September 2015 Meeting Notes

We started the September meeting by Tolling the Boats lost in September followed by birthday wishes for our members, officer reports, and introductions. We also had a quick recap of the Base events for the last month, including the Tolling the Boats ceremony, the field trip to the Chehalis Veterans Museum and Blueback, and the Black Diamond Labor Day parade.

1st Place plaque from the Black Diamond Labor Day Parade

 

Old and New Business:
Meeting Facility Update – At the July meeting we were informed that the VFW post was going to charge additional rental fees for the meeting room. We had started looking for new meeting locations, and got some interesting offers, but the VFW post decided to rescind their decision. So for the foreseeable future we will continue to meet at VFW Post 2995.

Auburn Veterans Day Parade – Planning has started for the 50th annual Veterans Day Parade in Auburn. The parade will be on Saturday November 7 and Seattle Base will be there. We will put out more details as time gets closer to the parade.

Salmon for Soldiers – Earl Greening gave a report on the Salmon for Soldiers fishing outing. Earl also passed along the organization’s thanks for the donation Seattle Base had made to the event earlier this year.

Holiday Luncheon – We are making plans for the Holiday Luncheon and the first change has already happened. The event will now be on December 5. Be sure to update your calendars. We will have more information on the menu and prices shortly.

Base Elections – Seattle Base elections will be this coming January. John Roberts is stepping up to run for Base Commander, but his impending move to Texas means that he will not be able to complete the term. Our base needs members to stand for the positions necessary to keep the base running. Especially the Base Commander, Sr. Vice Commander, and Jr. Vice Commander positions. Even if you aren’t ready to be a Base Officer, you can still help out as one of the committee chairs or appointed officers for the base. Committee chairs and appointed officers are really needed to handle the necessary base functions that make our base valuable to us all. If you are interested in running for an officer position or chairing a committee, please contact one of the Base Officers for more information.

Good of the Order:
Bill Lightfoot requested that we ask if anyone could give him a ride for the October meeting. Bill’s normal ride, Steve Shelton, will be on vacation during the meeting. So if you have some extra room in your car, please contact Bill or let one of the officers know so arrangements can be made.

Ric Hedman let us know about a new submarine book, Seventeen Fathoms Deep, is out. The book covers the loss of the USS S-4 and the author got input from Ric and other submarine veterans on the book. Ric reported that it is a good read!

September Program: 

September Program

The speaker for September was second-generation Navy veteran Greg Emerson. His father was a submariner, serving on many different submarines in the 50s and 60s, and Greg served on 18 different ships during a 21 year naval career and has published numerous naval analysis articles. Greg is also a member of the Sons of the American Revolution where he serves as Captain of the Color Guard and the Veterans Coordinator. Greg’s presentation was on George Washington’s spy ring during the American Revolution. He talked about how Washington’s spies were relatively unknown by the general public and their exploits have only come to light recently. Greg told us about the events that led up to the establishment of the spy groups and talked about the different people involved in the groups and spying during the war, including Nathan Hale, John Andre, and Benedict Arnold. We also learned about spycraft during the era, including the different encryption methods used. It was a very interesting program on a little known subject.

Seattle Base Commander Dick Gonzalez presents a certificate of appreciation to Greg Emerson, along with a photo of one of the submarines Greg's father served on