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March 2014 Vol.18, Issue 2 Website: www.ussturner.org

Turner Times

NORFOLK 2014 Hello again Turner friends and ship-

mates – We have been busy working

on the planning for the 2014 Norfolk

Turner DDR834 annual reunion. We

last visited Norfolk in 2004 and it

was one of our most successful and

well attended reunions. Sincerely

hoping we can create that all over

again. On the back pages of this

newsletter you will find the reunion

information schedule. Please take the

time to read and fill out the registra-

tion form. Hope to see you all there.

Grant Wilcox – Turner Reunion

Organizer

2014 REUNION ISSUE

Submitted by Grant Wilcox

The reunion will start on Monday,

September 29th, at noon with the

hospitality room open. Registration

will be from 1:00 pm to 5:30 pm in

that same room. We will follow that

up with a cash bar reception from

5:30 pm to 6:00 pm. We will end

Monday with a welcome Dinner

Buffet.

On Tuesday, September 30th, the

registration room will be open from

8:30 am to 9:15 am. At 9:45 am

promptly, we will board the buses for

the Macarthur Memorial/Spirit of

Norfolk lunch tour. The tour ends at

2:30 pm and the registration will

again be open from 3:00 pm to 4:15

pm. Tuesday evening is on your

own. On Wednesday, October 1st,

we will board the buses at 10:15 am

for the Navy Base/Nauticus tour.

The tour ends at 4:15 pm. The eve-

ning and dinner are on your own

again.

Thursday, October 2nd, we will

open the day with a general mem-

bership meeting from 9:00 am to

11:00 am. You are then free to ex-

plore Norfolk on your own until

6:00 pm. We will begin the photo

session at 6:00 pm for the Memory

Book. From 7:00 pm to 7:30 pm,

we will have a cash bar reception.

Our banquet with entertainment will

begin at 7:30 pm. Friday, October

3rd, we have farewells and depar-

tures.

The Turner Reunion Committee

hopes that you plan to join us in

Norfolk in September-October.

Come and enjoy meeting old ship-

mates and making new friends.

The MacArthur Memorial is a

museum dedicated to presenting the

life and times of General of the

Army Douglas MacArthur. The mu-

seum features General and Mrs.

MacArthur’s crypts, nine galleries

of exhibits portraying the career of

one of America’s best known mili-

tary heroes, and a gift shop where

General MacArthur’s 1950 Chrysler

Imperial limousine is on display.

T h e S p i r i t o f N o r f o l k /

Entertainment Cruises

Enjoy Norfolk’s most vibrant and

entertaining dining cruise experience

sailing from downtown.

Nauticus, Naval History Museum,

and Battleship Wisconsin

Nauticus is Norfolk’s premier mari-

time science museum located on the

downtown Norfolk waterfront. Ex-

plore the power of the sea through a

digital high-definition movie on a

giant screen in the theater, touch a

live shark, take on America’s best

ship designers in a race to design

“Battleship X,” tour the Battleship

Wisconsin, one of the largest and last

battleships ever built by the U.S.

Navy.

What can you do at the Nauticus?

Navigate a tugboat down a busy

waterway and receive "real-time"

information on ships sailing past

Nauticus.

Continued on Page 3 Column 3

Spirit of Norfolk

2

Turner Times

FROM THE OF THE PREZ

The following items can be ordered from Carl Ackerman, 7436 Daisy Cir., Macungie, PA 18062, Ph: (610) 398-0145. All items are postpaid. Please make checks payable to Carl L. Ackerman. ►Up-to-date rosters — $5. ►Turner baseball caps embroidered with Turner logo — $18. ►Mesh polo shirts embroidered with Turner logo. Colors: Red, White or Navy Blue. Sizes M to XXL. All sizes come with a pocket — $45. Sizes 2XL to 3XL — $50. ►Sweat Shirts embroidered with Turner logo. Colors: Navy Blue or Gray. Sizes M to XXL — $50. Sizes 2XL to 3XL — $55. ►DVD of 1961 Med Cruise photos — $10.

►Bonded Leather 8 ½” X 11” Black

zippered portfolio: Outside front

cover silk-screened with our ship’s

logo and the printing:

“USS TURNER DD/DDR834”.

