November 2014 Meeting Notes

We started off the November meeting with Tolling the Boats lost for November and December, followed by birthday wishes for our members, officer reports, and introductions.

Our Storekeeper let us know there are still a few 2015 USSVI calendars are available for $10 and he has Golden Anchor Award patches, which can be purchased from the Base Storekeeper for $4. Money from items purchased through the Base Storekeeper go to fund Seattle Base events throughout the year.


We also want to remind everyone that annual memberships run out at the end of the year and Seattle Base and USSVI National dues for next year are due at this time.

Old and New Business:
Seattle Base Holiday Luncheon – The Seattle Base Holiday Luncheon is set for Saturday December 20 at the Meydenbauer Bay Yacht Club. Registration has been extended to December 2, so get your registration in now! You can get download and print a registration form from this link https://app.box.com/s/6y23geo7vdm2m4r2i2cq or you can get a copy from the most recent version of our newsletter. The doors will open at 10 am and we will finish up at 2 pm. The Meydenbauer Bay Yacht Club is located at 9927 Meydenbauer Way SE, Bellevue WA and there will be ample parking in the lower parking lot near the club. There will be plenty of table space to display submarine memorabilia and everyone is encouraged to bring along some items to show off.

Kaps 4 Kids update – On November 10 John Roberts, Ralph Sterley, and Dick Gonzalez went to Children’s Hospital on a Kaps 4 Kids visit. They gave out hats and temporary tattoos to the children there. We will post a recap of the event shortly.

Seattle Base Visibility and Membership – In an effort to help increase the Base membership, we would like to get more information about USSVI and Seattle Base out into the public. We are currently looking into some volunteer opportunities with the Compass Housing Alliance. If you would like to help out with this or have other ideas of ways to increase membership and improve retention, please contact Base Commander Dick Gonzalez or bring them up at the next meeting.

November Program:

Angus McDonald talking about his time at the Pentagon

The November program was by Base member Captain Angus McDonald. Angus gave us a brief history of his career, but the program focused on stories from his time at the Pentagon in the late-60s. Angus talked about the different people he met or worked with, including Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and acoustics expert Dr. Robert Frost. Angus was at the Pentagon when USS Scorpion was lost and he talked about how they used acoustics to determine where the sub had gone down. He told us that while he was at the Pentagon there were no guards during the day and that people could come in off the street and look through the artwork in the building. He also let us know that when the Pentagon was built, toward the end of World War 2, that no steel was used in the original construction. It has been added into the structure now, but the part of the building that was damaged during the Sept 11, 2001 attack had recently been refurbished, which was why they was so little damage and loss of life. Angus provided some interesting stories and details about life at the Pentagon and in Washington DC during the height of the Cold War.

Good of the Order:
Due to the holiday luncheon, we will not have a business meeting in December. We hope to see you at the luncheon and the January meeting.

Dick Gonzalez shared some Veterans Day cards made by school children. The kids wrote some funny comments and it was nice to see the effort they put into making the cards.

Remember that efforts to move the USS Clamagore to Knoxville Tennessee are moving forward and you can follow developments on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/friendsoftheclamagore

Binnacle List: Art Thompson had a bad fall and is recovering. We hope to see him back at the meetings soon.