News From Fort Schuyler

November 10, 2008 - Volume 8, No. 39

ADMIRAL JUSTICE INGRAM, SIR - Last week in the Brooklyn Eagle there was a profile of JOHN INGRAM '64, a justice in the State Supreme Court in Brooklyn since 2003. The author, lawyer Charles Otey, writes that Ingram has ...established himself as one of the city's top jurists. No surprise from an attorney who readily admits, 'I love the law.' What some may not know is that the smiling gray-haired jurist holds another distinction that, it's safe to say, is his and his alone. He was recently promoted to the lofty rank of rear admiral in the New York Naval Militia, which is a pretty serious position." The article continues, "Justice Ingram still finds the time to serve on the Breezy Point Volunteer Fire Department, but his prime responsibility will still be to homeland security, should the need ever arise. So if you happen to be going by 320 Jay Street one day and you see him dashing out of the courthouse in his 'dress whites', he might just be on a mission involving national security."

(www.brooklyneagle.com/categories/category.php?category_id=4&id=24395)

ACTION-CAMERA - Tomorrow's edition of a well-know NBC police drama will have some familiar scenes if you look for them. According to a posting on the college website "...Law and Order SVU came to campus and spent several days filming scenes.....The distinct sound of the director's voice calling 'Action' could be heard in and around Fort Schuyler. Filming took place in the museum as well as in the fort itself." (www.sunymaritime.edu)

FAR FLUNG CORRESPONDENT - An update from LUIS M. LUIS '83 who bounces around between Texas, Nigeria, Hawaii - and now Abu Dhabi. "In my last e-mail I had told you that after coming from my Navy Reserve duty at Pearl Harbor, I was going to stay home just a week and a half before proceeding to Nigeria via Abu Dhabi. I was invited by Haward Technologies Middle East to give a 5_day seminar in Abu Dhabi on Offshore Engineering, including Design, Inspection and Maintenance of offshore platform structures. They had found me through a brief article I have on the Internet about Offshore Platforms Design Overview.

I flew from Houston to Dubai and then was driven to Abu Dhabi (on a wonderful 4_lane highway), which took about 1.5 hours at 70_80 mph. Once there I was treated very well. The course took place in the Hilton Bainoona hotel with an excellent view of the downtown area from the 33rd floor where I was. I had 14 students and at the end the average grade that I got from all the students' evaluations of me was 85. So I can say that the course and the total experience went very well. This being the case it seems that it will be just a matter of time before I will do another seminar in the area.

Then, naturally I flew from Dubai to Lagos, to come to Port Harcourt the following day, October 18th. Coming from Dubai to Lagos is not an exciting experience, for all the things the Emirates have and Nigeria does not. Although, just yesterday, I flew from Port Harcourt to Lagos and I was pleasantly surprised to board a brand new Embraer 190 jet from Virgin Nigeria with individual entertainment systems and leather seats throughout. [So there is progress everywhere - if one waits long enough.]

The MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM is currently restoring its famous 19th century whaling ship, the CHARLES W. MORGAN. The November 2nd New London "Day" featured an article about her dry docking with many quotes from the museum's Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard Director, QUENTIN SNEDIKER '72: "With a wooden ship, the process [of restoration] is ongoing. There's never a year when work does not go on with this boat." For the large scale work that is being done this time, "..the museum also had to find the large trees needed for the lumber. Snediker hunted for them in Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi. Much of the live oak needed for the framing and stem was cut from massive-trunked trees felled by Hurricane Katrina." The article concluded with these thoughts by Quentin, "'When the boats are here and you perform routine maintenance on them day in and day out, unfortunately you start to take them for granted. You stop thinking about them as vibrant, movable objects that have an esoteric live of their own," he said. 'But when we started taking the rig out of her, the real character and nature of the ship came alive for me again.'" (www.theday.com) [Thanks to JIM YAHNER '86 for the heads up.]

NEXT YEAR - The football team lost its 2008 finale by one touchdown, 28-35, against Mount Ida College of Newton, MA for a 4-5 season record.

EBB TIDE - San Francisco entrepreneur, JOSEPH J. DEAN ' 82, died on 5 October 2008 after a battle with ALS. He was the owner of Dean Enterprises. On 3 November, 2008 ALAN F. INNES '57 died at his home in Waynesboro, VA at the age of 73. According to the Staunton "News Leader", he is survived by a son and a daughter. (www.newsleader.com)