Official Newsletter of USS Pawcatuck AO-108

Volume 22 Issue 1

Much of the eastern United States has thus far experienced a very cold winter, with New England receiving record breaking amounts of snow, but according to the groundhog’s forecast we should start to see warmer weather in a few weeks. Our 23rd USS Pawcatuck reunion is in Charleston, South Carolina this year. The reunion begins on Sunday, 3 May and continues through breakfast on Wednesday, 6 May. Charleston in mid-spring promises to be a warm and beauti-ful place. Premier Reunion Services has ar-ranged for us to stay at the Radisson Ho-tel Charleston Airport. Each day there is an optional tour available. Monday’s tour includes a visit to the Warren Lasche Center where the Hunley, the Confeder-ate submarine which was found in 1995, is being preserved. Afterwards there is a guided tour of Charleston and an oppor-tunity to have lunch and visit the shops in Market Square. Tuesday’s tour will take us to Patriots Point, the world largest maritime museum, and lunch will be aboard the USS Yorktown CV-10 in the CPO mess. That afternoon we will be touring Boone Hall, a working plantation founded in 1681.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Late Tuesday afternoon we will have our annual business meeting followed by a social hour, banquet, and of course the ever popular auction to raise money for the USS Pawcatuck Scholarship Fund. Any relative of a Pawcatuck crew member in college or applying to college, is eligible to apply for a scholarship, and I urge them to do so. The scholarship application is in this issue of the newsletter. There is still plenty of time to contact an old shipmate and encourage him to join us. Last year we had several first timers attend with their spouses. After the scholarship auction, I asked each one if they enjoyed the reunion and I received a positive re-sponse from each one. Come join us! You will be welcomed by all. Reunion packets are available on line at http://www.mlrsinc.com/pawcatuck/ or by calling 1-828-256-6008. If you have a suggestion or an idea to share as to how to improve the reunion experience, please do not hesitate to con-tact me. I am looking forward to seeing you in Charleston! Jim Fortune 410-329-8154 JimFortune43@gmail.com

March 2015

Pawcatuck Pilot

2015 USS PAWCATUCK

REUNION

Sun. May 3 - Wed. May 6

CHARLESTON, SC

Radisson Hotel

The Pawcatuck Pilot is Published by: Premier Reunion Services PO Box 11438 Hickory, NC 28603 828-256-6008 (voice) 828-256-6559 (fax) Dina@mlrsinc.com Karen@mlrsinc.com www.mlrsinc.com/pawcatuck “Our Reunions Work So You Don't Have To”

DON’T FORGET TO BRING AN ITEM FOR

THE ACUTION TO THE REUNION!

Page 2 Volume 22 Issue 1

9 MARCH 2015 Shipmates, Another year and almost time for another ship reunion. Sorry but this year Jan and I will not be able to attend. This would have been my 19th reunion. My first was in 1997, and have been there every year since. I want to thank all of you who have come to the reunions over those years. It has been a pleasure to have been your Reunion Coordi-nator for 12 of those years. Many things were accomplished during those 12 years, and I enjoyed every reunion. To those shipmates who were on the committee while I was the coordinator, I thank you for all your help. To Mark McPherson who was my assistant and chaplain and did our memorial service, a big thanks. But now this is to advise you that Jan and I will not be able to attend this year’s reunion. The cost be-tween flying and the cost of the re-union is out of reach. So I say thanks again to all and I hope you have a great time this year in Charleston, S.C. Maybe next year we might come to New Orleans. Good by and take care. David Willis Past reunion coordinator for the USS PAWCATUCK AO-108

