News From Fort Schuyler

March 31, 2008 - Volume 8, No. 12

AND THE BAND PLAYS ON - Yes, the Maritime College Regimental Band still participates in the St. Patrick's Day Parades in NYC. WALTER NADOLNY, Class of 1978, writes: "I have led the band in the last 2 St. Pat's parades. I can assure you that we are the band for the Fighting 69th. Last year the brigade commander requested several of the division's songs..... they are now firmly ensconced in our play list. As noted we do "Gary Owen" as well as their brigade song "Minstrel Boy." Both were well received. This year we stopped in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral so the Cardinal could bless their divisional colors... to the band playing "Minstrel Boy." [A request is in for a YouTube link to a Regimental Band performance.]

Walter teaches in the Maritime Transportation Department at Fort Schuyler. 'Semi-drafted' as Music Director, he serves as contact for the college's regimental band, choir, jazz group and brass quintet. An accomplished orchestral brass musician (tenor and bass trombone and trumpet) Walter opted for Schuyler over the Hartford Conservatory . He attributes his musicianship to "Practice, practice, practice and some great teachers along the way. When I play in orchestras I am always asked what music school I went to. My reply is 'Maritime'. The response is always a puzzled look. Since I graduated in '78 my night job has been as a classical musician. I am primarily an orchestral player, but have done Broadway touring, quintet and ensemble work, and big bands between ships and shore jobs. When shipping got very bad in the 80's I paid my mortgage and fed by kids playing music."

'TWAS A DARK AND VERY STORMY NIGHT - 'In Peril: A Daring Decision, a Captain's Resolve, and the Salvage that Made History' (2003), written by Capt. Skip Strong and Twain Braden recounts the story of how the fully laden 688' Keystone Shipping tanker, CHERRY VALLEY, saved a tug and its tow, a $30 million NASA space shuttle external engine, from disaster during Tropical Storm Gordon in 1994.(This is the same storm that stranded the Turkish freighter, FIRAT, on the beach at Fort Lauderdale.) Chief Mate CARL GABRIELSSON, Class of 1983, was one of the leading participants in this feat of seamanship, Strong writes that Gabrielsson "...has good rapport with the crew, and he is known for his steady manner." The salvage claim case was led by a Maritime College graduate, New Orleans-based admiralty lawyer HUGH STRAUB, Class of 1969, "...an articulate, barrel-chested attorney in his middle years - in the prime of his lawyering life...:" The 1996 court case resulted in the payout of the largest salvage award in U.S. history to Keystone Shipping and the tanker's crew - $4.125 million.

The book contains numerous references to Fort Schuyler. For example. "Fort Schuyler turns out well-trained officers, but with none of the pomp of King's Point... Fort Schuyler, while a good school, is grittier, more 'New York' than North Shore Long Island. In the words on one of Fort Schuyler's alumni who is also a faculty member, 'At Fort Schuyler, even though you get the same degree and license as at Kings Point, you get a chance to be a mug. You get dirty hands.'" Other graduates mentioned in the book included ART BJORKNER, Class of 1962 (Keystone Shipping Manager) and MAURICIO GARRIDO, Class of 1984. [Note: The headline for this item, 'TWAS A DARK AND VERY STORMY NIGHT, comes from the text of the 1998 salvage award appeal (www.safesea.com/boating_info/salvage/salvage_PDFs/margate.pdf) - which is very readable and lively for a court decision.

MARITIME EDUCATION IN THE U.S. - The March 2008 edition of the Marine Engineering Log features an article by ARTHUR SULZER, Class of 1984, "A New Generation of Mariners: Where will we find them ?" (www.marinelog.com) beginning on page 27. Besides covering state, federal and union education, this article also provides a fascinating survey of what is happening on the primary and secondary school levels - following up on the results of a 2001 MARAD conference aimed at increasing public education and awareness of the maritime industry. Art details various classifications and types of programs which now feature maritime education at schools throughout the country. For example, did you now that there is a now New York Harbor School in Brooklyn (www.newyorkharborschool.org) and that SUNY Maritime College is one of this small Brooklyn-based high school's partner organizations? Many thanks to ROD McFADDEN, Class of 1975, for the heads up about this article.

BIGGER THAN A BREAD BOX - Take a look at these statistics for the EMMA MAERSK, a truly big ship. She carries 15,000 containers, has a beam of 184 feet, length of 1302 feet, a 109,000 HP engine, and a cruising speed of more than 25 knots- all with a crew of 13. Constructed at the Odense Steel Shipyard in Denmark, a regular tour destinations when T.S. EMPIRE STATE cadets visit Copenhagen on the summer sea term, the EMMA MAERSK left for her maiden voyage in September 2006. (www.maerskline.com and www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oRlthTwEEM) Of course, the 'gee whiz' factor is also balanced by fact that ships like EMMA MAERSK embody a lot of the concerns about trade, environment, and jobs. For instance, according to Wikipedia, on her return voyage from the UK to China, her cargo was thousands of tons of UK waste being exported to South China for recycling. The ship generates a lot of comment. A reader of Combined Cycle Journal sent photos of the ship sent to BOB SCHWIEGER, Class of 1964, (he is the magazine's editor and publisher) along with such comments as: "What a ship... no wonder 'made in China' is displacing North American goods big time with this floating continent transporting the goods in 4 days, no less!" and "... look at the crew size for a ship longer than a US aircraft carrier which has a complement of 5,000 men and officers." (And don't forget sister ships ESTELLE MAERSK and ELEONORA MAERSK.)

ANOTHER PARTY IS COMING UP - May brings the annual Admiral Scholarship Dinner. It will be held at the college on Thursday, May 8. It is one of the college's most important ways to provide resources needed to attract quality students to SUNY Maritime College. GARY JOBSON, Class 1973, wll be the Master of Ceremonies. The event will honor ROBERT E. JOHNSON, Class of 1969 and JOHN KROUSOULOUDIS, Class of 1976. To find out why, go to the college website at www.sunymaritime.edu

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Richard Corson - Forest Hills, NY

Latitude 40.716N Longitude 73.85W

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