Interior Includes : 30 page 8 ½” X 11”

writing pad, Elastic pen loop, Card

holders, Mesh holder and calculator.

3 Interior pockets: 1 with a zipper and

1 expandable. Outside of portfolio is

zippered for security.

Price $20 total (while supplies last).

Ship’s

Store

Ship’s Store continued on

Column 2

FROM THE DESK OF THE

PREZ….

I am always puzzled and chagrinned

when I see the low turnout for our

annual ships reunion. We have a ros-

ter of over 1700 shipmates and our

attendance is about 2 to 3% of that

number. I assure you that if you

show up for one, you will want to

come back for more. Where else can

you sit around and share sea stories

with old shipmates, even some that

you didn’t know before?

As we look forward to our upcoming

reunion (9/29/14 – 10/2/14) in Nor-

folk, Virginia, some may wonder

how do all these activities come to-

gether? Permit me to explain. Our

reunions are set up and coordinated

with the Armed Forces Reunions,

Inc. Our loyal and dedicated ship-

mate, Grant Wilcox, deserves our

extreme gratitude for his efforts. In

fact, he has already locked in the

details for our 2015 reunion.

Why do I tell you all this? Well,

Grant has requested that, in accor-

dance with Navy tradition, we have a

change of command. He is ready to

step down and turn over the helm to

someone else. He deserves a rest.

Who will step forward?

With the widely diversified experi-

ences that our many shipmates must

have had after leaving the USS

Turner, there should be someone that

has the ability and the willingness to

coordinate these activities. If these

reunions are to continue, we need a

shipmate that will take on this re-

sponsibility. Are you the one? Can

you? Will you?

SEE YOU IN NORFOLK, Ernie

Loos

►USS Turner wallet top grain, soft

cowhide black leather trifold wallet.

Compact style wallet holds credit

cards, driver’s license and money.

Imprinted with “U.S. NAVY” / “USS

TURNER DD/DDR 834” gold letter-

ing on an inside panel. Supplied with

gift box. While supplies last. See

photo. Price $20.

Bonded Leather Portfolio

Ship’s Store continued from

Column 1

ATTENTION

ALL HANDS!

We need articles for the

newsletter!

Send your

USS Turner

remembrances to the

Editor

►Ship's patches: Both the Tiger and Double Eagle, 4" round with color em-broidery. Also official Navy patch just like on the ball caps. Blue/gold letter-ing of "USS Turner DD/DDR 834" around gray destroyer profile. 3"H x 5"W. Cost is $5 per patch.

Q. How many Admirals does it take to

screw in a light bulb? A. One; he just

holds onto the bulb and expects the

world to revolve around him.

He was such an egotist that he

joined the navy so the world could

see him.

3

Turner Times

Continued from Page 1 Column 3

Battleship Wisconsin

Examine the period from 1880

when the Navy began to recover

from a post-civil war decline, to

1907, when President Theodore

Roosevelt sent the Great White

Fleet around the world as an af-

firmation of American naval

strength.

Learn about NOAA's underwater

parks. Step inside a submersible

called The Clelia and take on the

role of a pilot or a NOAA

scientist.

Gaze upon Earth as you are sus-

pended in orbit 22,000 miles

above its surface with NOAA's

"Science On A Sphere".

Hunt bogeys and subs playing

computer simulation games. Get

inside everyday navy life by lis-

tening as navy personnel describe

their jobs.

Meet Bamboo Sharks, Coral Cat-

sharks, Epaulette Sharks and a

Shovelnose Guitarfish.

And more...

4

Turner Times

Email Received from Gregg Minter

on 12/21/2013 regarding his father

Charles H. Minter (52-55, GM3)

Good Evening Mr. Schaepe - I was

looking up information about my fa-

ther's ship. I found your newsletter

online. I noticed there is a section for

sailors that have passed away. I

wanted to inform you that my father

passed away in March of 2012 and

would like him to be added to a future

publication. He attended several of the

reunions over the years. He was very

proud of the time he served in the

Navy and aboard the USS Turner.

