Although this American hero was born in Macon, he considered Warner Robbins to be his hometown. He graduated from Macon's Lanier High in 1965 and received a degree in chemistry from Emory University in 1969 and his doctor of medicine in 1973. After two tours of duty as flight surgeon, Carter became a naval aviator in 1978. In 1984 he graduated from the Naval Test Pilot School. Shortly before graduation "Sonny" Carter was selected by NASA to be a mission specialist on the space shuttle program and went into space on November 22, 1989 (STS-33). When he was killed in a commercial airplane crash in Brunswick, GA, Sonny was scheduled to return to space on STS-42