A Napa Valley woman with a terminal diagnosis wants to make a big trip to a far away place.
Pam Harter, a 69-year-old woman battling a devastating and incurable genetic disorder, is on a mission to become the first hospice patient to blast off into space — thanks to a stroke of luck and a connection to billionaire-backed rocket company Blue Origin.
Harter was diagnosed with pseudoxanthoma elasticum, an ultra-rare condition that causes arteries to harden and become dangerously brittle. There’s no cure, and her vascular system is slowly shutting down.
Two years ago, doctors inserted stents into her stomach and a major artery to keep blood flowing. By last spring, one was completely blocked and the other partially clogged. Surgeons offered another risky procedure — one that would likely tether her to tubes and medical devices for whatever time she had left.
Harter declined the surgery. Instead, she and her husband chose passports over procedures, spending a month in Italy, visiting Croatia and squeezing every ounce out of life in the time they have left.
A friend invited the couple to snag a last-minute opening on an exclusive expedition to Ecuador and Galapagos — a pricey $42,500 a head trip with a 50-person guest list.
During introductions, Harter didn’t mention hospice and instead tossed out a wild idea: “wouldn’t it be amazing if I could be the first hospice patient in space?” she recalled to the Napa Valley Register.
The woman sitting next to her revealed she worked with Blue Origin — the private spaceflight company founded by Amazon titan Jeff Bezos, which ferries civilians more than 62 miles above Earth.
Within 24 hours, Harter had an email from Blue Origin waiting in her inbox, complete with an application and a non-disclosure agreement. She signed.
“Hospice is giving me the comfort to keep living, instead of just sitting around thinking about dying,” Harter told the Napa Valley Register. “I’ve been to Italy. I went to Croatia, I went to Ecuador, I went to the Galápagos, and I’m going to go to space, and I couldn’t have done any of that without being on hospice.”
At least one paying customer reportedly postponed their own seat to move her up in line.
But the mission hit turbulence in January when Blue Origin announced it would pause launches for at least two years to focus on NASA contracts. Still, company insiders told Harter to stay the course.
She’s continued “touring and training” while quietly working to line up sponsors to offset the multimillion-dollar price tag, which she cannot publicly disclose.
For Harter, though, it’s not about bragging rights, but about shattering assumptions. She wants to show that hospice doesn’t have to be the end of adventure.