He is pictured on the far left and I be-

lieve this might have been in Spain.

Maybe if you publish this photo some-

one may recognize themselves. This

was taken in the 1950's.

Please let me know if you need any

additional information.

Thanks!

Gregg Minter

Kennesaw, GA

770-485-9439 (Note: Charles Minter was listed in the Final

Roll Call in the March 2012 Turner Times)

A Navy football player was almost

killed in a tragic horseback riding ac-

cident. He fell from the horse and was

nearly trampled to death.

Thank God the manager of the KMart

came out and unplugged it.

Email received from Nils

Ruckert on 1/31/2014

I learned this news just today

upon receiving the latest issue

of the Naval Academy Alumni

Magazine.

Ken served aboard the Turner

from September 1957 to June

1959 as an ensign/ l t

(jg). When I reported aboard

in August 1958 I was assigned

as 2nd division officer in the

gunnery department; he was

the department head and still

an ensign. He was an even-

keeled, sharp young offi-

cer. One of the first duties he

gave me was to go down into

the forward bowels of the ship

to inventory and clean out the

gunnery department store-

room. It was cramped and hot,

with no ventilation and no

room to stand – a good job for

a boot ensign! I held him in

the highest regard. I was sorry to see

him go and recall escorting him with

his bags off the ship when he left in

Mayport.

Despite trying, we never got him to a

reunion, even the one in nearby Vir-

ginia Beach in 1995. He seemed a

very private individual. The latest

address I had on him was 812 Lipton

Drive , Newport News, VA

23608. He retired as a commander.

I copied the below from the Internet

by goggling his name. The photo in

the attachment, from the Naval

Academy 1957 yearbook, more ac-

curately represents how I remember

him.

Nils

NEWPORT NEWS - Kenneth H.

Parcell, 82, passed away peacefully

at his residence on Friday, Novem-

ber 8, 2013. He graduated from the

U.S. Naval Academy in 1957 and

served in the Submarine Fleet

Letters to

the Editor

Jack Agrey Jr. 49 ICFA

Herm A. Ballew 66-68 SK3

Frank J. Bottorff Jr. 47 S1

Ralph E. Causley 60 RD3

Alden J. Dean 51 SA

Dodd, Joseph F 55-57 TE3

Edward A. Green 51-54 ET1

Richard H. Hertler 51-54 BT3

Kenneth W. Madden 47 SM3

Carl W. Madding 51 FN

Ken Parcell 57-59 LTJG

Bruce A. Patterson 46-48 S1

Blasé A. Scapanda 55 SN

Charles B. West 68-69 PN1

Jerry B. Willis 51 GM3

Robert J. Yorrie 45-46 COX

Continued on page 5 column 1

Final Roll Call Since our last issue we have learned that these

shipmates have answered the call of the Su-

preme Commander:

during his 26 years in the Navy. He

was a loving husband and wonderful

father to his family. Kenneth is sur-

vived by his wife of 56 years, Marion

Parcell, and his 3 children, Michael

Parcell, Paris Parcell, and Scott Parcell

and his wife, Dorothy. A Graveside

Service will be held at Arlington Na-

tional Cemetery at a later date. Ar-

rangements are by Weymouth Funeral

Home.

Kenneth Howard Parcell

Also see photo on Page 7

5

Turner Times

Email received from Arlene M.