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Pope his traditional three cheers.” After a dumb silence I had to ask the captain what this was. He told me that back in WWI, a naval party from a destroyer had given the Pope three cheers after an audience; since that time each Pope has come to expect three cheers from any U.S. Naval Par-ty. We had our audience with Pope Pius XII, who gave us a little talk in excellent English and we gave him his three cheers. In the same telephone conversa-tion with the captain at the embassy, he “invited” us to come to the 4th of July open house party at the embas-sy. My thought was, we wanted to see Rome, we did not want to go to a par-ty. I thanked the captain for his invita-tion and pointed out that while the enlisted men were in whites, the offic-ers were in dress khaki and not dressed for any formalities. Following another period of silence, I realized that the “invitation” was an order when the captain said, “Navy khaki is better looking than Army khaki anyhow, you all be there!” I do not have to tell you that we went, but I must tell you we enjoyed it and the captain and Ambassador Claire Booth Luce were pleased that the Naval representation at the party was comparable to that of the Army. I tell my friends, “If you have to choose between Paris and Rome, don’t give Paris a second thought. See Rome!” This article appeared in the Septem-ber 1997 issue of MILITARY and was submitted by its author, Frank B. Turberville, Jr.

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THREE CHEERS FOR THE NAVY BY FRANK B.TURBERVILLE, JR.

The USS Pawcatuck (AO-108) was a T3 class tanker and at the time of the Korean War when I served on her (22 months in 1952-53), she served alternate tours with the Atlantic Ser-vice Force and the Sixth Fleet in the “Med.” This picture was taken in Naples on 4 July 1952. (The photo described is not available. If you have this photo, we would love to have it for the next issue.) She is all decked out in “full dress” with all flags flying in celebra-tion of the 4th of July. You can see Mount Vesuvius in the background with the eastern suburbs of Naples at her stern. Old Naples and the port area are off the picture to your left and Sorrento and “Isola di Capri” are off the picture to your right. I happened to be away from the ship that weekend. A lieutenant and I had taken a group of about 25 men on a trip to Rome. (It was my first trip there.) We went by VW bus, arriving in Rome in the early afternoon on 2 July. On arriving at our small hotel out-side the walls of old Rome, I called the American Embassy, asking for the Naval attache, to whom I reported our presence, where we were staying, the number of men in our group, the ship we were from and where it was at the time. Since many of the guys with us were Catholic, I asked for assistance in getting us an audience with the Pope. The attache, a captain, advised he would make a request to the Cath-olic American Club and call me back. On calling me back, he advised me that we had been given an audience for 11 a.m. the next morning. He also told me, “Be sure the men give the

MAIL CALL

Financial Statement Balance after 12/14 $342.00

Received since 12/14 $5.00 Available for 03/15 $347.00 Funds used for 03/15 issue $193.60 Balance for 03/15 issue $153.40 Contributions for the newsletter should be sent to Premier Reunion

Services using the enclosed pre-addressed envelope. The Pilot is mailed only to those who requested a paper copy and do not have e-mail.

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Glenn Sherwood gsherwood@cox.net

Lawrence Neal

ljn0184@gmail.com

Frederick Hirtle fhirtle@yahoo.com

William Cox

(1946)S1/c Navigation (1947)9027 N 78th St

Tampa, FL 33637 813-988-6675

billcox378@gmail.com ___________

stand electricians mates from the Pawcatuck.” (I was an electricians mate on that very same ship.) My answer. “I hear they are a pretty sorry lot.” Next words, his, “The worst of all is any 2/C EM aboard the Paw-catuck.” (It so happens by an odd set of circumstances that description fit me.) Now this badgering had been going on for about 30 minutes and I was looking for a way to defuse it, preferably an escape route. He was standing to my left and I had slightly turned my head to the right looking for a safe exit. There was no one up there but us and his shipmates. Then out of the corner of my eye my pe-ripheral vision caught his haymaker coming at me. I turned my head and ducked in the process, raising my left shoulder up. The blow glanced off my left shoulder knocking me off balance, off my perch and over the back of the bench. I landed on all fours, my hand coming to rest on a 6 ft. piece of 1 inch water pipe, which I supposed was left over from the maintenance work that day. When I stood up, this pipe was behind the bench and out of view. This guy had the guts to yell at his shipmates that I had made disparag-ing remarks about his lineage and ethnic background. Now I had been trying my best to avoid any kind of confrontation, but it was heading to-ward me in the form of about a half dozen of his followers looking for an excuse to pound on someone. I knew from school days that when you are the new kid, especially from out of town as I often was, being a service brat, that you are certain to be chal-lenged by the dominant (Alpha male) bully and his cohorts. The only an-swer to this dilemma is to take out the biggest, meanest of the lot and make him scream. The rest in fashion true to their mettle will scatter like quail, every spineless one for himself. When they got close enough that I thought I couldn’t miss, I brought that pipe up and with all my strength took a swing, would have done Babe Ruth proud, except for parting some hair as they ducked. I missed! My chief tormentor had gone down on his right

