The Membership meeting will be held at the San Juan
Country Club at 6:30 P.M. on September 15th, 2000. The dinner continues to
be served buffet style.
A "Whale" of a Story
By Jack Morgan
This story occurred while patrolling in early December,
1944, on U.S.S. Mitchell (DE 43) while assigned to Navel Task Force 38.
About midday, our sonarman reported to the skipper that he detected a “contact”,
which meant that our sonar equipment was sending back a signal that
indicated a Japanese submarine might be in close proximity. We were also a
little sensitive about small 2-man Japanese submarines having encountered
them at Ulithi just the month before.
The approximate location of the “contact” was
indicated to the skipper, and we changed course to that direction. Shortly
after changing course to the direction of the sonar contact, a visual
sighting was reported to the bridge, and the object was apparently on the
threshold of surfacing. The order was given to “ram it”, so the bow of
our ship plunged head-on in to the “Japanese submarine”.
The object catapulted under our ship, hit and damaged
our sound gear, passed under the rest of the ship, and surfaced off our
fantail. It was then discovered that we had mistakenly rammed a whale; and
the skipper may have been somewhat embarrassed.
U.S.S. Mitchell at dry-dock (1944)
We then proceeded to Ulithi for dry-docking and repairs
to our sound equipment.
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Legislative Update
Now that the party conventions are over the Congress
will be back in session. As is the usual practice this will probably be a
short session in order that the Members can go home to campaign and be
assured many decisions will be made on a strictly political basis.
Of particular interest to retirees are the various
pieces of legislation under the general heading of “KEEP THE PROMISES.”
When most of us enlisted, were drafted or commissioned, we were promised
that if we served for 20 or 30 years we were assured of “free” medical
care for the rest of our lives.
Over the years the Federal Government has gradually
reneged on these matters until there is very little for those over 65,
which is when CHAMPUS stops. The information from TROA was given excellent
coverage in the August 1 issue of THE TOTAH NEWS.
Not only does this affect Retirees, but it has become a
deterrent for enlistment and retention, since prospects and those with a
short time left are seeing that the Government is not fulfilling their
obligations to the retirees so why should they believe they will be
treated any differently when they have completed their service.
In an effort to correct this situation, bills have been
introduced in both Houses of the Congress and at present are awaiting some
action (or as it appears now, non-action). They are under the general
heading of KEEP THE PROMISES and are similar in content but with minor
variations. S2003 is in the Senate and Senator Bingaman is one of those
signing on to the bill. As of this time Senator Domenici has not signed
the bill. Senator Bingaman is a member of the Senate Armed Services
Committee and as such will have considerable input. In the House two
bills, Reps. Udall and Wilson have signed onto HR2966 and HR3573. A
letter, Email or Phone Call to Senator Domenici would. be helpful.
If any of you know Members or have friends in other
States it would not be time and effort wasted to contact them with your
concerns.
We will keep you updated on the legislative efforts and
the progress of the various bills.
[You’ll find comprehensive information concerning the
various medical issues in your Retired Officers Magazine issues
of the last few months. A recap of what is at stake and the actions
you can take are listed in the Washington Scene section (page 19)
of the September issue. More information may also be found at www.TROA.org.
(Editor)]
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Calendar
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Know Your Members
I have decided to relate some background as to how I
ended up on a Destroyer Escort in the South Pacific in October of 1944.
I graduated from Portales High School in May of 1941,
at the age of 17. I suppose that I was then almost an “average student.”
I was probably aware, commencing in about 1938 or 1939, that my country
might be on the verge of war in both Europe and Asia As I recall, it was
in my junior and senior year in high school, 1940 and 1941, after reading
some books that involved the relationship between the United States and
both Japan and China, that I really became convinced that a war with Japan
and China might ultimately become inevitable.
After graduating from high school in May of 1941, I
entered the University of Texas in Austin in September of that year, as a
pre-law student. Then came the infamous PEARL HARBOR attack by the
Japanese on Sunday, December 7, 1941, at, as I recall, about 1:00 P.M,
Texas time, just after I had finished my chores in the boarding house, and
was in my room studying and listening to the local radio station. The
local station was affiliated with a national radio system, Mutual, I
believe, and I recall this message coming through: “We interrupt this
program for an important announcement. The Japanese have just attacked
Pearl Harbor…. Stay tuned, etc.
In September of 1942, I returned to Austin to register
for my sophomore year at the University of Texas. At registration for my
sophomore year, I also volunteered for the Navy, by signing up for the
Navy V-12 Program. I successfully completed my sophomore year at the
University of Texas in May of 1943, and that same month I received my
orders to report for active duty in the Navy on July 1, 1943.
I was eligible for Officer Training School and I had
hoped to become a line officer assigned to a Destroyer in the South. I was
commission as Ensign in August 1944 and was assigned to a Destroyer Escort
in the South Pacific.
On
my ship the U.S.S. Mitchell (DE 43), we really did not do anything “heroic”,
in the traditional sense. But we were there.
After the cessation of hostilities with Japan, we
decommissioned the U.S.S. Mitchell (DE 43) at Kaiser’s Victory Yard,
Richmond, California on December 29, 1945. I was released to inactive duty
from the Navy, effective July 1, 1946 and reentered the University of
Texas in the fall of 1946.
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President's Page
Summer is nearly over and our regular membership
meetings are starting. I hope everyone had a nice summer visiting friends
and family, and participating in their favorite summer activities.
In the coming months, we of Totah TROA will have many
things to accomplish as we continue our growth as a full fledged TROA
chapter. Some of the things we need to do are to increase the value of our
organization to the Four Corners community through volunteerism; increase
our support of JROTC; and enhance our fiscal strength through internal and
external fund raising.
We should make a concerted effort to identify community
services and activities in which we can meaningfully participate. The
Board of Directors solicits your help in identifying the activities in
which we can or should participate.
Piedra Vista High School now has it’s own JROTC
program. We should encourage and support their activities as we have with
Farmington High School. Members of the Board will meet with the JROTC
officials as soon as practical to identify possible venues for our
participation.
In order for us to expand our support in the community,
we will not only need folks to volunteer their services, but find the
means to fiscally support our expanding community role. We need to devise
fund raising activities that go beyond the confines of our limited
membership roster. The Board has asked Ed and Trish Marquez to lead us in
expanding our fund raising efforts.
The Board asks that you give these topics some thought
and provide your suggestions for meeting our challenges to the Board or
committee chairpersons.
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