Lord on 2/7/2014 on her father’s

uncle— John Bankowski

Hello,

I’ve been doing some research on my

family and came across some old

newspaper clippings about the Turner

explosion that my father had

kept. The clippings probably come

from a New Jersey newspaper. My

f a t h e r ’ s u n c l e - J o h n -

Bankowski (#2146788) was on the

Turner when it exploded and he is

pictured in both and named in the

caption of one photo. In this photo,

my dad placed an X on him to iden-

tify him. The last is a snippet of the

newspaper article that was attached

to the newspaper photos. I found an

Ancestry.com reference to him on

Navy Muster Rolls- he was appar-

ently assigned to the Turner in April

of 1943. When I was looking

through the roster of men who had

served on the ship, I did not see his

name listed. Perhaps, he was only

temporarily assigned to the ship, but

he was a survivor. I thought you

might be interested in seeing the clip-

pings attached. John Bankowski

died on February 7, 1983 in Hazlet,

Monmouth County, New Jersey. Arlene M. Lord 2/1/06

Continued on Page 6 Column 1

Continued from page 4 column 3

Continued at bottom of Column 2

Continued from Column 1

A letter from Rame F. Moody, 48-52

RM3, COM Div, dated 2/1/06

385 Chestnut Road

Big Sandy, Texas 75755

Dear Turner Ex-Shipmates,

Whoever came up with the idea for a

section in the "Times" called “Our

Turner Times (What We Remember

The Turner was a sometime impor-

tant part of the U. S. Sixth Fleet,

which fleet was always "looking for a

home". The Turner even broke

ground at least once by visiting a

port in Spain (can't remember its

name) - the first American warship

there since the Spanish Civil

War" (or so the rumor in the "radio

shack" had it). Francisco Franco still

ruled Spain during our 195? visit,

although he certainly had Spanish

enemies. The "Shack" rumor was that

a police guard existed between the

seaport and Madrid.

We (the Turner) opened our gangway

to a long line of visitors. I remember

the line going by the open "shack"

door. Seeing me on watch some

Spaniards laughed and commented

on my too serious demeanor (I took

high school Spanish and understood

that much). Probably best I didn't

understand all of it. As I remember

prostitution was legal in Spain, so the

"rest" of the crew enjoyed our visit (I

think). But I do know Spain required

frequent medical exams for them,

which may have helped prevent some

of the terrible prostitute sights you

could see in many Italian ports

(remember?). Those poor, too eld-

erly, prostitutes in Naples, etc., still

bother my sensibilities. They could

not attract customers, but still needed

income. Do you ever wonder what

happened to those poor, diseased

women? Hope not. I sometimes think

Moody is an adjective as much as a

noun. God rest their once miserable

souls.

Do you remember our 1951 (?) jour-

ney up the Adriatic Sea? I was still in

radar and on the P.P.I. (?) scope dur-

ing "Combat", and I remember the

radar indication of a periscope (of a

Russian sub?) that followed us—

probably from its secret base in Alba-

nia (then the most Communist nation

in Europe).

About Our Time on Board)” was

thinking right because the very title

makes you "remember" things you

had not thought about for a long

time (too long for some of us, eh

what?) Thanks for your

“brightness” and hard work.

Continued at top of Column 2

Continued on Column 3

6

Turner Times

I got in trouble in 1953 or 1954 by

asking, in class, my ex-Navy Intelli-

gence professor (my Geo-Politics pro-

fessor at North Texas State Univer-

sity) if the Russians still had their sub

base in Albania. He lectured me se-

verely for asking the question! Re-

member the World War II and Cold

War days when "loose lips, could sink

ships" (or some too serious people

thought). (But 1953 wasn't 1943 al-

though some people thought so).

However, I do still feel tense about

talking about some things I would like

to know more about.

And tenseness then wasn't just Capi-

talism vs. Communism. That same

trip, above, saw the Turner tie up at

Trieste (then Italy or Yugoslavia?).

They were fussing about it. I remem-

ber broken glass falling around me

from a bomb set off one night by one

"nationalist" side or the other while I

was walking on a downtown Trieste

Street. I’m not sure why we were sent

into such a contested area. Of course,

today's Mid-east stuff makes that con-

flict between those "Balkan" nations

seem mild.

Our shore fire control team, later on,

went into the nearby mountains for

training--I got to enjoy some beautiful

scenery. It was far from the third

wave of a marine invasion (my train-

ing), but it was much more enjoyable.

The Turner and her crew were truly

lucky in many ways. After my enlist-

ment, the Turner's Ackerman proba-

bly took my place as our ship's shore

fire controller—the Korean War

lasted past 1952. Another memory we

radiomen have of those Cold War

days was the difficulty we had hearing

our "Fox broadcasts" (in Morse Code)

while in the Mediterranean.

