Did you miss last month's issue? Visit the Shipmate Archive.
Did you miss last month's issue? Visit the Shipmate Archive.
As reported last month, a fun time was had by all at the Washington
DC area Dark Ages Party held on 27 February at the Mt Vernon CC in Alexandria,
VA. The accompanying pictures attest to this. (PHOTO #1, "Mal MacKinnon
with Anne & Ted Parker"; PHOTO #2, "Pat & Paul Sutherland with
Lucy Mustin"; PHOTO #3, "Bob & Betsey Fountain with Jerry Holland";
PHOTO #4, "Nancy Hinton with Tom & Di Schultz"; PHOTO #5, "Don Kellerman
with Sharon & Kirk Rowe"; PHOTO #6, "Spud Flowers, Otto Zipf &
Fred Koester"; PHOTO #7, "Fred Tolleson, Darrel Westbrook, Chuck Senn &
Tom Stallman")
Since we do have a class project now, the Class has been included in the Alumni Association's Annual Fund Drive. As part of the drive, most classes receive telephone solicitations from a firm in Las Vegas, IDC. Academy officials decided some time ago that senior classes (us!) would not receive phone calls without prior discussion. This commitment has been forgotten and Alumni Association officials have put our class on the phone program. They did not really inform us or get the word out candidly that they were changing their policy. Changes in personnel and jobs at the Alumni Association probably account for the mix-up, as well as short institutional memory.
However, the need for alumni contributions to the Alumni Association and the Academy is as strong as ever. A gift to the Alumni Association goes directly into support of alumni activities and services, including Shipmate. A gift to the Academy goes into one of the Five Centers of Excellence: Character and Leadership Development; Intellectual Development; Admissions; Physical Development and Professional Development. (See Shipmate, Jan-Feb 99, pages 3 and 4 for a more complete explanation.)
By next year, we will have our own designated project to contribute to - it will be a gift to the Academy for our 50th Reunion. Until that effort begins, there is another worthy project that needs your support. Bill Anders (22) has taken the lead in providing a soccer facility and locker room in memory of Glen Warner who coached when we were there. (The facility will be used for other sports too, possibly lacrosse and cross country.) If you want to support Bill and help provide a much-needed facility for the Academy, mark your contribution check "For the Soccer Facility". Your gift will be restricted to that use and will be matched dollar-for-dollar by a generous Classmate.
But please do give - both the Alumni Association and the Academy need
your financial help. Each issue of Shipmate has much information
on the need and means for alumni contributions.
We hosted the officers of USS Leyte Gulf (CG-55) at the Norfolk Yacht
Club. We chose this site rather than invade their wardroom for lunch
because of the ship's impending deployment to the Gulf. The Class of '55
Leadership Award was cited by the skipper, and turned over to Charlie
Plumly (16) for actual presentation to the selected junior officer upon his
return from overseas. (The JO nominee got message orders to join a
deployed unit just before our planned presentation.) The CO, XO, Ops,
Nav, right on thru the Chaplain and "George"...(in this case, their most
junior officer is an attractive female "jg")...a total of ten of their officers
were able to join us for lunch. It was an impressive group of young
officers, a real treat for us "old-timers" to spin a few yarns and listen to
what's on their minds in today's Navy. Those from our clan in attendance
included: Carl Braun (01), Frank Farino (10), Hank French (13), Bob
Miller (16), Ross Olson (19), Sibyl & Charlie Plumly, John Roberts
(01), Julia & Bill Stevens (10), Dolly & Brent Streit (10), Karen & Pat
Taylor, Jim Thearle (09), and Carol & Carl Vogel (08). We presented
each of the Leyte Gulf officers a small token to remember the bond we feel
for our "class cruiser." The memento to each was a small framed quotation
from President John F. Kennedy. The framed memento contained our '55
signal hoist, and the quotation which read as follows: "Any man who may
be asked in this century what he did to make his life worthwhile, I think can
respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction, 'I served in the United
States Navy' " John F. Kennedy, Lieutenant, USN, President, USA.
