USS Maine Base—USSVI

Meeting 12 June 2011

The meeting was called to order at 1250.

The USSVI Creed was read, Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag was performed and the Base Commander read a short prayer dedicated to members of the US Armed Forces, past and present, all over the world.

Tolling of the Bell for Submarines and Submariners lost in the month of June was performed.

The Secretary deemed that a Quorum was present. A motion was made that the minutes of last meeting be accepted as posted on the USS Maine website. This motion was seconded and passed.

The Treasurer reported that there was $1549.00 in our account. A motion was made to accept the Treasurer’s report; the motion was seconded and passed. Our insurance for the float has been paid for the year and Larry Ferrell was reimbursed for his expenses in towing the float. (Note: Larry’s towing expenses are gas only, does not include wear and tear on his truck, or many other small expenses that Larry pays for out of his own pocket.)

Standing Committees

Parade Committee: 4^th of July Parade in Bath. Directions will be forthcoming

13 August: Newport is having a “Touch a Truck” event, which will be an opportunity for children to see, touch and climb on various vehicles. Our Skipjack Class Submarine will be there.

14 August: Our Summer Picnic and August meeting will be held at the Togus Recreation Facilities area, and once again our intrepid float hauler will be there.

Kaps for Kids: Base CO John Starbird, JVCO Ed Cockburn and wife Sylvia, Base Kaps for Kids Coordinator John Morrill and Base Chaplain Terry Schmidt went to Eastern Maine Medical Center after the Memorial Day Parade. They presented Kaps to 12 children in the Pediatrics Cancer Ward. Base Chaplain Terry Schmidt sent an article about this presentation to The Submariner.

Old Business

Holland Club Induction:   There are five inductees this year, although not all of them will be at the meeting. Norman McLeod’s induction will be at the VFW in Portland, after the Veteran’s Day Parade due to his work schedule. The other inductees are:  William Hale, Lyle Grindle, John King, and John McCutchceon. We will commence setting up at 1130 and the meeting will start at 1230. Many hands make for light work, so anyone that can come early and help is encouraged to do so. Our guest speaker will be RADM Emery. Once again Secretary Gorman will be the food coordinator, so send him a list of items you intend to bring. Also once more our Chef Supreme Rich Harris will be overseeing the food layout and bringing the cake.

Lionfish Work Party: We just haven’t been able to pull together a time for the Base to do a trip down to Massachusetts to participate in this. It was decided to leave it up to individual members to make their own arrangements, if they wished to work on the boat.

Stickers: For annual members, our Treasurer Perly Shover has the 2011 stickers for your cards.

Officer Selection Committee: Our committee of one (Ed Cockburn) presented the following list of volunteers for the elected positions of The Base:

Base Commander: Larry Ferrell

Senior Vice Commander: John Starbird

Junior Vice Commander: Ed Cockburn

Treasurer: Perly Shover

The only position that does not have someone campaigning for it is the Secretary position. Secretary Gorman will be stepping down. His stepping down proclamation was “After four years as secretary, it is time for someone else to step forward and pick up the oars.” (Due to his age, no one mentioned that oars are a little out of date, like he is.)

New Business

The Marblehead Base asked us to contribute $50 to the 2012 Pin Up for Vets Calendars. These contributions are used to produce the calendars, which have pictures of famous pin-ups from WWII. They are given out to our warriors in hospitals around the country. A motion was made to make the donation, seconded and passed.

Ten year longevity pins and certificates were presented to Reggie Dumont and “Doc” Chapman.

The meeting was adjourned at 1345.

 Respectfully submitted Secretary Roy Gorman