The Communists would set up trans­

mitters sending out all types of inter-

ference (bird calls, etc.) on our Port

Lyahtey (now Kenitra) (in then

French Morocco) frequencies. The

messages were important, so we had

to copy them-- but it sometimes be-

came very difficult (especially with

coded messages with their five letter

non-sense make-up where you could

not use your imagination). Since the

Turner was division flag ship, we

radiomen tried, and mostly suc-

ceeded, in getting our messages—

but it wasn't always easy, but always

nerve wracking.

No one wanted to hear an excuse,

even though someone had been very

innovative in "noise" production.

Some other quick "memories” then I

will shut up for a while.

Our small group visit to an Ital-

ian Alps Monastery where we

were necessarily creating an

outdoor toilet for ourselves

along the monastery trail just as

a group of black hooded young

nuns came by (we took it much

harder than they did).

A Turner crew member hit on

the head with a beer bottle in

Santiago, Cuba, (Batista) and

him stretched out on the offi-

cers' mess table for stitches

while some of us watched.

Storms causing our narrow ship

to roll as well as pitch while we

were off-duty (on duty was

worse).

People tried to sleep while

roped down in our rack to keep

from rolling out (who put me in

that top rack?) into smelly vomit

from sick sailors not physically

or mentally able to clean the

vomit from the deck.

Being given a MI rifle (my 45th

Infantry training?) in Turkey

and told to guard the fantail

area—my counterpart the next

night did actually fire the gun at

something or someone.

The Korean War radiomen

shortages causing pitiful World

War II reserves being recalled

and losing their businesses.

The Newport jail one night be-

cause I, without a driver's license,

... was driving the wrong way on

one of Newport's many one-way

streets. The judge released me the

next morning following my

"prospective second good conduct

medal" appeal).

My trip down on a sub which the

Turner then hunted down and ac-

tually dropped objects directly on

the sub's hull 500 feet down.

I had volunteered for sub duty and

passed their physical but would

have had to agree to an extension

of my enlistment. I … was too

interested in a long canoe trip and

college.

Sure sad to learn about our many

Turner friends and shipmates dying,

especially an old Indian friend

from Oklahoma (Billy Calvert, RD, 48

-50—a good and capable man) plus

the Montana Ward brothers.

By the way, I was watching TV late at

night in 1953 (?) when the station

closed down for the day—and sud-

denly there was the Turner—old 834-

on the TV screen. Accompanied by

patriotic music, the Turner came slic-

ing through the Black Sea exit

(Bosporus or Dardanelles) waters (on

the way to the Mediterranean?). The

TV announcer identified her as the

Turner with some description of her

mission—can't remember.

Did any of you ever see the film of the

Turner in those dangerous Cold War

waters? It was on a national TV re-

peatable film furnished to the Dallas

TV station. Some of you guys

were on national TV and did not even

know it! You all looked good!

Good Luck and Best Wishes to you

and the Turner spirit. You all and the

Turner were good for our country –

we need more of both of you.

Sincerely,

Rame Moody

Continued from Page 5 Column 3

7

Our Turner Times What we remember about our time on board

Turner Times

Hurricane Carol August 31, 1954

How many remember that morning? I

was in the first division aboard the

Turner. On the morning my wife Bar-

bara drove me to the pier to catch the

motor launch, we noticed that the water

was like a mirror, not a tiny wrinkle

anywhere.

Barbara and I lived in an apartment on

Broadway; I could spend two out of

three nights there. Within two hours

there were fifty foot waves, with bldgs.,

cars, etc. in the bay. The Turner was

anchor-chained to a buoy, with another

destroyer tied alongside. We were tak-

ing heavy damage from banging to-

gether and the deck crew was unable to

release the lines tying the two ships

together.

My sea detail for getting underway was

to relay orders from the Captain via

head phones to Chief Boatswain Mate

Rainey, who was a real tough bird. The

Captain said to have the deck crew cut

the lines with an axe. This was like the

Chief cutting his own juggler vein. He

screamed “WHAT!” I repeated the or-

der from the bridge and the Chief then

gave the order. With over 100 mph

winds, we couldn’t get a boat in the wa-

ter to release the anchor chain from the

buoy. The Captain’s next order was to

release the anchor chain; the Chief is-

sued another “WHAT!” But then gave

the order and we steamed into the

Atlantic.