On Friday, Mar 19, Katie & Paul Slack (04), Chuck Gray (05), and
I met at the bottom of the first lift at the Park City Resort in Utah for
some pretty good skiing. Chuck, in from Maui, was visiting the Slacks,
while I had just pulled in from California. A good day and great
lunch was had by all before Chuck had to leave for the airport and a plane
to Big Sky, Montana. For a Hawaiian dude, Chuck seems to know a lot
about the parallel thing. I thought we all were supposed to be old
f___s, but Paul and Chuck look disgustingly like their Lucky Bag photos.
Chuck touted the USNA - U Hawaii football game next year - he says the
wx is ok there and the ccommodations are great. Mary Lou & George
Stott have already apprised us of all the lodging opportunities in the
Pineapple State. If you missed that msg, George (<gmstott@aloha.net>)
promises to keep us up-to-date as to whom among us will be there.
Guess I¹ll have to go for at least a mai tai or two. Anyone want to
meet up in Park City next year for a few days of the best skiing around?
DAY DATE
TEE TIME COURSE
HOST/PHONE
Tuesday 15 June 1400
Bell Haven CC Don Kellerman /(703)
868-8635
Tuesday 20 July
1100
Army-Navy Fairfax Tony Bracken /(703) 941-4614
Tuesday 17 August 1100
Mt Vernon CC Tom Schultz /(703)
360-4332
Tuesday 14 September 1000
Rasberry Falls Jim Poole '57 /(703)
780-7351
Tuesday 5 October 1330
Hidden Creek CC Ray Hine /(703) 860-0691
From February 17-25, I traveled to Sevastopol, Crimean Peninsula,
Ukraine with Mr. Bruce G. Kittleson, President of Olive Branch
International and Dr. Richard J. Stiliha, Director of Educational Projects
for Olive Branch. About a year ago, during a visit to Sevastopol State
Technical University, Olive Branch was invited to present a suicide
prevention program to a group of 12-15 Ukranian Naval Officers. This is
one of a series of programs Dr. Stiliha has presented to several military and
veterans groups in Kiev and other cities. Just prior to departing for
Ukraine, Dr. Anton Karlov, Deputy Director of the University, notified
Bruce that 70-90 Ukranian Naval Officers would be attending the seminar.
At our first meeting we learned that university students (who would be in
uniform within one year) would be attending too. On Monday, February
22, approximately 170 attended the three-hour lecture!During the introductions, my U.S. Naval Academy background, 22-year
career in the U.S. Navy, involving submarines and computers (operations
research) plus a second 20 year civilian career with the defense industry
were outlined. When it was my turn to speak, I stated that in my lifetime I
never expected that some day I would be in a city such as Sevastopol,
standing before an audience such as this. I described myself as a
representative of about 1000 Naval Academy classmates who were
interested in reaching out to establish friendships and work on establishing
a lasting peace for our children (of which I have 7) and grandchildren (of
which I have 12) and great-grandchildren (of which I have 1.)Most of the Naval Officers took extensive notes during the lecture.
Questions and comments following the seminar highlighted the practical
aspects of Dr. Stiliha's message: signs to look for, questions to ask and
actions to take. Most information previously received by the audience
focused on statistics, bell shaped curves and trends and little information
useful "in the field.". In the last half hour of his lecture Dr. Stiliha talked
about his own personal experience in suicide prevention gained over almost
20 years as a U.S. Army chaplain (Baptist) who has served with airborne
units. (Dr. Stiliha retired from the Army as a Major.)Immediately following, we went into a meeting with six officers and Dr.
Karlov. The officers included the Chief Navy Psychiatrist for Sevastopol,
the Aide to the Chief of Naval Operations, the Commander of Staff
Education, the Commander of Educational Work (also XO of a ship
operating out of Sevastopol) and the Commander of Naval Cadets. Again,
comments about the suicide prevention presentation were very positive.
Olive Branch was requested to give the same program again in May to the
Medical and psychological staff. Bruce advised that other programs about
drug and alcohol rehabilitation, domestic violence, as well as the Soldier
Counseling Course could be given. An example case brought up by a
Ukranian Naval Officer raised the issues of honor, ethics and integrity.
