A retired astronaut and his former public speaking instructor recently shared a full-circle moment nearly 30 years in the making.

In 1997, Bill Wallisch was teaching a public speaking course at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. One of his students was Duane “Digger” Carey, who would later pilot a servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope.

Last week, the two men reconnected for the first time in 29 years as Carey, now a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, was the featured speaker for a presentation at Springs Ranch Memory Care, where Wallisch lives with his wife.

Due to a prior illness, Wallisch is not able to speak, but he can communicate via text and body language. He beamed with pride as his former student began his presentation.

“I hope Bill gives me a thumbs-up,” joked Carey, who launched a second career as a public speaker after retiring in 2004.

Looking fit and trim in his blue NASA flight suit, Carey gave a presentation about his 2002 servicing mission, when he piloted Space Shuttle Columbia to the Hubble Space Telescope. “Digger” and his crew spent nearly 11 days in space, completing 165 orbits of the Earth and traveling nearly 4 million miles.

The 2002 space operation, dubbed STS-109, was Space Shuttle Columbia’s last complete mission. During a 2003 mission, the spacecraft broke apart on reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere, killing all seven crew members. Carey was on duty at Mission Control in Houston when the tragedy occurred.

For 10 years, Wallisch taught English and technical communication to astronauts, many of whom suffered from a fear of public speaking. Studies suggest that about 75% of the U.S. population shares that fear, to some degree.

Wallisch then founded a communications consultancy, building a client list that included NASA, Coca-Cola, the U.S. Department of Justice and the White House. Wallisch and his wife, Pat, moved to Springs Ranch Memory Care in January after she was diagnosed with dementia.

After he completed his presentation, Carey looked to his former teacher. Wallisch smiled and gave his former pupil a thumbs-up.

Communicating via text, Wallisch said that Carey gave “a magnificent performance.”

“Bill tried to teach me public speaking many years ago,” said Carey, whose wife Cheryl works at Springs Ranch Memory Care. “And I wanted to prove to him today that I actually listened to some of it.”