Former NASA astronaut and Navy SEAL Chris Cassidy will sit down with WCVB anchor Ben Simmoneau on October 8 for a public conversation at the USS Constitution Museum in Charlestown, part of an ongoing forum that pairs local journalism with national leadership figures. The evening opens with a cocktail reception at 5:30 p.m., followed by the speaking program at 6:30 p.m., inside the museum that sits steps from the historic frigate at the Charlestown Navy Yard.
The event is the latest installment of the USS Constitution Museum Leadership Forum, which, as reported by WCVB, features conversations with leaders whose stories of vision and service offer lessons for audiences beyond the military world. Cassidy, described in the outlet's report as a national civic leader, is set to reflect on lessons in courage, service, teamwork, and leadership drawn from a career that spans special operations and spaceflight.
Cassidy served as a Navy SEAL for more than a decade before joining NASA, and his résumé includes a Bronze Star with combat “V” from deployments to Afghanistan and the Mediterranean along with a master's degree in ocean engineering from MIT, according to the USS Constitution Museum. He went on to fly three space missions, accumulate 378 days in space, log more than 54 hours across 10 spacewalks, command the International Space Station, and serve as NASA's chief astronaut, per WCVB's reporting on the upcoming event.
From Space Station Command to Museum Boardroom
After leaving NASA, Cassidy pivoted to nonprofit leadership, serving as President and CEO of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation from August 2021 until stepping down in October 2025, according to CBS Texas. He oversaw a four-year campaign and construction project that culminated in the completed national museum in Arlington, Texas, before stepping aside once the building was finished. Hoodline previously reported on a corporate partnership with that museum that quoted Cassidy in his role there, and also covered a discount program tied to his tenure as its president and CEO.
The Charlestown venue for October's talk carries its own layered history. The museum operates out of Building 22, an 1830s engine house that once contained the steam-powered pumps used to drain Dry Dock 1, according to Historic Trolley Tours. It's worth noting the museum itself is a private non-profit that operates in partnership with the National Park Service, distinct from the USS Constitution warship next door, which is maintained by active-duty Navy sailors who host more than 500,000 visitors a year, per the National Park Service. The Constitution, first authorized by Congress in 1794 and launched in 1797 at Hartt's Shipyard in Boston, remains the world's oldest commissioned warship still afloat and earned its “Old Ironsides” nickname during the War of 1812, according to History Hit.
A December Follow-Up With a Four-Star Admiral
Simmoneau isn't done after October. WCVB's report notes he'll return to the Leadership Forum on December 3 to lead a conversation with retired four-star Admiral James G. Stavridis, a former NATO Supreme Allied Commander. Stavridis served 37 years in uniform and became the first Navy officer to hold that NATO post, serving from 2009 to 2013, according to the Pittsburgh Speakers Series.
Since retiring from the military, Stavridis spent five years as Dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and now serves as Vice Chair of Global Affairs at The Carlyle Group and Chair of the Rockefeller Foundation Board of Trustees. He's also the bestselling author of more than a dozen books, including the geopolitical novel 2034, and works as a chief international security analyst for NBC News, per the same source. The pairing follows a similar format used in February 2026, when the forum hosted NCAA President and former Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, illustrating the series' focus on ethical decision-making and organizational culture.
The Moderator's Own Credentials
Simmoneau, who joined WCVB Channel 5 in 2015 and co-anchors its 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. broadcasts, brings his own recent recognition to the moderator's chair. He received first-place honors for local business and consumer reporting at the 2026 National Headliner Awards for his investigation into Massachusetts utility delivery fees, according to the National Headliner Awards.
The museum has built a reputation as more than a repository of naval artifacts. It was rated Boston's top museum in a 2019 review analysis, a ranking Hoodline covered in its own roundup of the city's five best museums, and it has continued to serve as an anchor along the Freedom Trail, including its participation in Mayor Michelle Wu's Boston Family Days last spring. The Leadership Forum's two upcoming dates extend that civic footprint, giving Charlestown a recurring stage where military history and modern executive experience meet in the same room.
