jeanie Johnson on the reverse. Because the best possible quality was required Lee Brothers was chosen to produce the medal.

Commander Halsell took this medal with him and it spent some days in orbit around the Earth.
President Mary McAleese placed a replica of the medal
in the keel of the Jeanie Johnson at the ship’s keel laying ceremony.