So I am at sea worrying about Barbara

on the 3rd floor of our apartment and she

is worried about me on the Turner. We

spent several days at sea. I can’t believe

the US Navy didn’t have any advance

warning of a hurricane. Our ship ended

up in dry dock in New York for repairs.

My two best buddies, Rick Johnson and

Mike Mania could probably add a lot to

this story.

Donald Becker SN 53-54

117 E. Brown Street

Divernon, IL 62530

The Annapolis grad walked into the

bar, sat down and said, "Hey barkeep,

you hear the joke about the four West

Point players in a farmhouse?" Chairs

scraped behind him, and four of the

biggest, meanest guys in the bar stood

up.

"We played for Army. You sure you

wanna tell that joke?" The Navy grad

smirked in disbelief and said, "What,

and have to explain it four times?"

Submitted by Don Becker

‘What were you in civilian life,

sailor?’ ‘Happy, sir.’ .

The Chief Bos'n's daily routine

upon arising is to pull a note from

his locker and carefully read

it. Naturally the crew wonders

what could be in that note that re-

quires his daily attention. Finally

the Bos'n passes away and upon

retrieving the note from his locker,

the crew reads "I must remember

this. Port is to my left and Star-

board is to my right."

Standing: John DeVries, Bill Toohey, Tom Tierney, Paul Dodson, Ken Parcell

Kneeling: Nils Rueckert, Bill Miller

Ken Parcell—USS Turner off Beirut 1958

U.S.S. Turner Reunion Association

49 Birch Hill Drive

Poughkeepsie, NY 12603-6139

Website http://www.ussturner.org

Address Service Requested FIRST CLASS MAIL

MOVED ???? — If you have moved, plan to do so, changed your telephone number, e-mail address or have any change of

status, please contact Dave Bodendorf at 49 Birch Hill Drive, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603-6139, Phone: (845) 452-2428, or

email: bode10@aol.com Stay in touch!!

ASSOCIATION DUES — Although dues are voluntary, we could use your help. Look at your mailing label. If "Dues Paid"

appears by your name, your dues are paid. If not, and you want to pay them, send a $20 check, payable to the USS Turner

Reunion Association to our Treasurer, Joe Stepanek, 9372 Duff Ct, Ellicott City, MD 21042. Please remember that annual

dues cover the "year" between reunions and NOT a calendar year. (Dues paid after March 15, 2014 are not reflected on the

label) The 2014 reunion will be held in Norfolk, Virginia on September 29th through October 2nd, 2014.

See you in Norfolk.

Each mailing we have several pieces returned because shipmates do not let us know they have moved. For our last

mailing, a number of shipmates did not inform us of their new addresses. This creates unnecessary expenses for our

organization during a period of time when our active membership is gradually declining as well as the percentage of

dues paying shipmates. If you are moving or have recently moved, PLEASE drop us a line, call or email us with your

new information so we don't lose you again!!

Roster Update

As of this mailing,

the Turner

Association roster

totals 1,734

located shipmates

and associate

members.

The U. S .S. Turner Reunion Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to locating

and keeping us in contact with our former shipmates. The Association Officers are:

The Turner Times is published periodically, by the dedicated staff members shown below,

to help communicate Association news and facilitate the sharing of memories. Sugges-

tions and items of interest can be submitted to either of us. Originals will be returned, if

requested.

Editor/Publisher Staff Coordinator

Bill Schaepe ('58-'60) Jim Carisle (‘62-’68)

PO Box 2311 4 Carr Ln

Lenox, MA 01240 Palm Coast, FL 32137

413-637-8242 386-225-4163

wschaepe@earthlink.net key-west1962@hotmail.com

President Ernie Loos (‘55-’57) Secretary Grant Wilcox ('62-'63)

1st Vice President Joe Jacobs (’62-’64) Membership Dave Bodendorf ('57-'59)

2nd Vice President James Zeller (‘66-69) Treasurer Joe Stepanek ('57-'60)

Webmaster Bill Schaepe ('58-'60) Chaplain Carl Ackerman ('51-'55)