Henry Wolfond was less than two years old in 1961 when Alan Shepard became the first American in space, during a 15-minute sub-orbital flight in a Mercury capsule atop a Redstone rocket.

On Friday morning at 10:30 ET, some 63 and a half years later, he’ll follow in Shepard’s trajectory as one of six passengers aboard the ninth crewed flight of Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket when it blasts off from a spaceport in West Texas. He’ll also become one of the few Canadians to have made it to space — so far, just 12 and counting.