News From Fort Schuyler

October 14, 2000 - Volume 4, No. 32

EBB TIDE - This note from Maryknoll Father JIM HUVANE: "(Onetime member of the Class of '64.) I have just received word of the death of Dr. JOHN FOODY former Chairman of the Engineering Dept. at Fort Schuyler. He was a 'Legend In His Own Time' known affectionately as 'God' to many students in the 50's and 60's. He died on the 8th of October and is survived by his wife of 60+ years, Patricia, who worked in the Commandant's office for years, and was also a good friend to generations of Cadets: Mrs. John Foody - 750 North Ocean Blvd. - Pompano Beach - Florida 33062 - Tel: 954 942 3147."

According to the October 10 Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel obituary, Dr. Foody, who taught at Fort Schuyler from 1946 - 1974, died at the age of 87. A check of the college catalog showed that he became chairman of the Engineering Department in 1952, succeeding Professor FLOOD. The obituary noted that: "Under his leadership the SUNY Maritime College received its ECPD accreditation for the engineering program. In 1964 he received a visiting professorship to Egypt as a Fullbright Fellow. There he taught Mechanical Engineering courses in heat transfer and thermodynamics. He retired as Professor Emeritus from SUNY Maritime College in 1974." (For more information go to http://www.sun-sentinel.com Click on "local" news and then select "obituaries" from the menu on the left.)

PLAY BALL - The Maritime College Color Guard will perform at all home NY Yankee playoff games (and, of course, the World Series) so keep an eye on the screen for a glimpse of them prior to the first pitch. Earlier in the month, the Maritime College band marched in a prominent segment of the annual York City Columbus Day Parade down 5th Avenue.

ADMIRAL'S BALL - The 2001 version of this annual scholarship fund-raiser will take place at the New York Hilton on Saturday, March 31, so save the date. NFFS will announce co-honorees once they are confirmed.

SKURKA EARNS HIGHEST HONOR - The U. S. Navy's Military Sealift Command Distinguished Career Achievement Award was recently conferred on DON SKURKA, Class of 1980, Chief Engineer aboard the combat stores ship, USNS CONCORD, since 1992. According to a press release from the United States Transportation Command: "Those who have worked with Skurka credit him with mobilizing the engineering department and saving the government millions of dollars by employing 'on-the-spot engineering expertise' instead of waiting for a contractor. 'I cannot imagine where USNS CONCORD and I would be if I did not have Don on my team' said Capt ED NANARTOWICH, [Class of 1975], Master of USNS CONCORD." For details go to: http://www.transcom.mil/pa/body.cfm?relnumber=001002-2 (Thanks to PAUL VICINANZO, Class of 1982, CSX Lines Government Services, for the heads up on this important recognition for Don's work.)

BOOM TIMES - Sales of the dual format book "The Last of the Boom Ships" by JIM WHALEN, Class of 1962, seem to be doing well to judge from the interest it has piqued among Fort Schuyler graduates. For example, CONSTANTINE GEORGIOPOULOS, Class of 1958, writes: "I also sailed with American Export Lines to India and on the passenger ships CONSTITUTION, INDEPENDENCE and EXETER, and made the maiden voyage on the EXPORT BUYER." JOHN McLEAN, Class of 1965, writes: "I sailed in the time period mentioned - mid-60's and for American Export, so the subject is quite close to me. Incidentally, the NY Times this past Sunday [October 1] had their annual expanded Travel Section devoted to the cruise industry. One of the ships pictured was a former 1950-vintage American Export passenger ship - the CONSTITUTION, I believer (or it's the sistership INDEPENDENCE) which is still actively engaged cruising in the Hawaiian Islands. 50 years in service !!." KEN MURPHY, Class of 1962, opted for the electronic version of Jim's book, which is available as paperback or e-book at: http://www.1stbooks.com ($4.95 e-book, $9.95 paperback.) Ken writes: "Sailors love to read most any kind of high seas story and so I'm looking forward to reading Jim Whalen's book ....The whole process took me less than 30 minutes. I plan on reading it on the screen. Printing out is another option. You do need the Adobe Reader program. But most computer types have this program already."

MUSEUM RANKS IN COOL TOP 50 - Excerpts from "New York's 50 Best Museums for Cool Parents and their Kids," by Alfred Gingold and Helen Rogan (City & Co., $14) are contained in a recent "New York Bookshelf" column in the New York Times. Two museums are featured, the American Museum of Natural History and Fort Schuyler's own Maritime Industry Museum. Fort Schuyler's museum is described as follows: "A trip here is like a visit to the souvenir-filled attic of an eccentric seafaring uncle....The museum offers a comprehensive history of American ships and shipping.... Wherever you look, you'll see models, highly detailed replicas of all sorts of vessels, including Cleopatra's barge (complete with a tine queen of the Nile on deck), a couple of Chinese junks, a Spanish galleon with painted sails, and the doomed luxury liner ANDREA DORIA, with three swimming pools...On the second floor, New York parents will want to study the big (1 inch equals 50 feet) model of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, circa 1940-42. The model contains 273 buildings inside the yard's boundaries, 659 houses and churches outside, 46 naval vessels, 47 mobile cranes, 231 freight cars, and so on. Completion time ? Eight years." (New York Times, October 1, 2000, City Section, p.5.)

MOVIE TIME - Coincidental with the news that Professor FRED HESS recently marked his 80th birthday, the Luce Library added to its video collection the 1990 motion picture, "Big Bang ! - Sex, life and the cosmos." This quasi-documentary/feature film stars basketball player Daryl Dawkins, ex-gangster Tony Sirico, boxer Jose Torres, violinist Eugene Fodor, "The Professor", and others, all of whom give highly personal and revealing answers to such questions as: "How did the universe begin ? or "What is the human spirit ?" A review of the film in the May 11, 1990 Newsday notes that: "The first speaker, and the lynchpin of the enterprise, is astronomer Fred Hess, a former professor who must have ignited lecture halls with his ability to wed poetry and science. He opens with a bang, the biggest bang of all, the creation of the universe." Fred is then quoted: "So people themselves, all of their carbon and all of their oxygen, and all of their nitrogen and sulfur and silicon and phosphorous, all of the chemical elements that are within them, came from the stars. So in a sense, everything that we are, everything that we see, everything in this beautiful, wonder jewel of creation called planed Earth, is itself stardust." The reviewer finds the film "..a highly entertaining excursion for anyone anytime who is seeking a pictures of ourselves and our time." Video is available for 2-week loan to registered Luce Library patrons. It is also available for purchase from Fox Lorber Associates, (212) 532-3392.