(Continued on page 4)

WELCOME MAT The following shipmates have been located recently. Welcome aboard. We hope to see you at the reunion and that you will take an active part in the association. We welcome:

TAPS The Pawcatuck Pilot has learned of the following deaths since the last newsletter. Our deepest sympathy goes to the families and friends of the deceased. Anyone who knows or learns of a shipmate’s death, you are requested to notify the newsletter so that person can be listed in TAPS and also on the Honor Roll at the next reunion.

Edward Padin (1971-72) LTJG

Date of death not reported

Keith Mumby (1953-55) LTJG

Died March 20, 2014

Jack Sturgeon (1969-70) DCCM Died July 2, 2014

William Kulhamer

(1948-51) EM3 Date of death not reported

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MEMOIRS OF A SNIPE ABOARD USS PAWCATUCK AO 108 1945 TO 1950

Continued from 12/14:

Even minding your own busi-ness, you can get in trouble.

Not so a year or two earlier. While on liberty in Baltimore, I had taken a walk up to a park that was several hundred feet above the harbor. It was a nice place to view the ships, the town, and surrounding area. There were some concrete benches scat-tered about, and I parked myself on top of one of these, my feet on the seat and my rear end on the top of the back rest, kind of like sitting on the hand rails aboard a ship. They had been doing some maintenance work on the sprinklers and there was

quite a bit of dirt and mud around, a good deal of it on the park benches, hence my choice of perches. There were perhaps a dozen or so sailors from other ships, mostly talk-ing to some girls passing by, and once in a while, a civilian walking a dog would go through. I was just en-joying being off the ship and minding my own business, when this seaman from another ship wandered over and started a conversation, and it went like this: “You know, of all the people in the world I can’t stand, it’s some-one off the Pawcatuck.” (My ship, of course, and my answer was, “As a lot, there is something to be desired.”) Next words. His. “I especially can’t

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The PAWCAUCK PILOT is the official publication of the USS PAW-CATUCK AO-108 Association. It will be published quarterly in March, June and December, subject to receiving sufficient funding. The Newsletter is funded by voluntary contributions from the membership. All members are encouraged to support the voice of the PAWCATUCK. A financial statement appears in each issue of the newsletter. The newsletter is intended to be a vehicle for the members to express

STATEMENT OF PUBLICATION

knee, and I, bent on destruction and with adrenalin still flowing, leaped over the bench, intent on administer-ing the “coup de grace.” About the same time, he regained his feet and headed off in the opposite direction of his brave followers. Boy, could this guy run! I was trying to catch up to him, but then I didn’t have an enraged person with a 6 ft. pipe, who was bent

(Continued from page 3) on my destruction after me. I drew back my arm, and with every thing I had, lunged forward and hurled this pipe at him, javelin like, and hit him right between the shoulder blades. He went down like he had been pole-axed. I picked up the pipe, rolled him over and had a mind to drive this through his throat. I was still trem-bling, but fortunately had burned up most of what was driving me, so I in-formed him that because of witness-

opinions, make suggestions and es-pecially share experiences. Unless otherwise stated, the views and opinions printed in the newsletter are those of the article’s writer, and do not necessarily repre-sent the opinion of the Association leadership or the Editor of the News-letter. All letters and stories submitted will be considered for publication, ex-cept unsigned letters will not be pub-lished. Letters requesting the writer’s name be withheld will be honored, but

es, he was spared, but sometime, somewhere in the future he was going to walk around a corner and I’d be there, waiting to fall down on him. I never saw him again and nev-er looked for him, but I hoped I had given him something to think about the rest of his life; like never pick a fight, especially with strangers, and never, never enrage or tease a cor-nered animal.