During the short discussion it was apparent that all six officers would be
interested in learning about U.S. experience before, during, and after
Vietnam. Immediately, the names of several classmates came to mind who
could put together such a lecture from open-literature sources in a day or
two. I bit my tongue.A secondary mission of Olive Branch during this trip was to check out the
possible use of Camp Artek as a meeting place for American and
Ukranian/Russian teens this year instead of attempting a full-blown youth
exchange program. The 700 acre camp is located on the coast of the Black
Sea, east of Yalta. It started as a Pioneers or Young Pioneers camp before
the Soviet revolution. During the Soviet years, it became a very exclusive
camp for children of high Soviet officials. It was used to reward children
for excelling in athletics or academics. Since Ukraine gained independence
in 1991 the camp has continued to operate, but under current economic
conditions, camp attendance is way down. If you are using version 4.0 or
better of Netscape or Internet Explorer you may visit their web site (in
Russian and English) at http:\\www.artek.org. The Olive Branch team
visited the camp on Sunday, February 21st and made the decision to
proceed with plans to use the camp for ten days in May. This substitute for
a teen exchange program does not reduce the cost to American teens-
estimated to be about $2300 per teen. But the financial burden on
Ukrainian or Russian families is significantly reduced because overseas air
fare is not involved. Then an idea was born.Working through Olive Branch, the Class of 1955 might offer scholarships
for the in-camp portion of the Teen Exchange camp... such scholarships
being earmarked for dependents children and grandchildren of active duty
and retired military personnel. This would ease the burden on cash-
strapped families and give the teens a break from life at home and a great
opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with American teens.Bruce Kittleson is looking for a volunteer to coordinate the teen activities
from the group of adults who serve as directors of religious activity in the
various chapels in the Hampton Roads area. Thus the camp would follow
Olive Branch's charter "to develop programs focused on organizational
development and social reform from a Judeo-Christian perspective..."In Ukraine, during the Soviet era, approximately 15% of the population
would admit to being Christian, when asked. In 1997, six years after
becoming independent, 70% are willing to describe themselves as Christian.
The religious profile of Ukraine is as follows: "Predominantly Christian,
Ukrainian Orthodox; Ukrainian Eastern Byzantine Rite Orthodox - 76%;
Ukrainian Eastern Byzantine Rite Catholic - 13%; Protestant, Jewish,
Muslim and other - 11%."On several occasions, I asked questions about veterans and veteran
organizations in Sevastopol. Our Ukranian Navy contacts never quite got
around to answering the questions. In private conversations with one of
our interpreters, I learned that Sevastopol houses many retired naval
personnel who served the Soviet Union. Many would like to see the clock
turned back. They represent a significant Russian/Ukranian political block
and apparently both Russia and Ukraine make sure that pension checks
arrive on a regular (or equitable) basis. Since independence, ownership of
the ships based in Sevastopol and the naval facilities have been a bone of
contention between the Russian Navy and the Ukraine Navy. I understand
the questions were settled in 1997 when a lease agreement was signed.
However, I did not see or meet any Russian Navy personnel. To my
knowledge, none were included in any planning meetings, discussions or
the suicide prevention lecture. The Ukranian Navy, born on independence
is still too young to have much of a veteran's organization. This is probably
why my questions about veterans and veteran organizations in Sevastopol
seemed to fall on deaf ears.
Conceptual planning for the 45th
Reunion: The dates of our 45th Reunion have changed. It will
now take place on October 26-29, 2000, an "off-Homecoming" weekend.
However, nothing else has changed. We still have booked the waterfront
Marriott Hotel in Annapolis as well as the Days Inn on Route 50.
And Washington area Classmates are still planning a great program.
More details will be provided later in Shipmate, via letter, and on the
'55 Net. We still have a long way to go - if you have any ideas, put
them on our Listserv or call Tom Kiefaber at (703) 759-7743 or another
Washington area Classmate.
| Class Membership for December 1998 is 63 Percent...........
Are you a member of the Naval Academy Alumni Association (15 non-graduates are!)? You can sign up by calling (410) 263-4448 x112 or 117. Annual dues are $30.00 or $410.00 for lifetime membership (paid in quarterly installments). Or indicate your interest to me and I'll have USNAAA send you an application. You'll find SHIPMATE has vastly improved. Tom K. Note: Please contact USNA Alumni Services office at 410-263-4448 x112 or achamber@arctic.nadn.navy.mil to update your address if you are a member of the USNAAA and not getting Shipmate. If you are not a Naval Academy alumnus, but would like to subscribe to Shipmate, please contact the phone number/email address above or click on Subscription Form. Your Webmaster |
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