News From Fort Schuyler

March 24, 2008 - Volume 8, No. 11

MARINE PILOTING PROFESSION CELEBRATION AND SILENT AUCTION - On Saturday, April 26th, the Maritime Industry Museum at Fort Schuyler will host its sixth annual party and silent auction. This year we are celebrating the rich history and bright future of the Marine Piloting Profession as we dedicate the museum's new piloting exhibit. Our program will feature a special presentation by Captain Andrew McGovern, President of the United New Jersey Sandy Hook Pilots Benevolent Association and Chairman of the NY/NJ Harbor Operations Committee. In addition we will pay tribute to Museum Director STAN BARTELS, Class of 1947, for his many years of dedicated service to the museum. Please plan on joining us for a pleasant afternoon at the museum for fun, friendship, and refreshments. We expect to have over 250 guests join us. [From an email sent by Museum Event Chair JOHN ARNTZEN, Class of 1985.]

This event takes place soon so please make your reservations and submit journal ad subscriptions by 12 April. Tickets run from $50 (individual) to $5,000 (sponsor) and journal ads from $250 to $1500. For full details, including a reservation/journal ad form, go to www.maritimeindustrymuseum.org or call the museum administrator, Ms. Pat Perez at 718 409-7218 (her email is maritimeindustry@sunymaritime.edu) Also, don't forget to let Pat know of any silent auction donations you or your firm wish to make. All for a good cause.

AUCTION IN ACTION - The Fall 2007/Winter 2008 museum newsletter, The Voyage Abstract, features an article, "Winner Takes to the Seas", by one of last year's silent auction bidders, WILLIAM SOKOL, Class of 1994. Bill successfully bid on a 7-day balcony-cabin cruise certificate for two and chose to sail on the FREEDOM OF THE SEAS. He took his 6-year old nephew along for the ride on an Eastern Caribbean cruise. It was a great experience for uncle and nephew. This is the kind of silent auction that is worth participating in!

PILOTS DURING 9/11 - The recent mention of the role of salvage personnel in the 9/11 response, prompted PAUL LOBO, Class of 1969, to write:"Let's not forget the Sandy Hook Pilots who were the operations center for 9/11 on the scene. There are quite a few Schuyler guys in with that bunch. If you look at the news footage you can see the pilot boat near the Battery."

EX-BARISTA ? Paul Lobo has "... retired after [piloting] 31 years on the San Francisco Bar and 6453 ships over the bar and under a lot of bridges!" Paul now spends his time in Palm Springs "...but we will be in Woods Hole when it gets too hot here." Paul added that other Schuylerites who pilot on the SF bar include BILL GREIG, Class of 1974 and BRUCE HORTON, Class of 1983.

LOOSE ENDS ON SUMMER CRUISES - "The mention of Irish pennants in the last issue reminded ROLAND PARENT, Class of 1968, that: "On my second class cruise (summer 1966) I was the cadet bosun of the watch (or bosun's mate, I don't remember which.) Commander LESTER DUTCHER [Class of 1949], was the Officer of the Watch, and, as you may have guessed, I was summoned to the bridge during the sunny afternoon watch by none other. When I got to the bridge, Dutcher handed me a pair of binoculars and told me to look up on the foremast and tell him what I saw wrong. I ran the binoculars up and down the mast quickly at first, then a little slower, trying to figure out what the heck he was talking about. When I said I saw nothing wrong or out of place, he said 'You're not looking hard enough. Don't you see any line out of place about ten feet above the cross tree?' I finally focused in on a little string or remnant of a rope yarn hanging off another larger line in the area he pointed out. 'Do you mean that little string, Commander Dutcher?' 'That, Mr. Parent, is an Irish pennant. It has no purpose there and I want you to get it down immediately.' With that, I scaled up the foremast about 50 feet above the deck to retrieve the offending 4 inch long string. True story."

SALVORS - An addition to the roster of Fort Schuyler salvors came from MAURICIO GARRIDO, Class of 1984. "One more salvor which we all forgot about [is] JIM CALHOUN, Class of 1967, who works for Bisso Marine Company. His father was also a well known salvor." [and Schuyler graduate?]

REACHING OUT THEN AND NOW - The e-mail formatted News from Fort Schuyler prompts OTTO LIEPIN, Cass of Oct. 1946, to marvel that: "This electronic age that we are living in is indeed a miracle and wonderment of my lifetime. When we were at the Fort from 1944 through 1946, we had several old Bell payphone booths in and around the Sally Port. When our girlfriends would call us (not too frequently), some watch-stander MUG would run through the living compartments in the old Fort, trying to find the cadet whom the phone call was for ' and by that time, our girlfriend would have run out of patience ' and hung up. So a hot date for the weekend was a 'goner.' So we kept the handwritten letter in the forefront of our communications and, by golly, a perfume laden letter from home was a heck of a lot more romantic than looking at a 'no smell' 11" x 15" screen. From the 'good old days.'"

PRACTICAL MARITIME ECONOMICS - The brochure about this 2-day course being taught in Dubai and London in April and May can be downloaded at www.dollship.com/Index.asp?Content=Presentations. The course will be chaired by FRED DOLL, Class of 1979.

FIGHTING 69th - Those who might have watched last week's St. Patrick's Day Parade in Manhattan may have noticed that it was led off by a contingent from the 69th Regiment - a long standing tradition." JIM YAHNER, Class of 1986, points out that "...the Maritime College Band marched in the St. Patrick's Day Parade for years at the head of the unit starting about 1984. The band would then go down to their Armory and perform the songs for the marchers. We could play 'The Gary Owen March' for those guys all night long. I am pretty sure the band still marches in the parade, but I am not sure if it is still with the Fighting 69th. [Anyone know?]

ROBERT BRANNIGAN, Class of 1953, writes: "The 69th Regiment monument at Gettysburg is one of the most beautiful I have seen. Of course it features the Regimental mascot, the Irish Wolfhound, giving rise to the Regimental motto, 'Gentle when stroked, fierce when provoked.'"

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Richard Corson - Forest Hills, NY

Latitude 40.716N Longitude 73.85W

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