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published on a space available ba-sis. Signed letters with no restrictions will be given priority. Letters demeaning to another shipmate will not be printed; letters espousing a political position will not be printed. The editor reserves the right to edit letters to conform to space limi-tations and grammar. You are encouraged to actively participate in the newsletter family by submitting your stories and sugges-tions.

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Taken from Spring-Summer 1952 Cruise Journal USS Pawcatuck DECK FORCE

FIRST DIVISION Left to Right: D.L. Wofford, SN; H.A. Wegener, BM3; A. Izquierdo, SN; R.A. Nenow, BMC; LT P.S. Stuart, Jr.; LT G.P. Robin-son; ENS W.H. Nichols; E.L. Tressler, SN; W.E. Woolard, SN; A. Wells, Jr., SA. 2nd Row; W.W. Haataja, SN; W.C. Fisher, BM3; J.A. Lassiter, BM1; H.J. Wray, SN; G.W. Gordon, SN; W.L. Rau, SN, J.E. Russell, SN; C.J. Livecchia, SN; D.S. Weaver, SN; A.J. Vayda, SN; R.J. Dowd, SN; Last row: J. Wisnewski, SN; R.M. Cox, SA; J. Blau, SN; G.K. Hambly, SN; C.F. Fager, Jr., SN; B. M. Gregory, SN; M.M. Whitfield, SN; G.H. Vail, SN; R.T. Berglund, SN.

USS Pawcatuck Scholarship Fund Application

Last Name, First Name, Middle Initial Social Security Number Date

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

College/University Attending School Street Address City, State, Zip School Phone (Area Code)

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Home Street Address City, State, Zip E-mail Address Phone (Area Code)

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Student Age: Date of Birth (mm/dd/yyyy) Sex: Male ______

__________________________________________________ Female _____

Cumulative GPA (or High Major Field of Study Expected Date of Graduation

School GPA if a Freshman)

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Educational Goals:

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Educational Expenses: Tuition: $ Room/Meals: $ Text Materials : $

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Other Grants /Scholarships (Source & Amount)

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

List any academic awards you have received over the past three years.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

List any school or community activities in which you have been involved during the past three years.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

To Student: Please complete the following information based on the current school year. All applicants must be full-time stu-dents enrolled at a two or four year or post graduate institution to be eligible. Deadline for submission of this application, must be postmarked by 15 April for the year applying.

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Describe the impact you believe this scholarship will have on you.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Additional sheets may be attached as required.

Application Certification and Agreement:

If I am awarded a scholarship award, I acknowledge my responsibility to notify the Scholarship if I fail to satis-factorily complete a school term for which I received an scholarship award, or of other changes in my educa-tional or financial status as described in this application.

I hereby certify the information herein is correct and complete:

Applicants Signature:____________________________________________________ Date:__________________

Relation to Sponsor:_____________________________________________________

Sponsors Endorsement:

I hereby certify the information herein is correct and complete:

Sponsors Signature:_____________________________________________________ Date:___________________

Thank you for your application.

Criteria for the USS Pawcatuck Scholarship Revised: 14 May 2011

1. Must be a descendant or dependent of a former US Navy or Military Sealift Command Pawcatuck Crew Member. 2. Must be enrolled or accepted in a two or four year accredited college, technical school/institute or graduate program. 3. Complete an application. Please print using blue or black ink. Scholarship Application Forms may be obtained from:

Pawcatuck Scholarship c/o Margaret Roskoph 1120 Garfield Avenue Cherry Hill, NJ 08002-1056

e-mail: mroskoph@comcast.net

4. Students must have a hard copy of their Official Transcripts sent from their high school, college, technical school/institute or graduate program. 5. Application must be signed by the Sponsor. 6. Transcripts and applications must be postmarked by 15 April of the year applying. Send to:

Pawcatuck Scholarship c/o Margaret Roskoph 1120 Garfield Avenue Cherry Hill, NJ 08002-1056

7. Amount and number of Scholarships awarded will be based on available funds.