VETERANS DAY PARADE NEW YORK CITY

NEWS-01: New York City Parade 2013

Submitted by: T. Michael Bircumshaw on 9/26/2013

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Shipmates:

 

We (USSVI) have  been invited back to New York City again this year for the Veterans Day Parade on November 11, 2013. The NYC Veterans Day Parade is the largest Veterans Day Parade in the nation. The sole purpose of the NYC Veterans Day Parade is to honor the service of our Veterans and to salute our currently serving military.

 

Last year, they expected in excess of 20,000 participants and over 600,000 parade spectators along the parade route. Those numbers were FAR exceeded. The event is televised also, so millions more will view it.

 

Last year was our Second year of participating, and we had a small number of participants (20) and 2 submarine float. Five different bases were represented and all had a great time. I would like to see many times that amount participating this year. They can handle as many as want to show up. This includes floats.

 

Please get back to me if you are interested in participating this year. It is a great opportunity to show the rest of the world we are proud Submariners  and great advertising for USSVI. I will be handling the application and registration process again this year, and the sooner I can find out approximately how many shipmates and floats will be participating, the better the parade committee can plan their logistics (parking, staging, etc).  We can only have 2 Floats, Rhode Island Base is providing it’s float of the USS Providence (SSN717), could use one more.

 

Thanking you in advance, and looking forward to seeing you in NYC on Veterans Day.

 

This year’s POC is Rhode Island Base Commander, Charlie Mueller

  CMueller51@verizon.net  401-377-9089

 

 

 

 

 

MILITARY UPDATE FRA

by Joe Barnes, National Executive Director, FRA

 

Military Budget Morass – In this week’s Military Update column, Tom Philpott writes about the current and future challenges facing the military services and refers to the “deepening readiness crisis that Congress has inflicted on the armed forces.”  He cites the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps service chiefs’ testimony before the House Armed Services Committee this week on the effects of the sequester-driven chaos of 2013, new budget threats and a possible government shutdown next month if a continuing resolution is not enacted to keep the government operating at 2013 levels after October 1.  The military faces year two of arbitrary defense cuts, this one set at $52 billion for the coming fiscal year, and the service chiefs testified that military force readiness is “failing" rapidly.  Read the entire column which is posted on FRA’s new web site at www.fra.org.

 

Lone Sailor Awards – The U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation's annual Lone Sailor Awards dinner was this week and award recipients were retired USMC General P.X. Kelley, the 28^th Commandant of the Marine Corps and successful businessman; former Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, who served on key sea services oversight committees during her 20 years in the United States Senate; CNN founder and USCG veteran Ted Turner; and Dan Akerson, Chairman & CEO of General Motors, who served in the United States Navy.   The annual Lone Sailor Awards dinner began in 1987 and annual awardees have distinguished themselves, drawing on their Sea Service experience to become successful in their subsequent careers and lives, while exemplifying the core values of Honor, Courage and Commitment.  And photos in the dinner program included a picture of PRPEC Claire Purdy and the late PNP Bob Bastian at the FRA Central Liaison Committee's Memorial Day ceremony at the Navy Memorial last May.

 

USSVI Database

This is a ALL HANDS “heads-up” from the USSVI database support team.

 

It looks like the Weekend after next they will be relocating the servers that host Decklog and USSVI. Current plan is to physically move the servers either Saturday or Sunday Sept 14th or Sept 15th.

 

The Decklog/USSVI database websites including the base websites will be offline and unavailable for up to 48 Hours as they are physically moved from the current hosting facility to the new hosting facility.

 

This move will not affect the independent base websites, the Facebook websites, or the USSVI BBS websites.  Following the move, access and website addresses will be exactly the same as before.  For reference, the main website is at www.ussvi.org

 

Fraternally,

 

Patrick Householder

 

USSVI Past National Commander 2008-2010

 

Decklog Boats and Crews Manager

 

 

 

 

 

Eternal Patrol

Harold M. Richardson, a 31 year resident of Pacific Grove, passed away peacefully surrounded by his family.  Retired as a Captain in the US Navy after 30 years, the high point of Captain Richardson's long, illustrious career was his time spent on submarines and included serving as Commander of the USS Sea Fox. Captain Richardson is survived by his wife, Donna, and his daughters, Laurie and Sharon. At his request, his ashes will be scattered at sea. No services will be held. Published in The Monterey Herald on September 4, 2013

 

According to my records, Capt. Richardson was the CO Jun 67-July 69.

Sailor, Rest Your Oars.  God Bless and thank you for your service.

WWII Submarine Veteran Charlie Odom

Shipmates:

 

Regretfully we must report that WWII Submarine Veteran Charlie Odom departed on Eternal Patrol yesterday morning August 23rd.

At the age of 100, Charlie was the second oldest member of USSVI. He enlisted in 1934 and retired from active duty as an ENC (SS) in 1956 after serving for 22 yrs. Followed by 5+ years in the Fleet Reserve.

Charlie served on 6 boats – S1 SS-105, USS Snapper SS-185, USS Sargo SS-188, USS Billfish SS-286, USS Sabaco SS-302 and the USS Bang SS-385. In addition he served on the US Chanticleer ASR-7 and the USS Whipstock YO-49.

Services will be at 2:00 pm at the Click Funeral Home in Farragut, TN.

 

These old warriors are leaving us at an escalating pace, so greet and chat with one every time the opportunity arises.

 

“Sailor Rest Your Oar”, you have earned the privilege.

 

Japan Signs Surrender 1945

I continue to share stories from my book  Submarine Veterans Stories of World War II  and the Twin Lakes Submarine Veterans Inc., Base, Mountain Home, AR. with the public. Last week I spoke at the Baxter County Historical Society with one of the veterans, Melvin T. Smith who served in WWII.

 

 

 

Philip "Bucky" Philipps,Jr USS Seadragon

George -

My brother Bob asked that I let you know that our Dad passed away on Thursday, 8/29/13.  He fought the battle as best as he could be the big C won in the end. His obituary is at http://www.mcpeekhoekstra.com/fh/obituaries/obituary.cfm?o_id=2211727&fh_id=13361

 
Carol Philipps Zielinski