50 years ago on July 20, 1969, the Apollo 11 lunar lander touched down and Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took their first steps on the moon.

All week long people from around the world have been celebrating the various steps in this great human achievement.

Long-Time Teacher and Principal Elbert ToewsThe now-retired Elbert Toews was teaching at the Steinbach Collegiate back in 1969. He says the moon landing had an immediate impact in his class.

"The story became very prominent in our daily activities at the time because it was so important. I had many a wrestling match, if you will, with students as we talked about the implications of it. It was a very easy topic to work with, the vast majority of them certainly got a sense of what space was all about, it gave an opening to understand a little bit more about our solar system."

Toews says it was a very exciting time for everyone. He notes it also had a large effect on regular residents as the United States and their western allies were in the middle of the Cold War and the space race.

"At times it was almost palpable how much tension there was in terms of trying to compete with each other and demonstrate your superiority in some way, shape, or form and the Russians having done that in '57 getting Sputnik, the orbiter up there was a real blow. It was undone in a sense 50 years ago by putting a man on the moon by the Americans or the west."

Toews says the moon landing gave America and it's allies a great deal of confidence.

Neil Armstrong's bootprint. The first ever step on the moon by man. Photo courtesy NASA.

The lunar lander dubbed “Eagle” touched down at 4:17 P.M. Central Time on July 20th and the first steps on the moon took place at 9:56 P.M. the same day.

Meanwhile, Local Aviation and Flight Enthusiast Ed Voth says back in 1969 not everyone had televisions so some people gathered to watch the landing.

"That was a time just before I left home. We grew up in the southwest part of the province and believe it or not, we didn't have a TV so I remember my father driving a couple of miles to the neighbours who said 'come on over, we will watch this on TV' and then he came home and reported it to us and we were all sitting there very wide-eyed."

Voth says learning about the moon landing was very surreal.

Manned missions to the Moon ended in 1972 and Apollo XVII with budget cuts ending the Moon program.