June 2017 Meeting Notes

The June meeting started with Tolling the Boats lost in June, followed by birthday wishes for our members, introductions, and then the usual officer reports.

Old and New Business: 
May Event Recaps – We had some quick reports on what happened at the Cabela’s meet and greet, Memorial Day events, and Cruzin to Colby. We met a few submariners at Cabela’s and we hope to see them at a future meeting. Overall, we took over $800 in donations during the month from those events. Thanks to everyone that attended and helped with all the events.

Smokey Point Rest Stop Event – The Smokey Point event had wrapped up earlier in the day. Steve Shelton was at the meeting to let us know how things went. Because we weren’t required to man the coffee booth overnight, it was a lot easier to cover shifts. But we still had a few holes in coverage. It looks like we will end up with around $350 in donations from the event. Thanks to Steve and everyone that stood a watch (or two).

Kirkland Independence Day Parade – We are planning on participating in the Kirkland parade on the 4th of July. Event plans are like previous years. We will meet near Kirkland’s Heritage Hall in the morning. The Kirkland Police will begin blocking roads near the parade route around 9:30, so you will need to be there early or come in from the north. Lunch will be served around 11:00 and the parade will start at Noon. Check the blog and newsletter for more details. We hope to see you there.

Bonney Lake Salute to Armed Forces Concert – We have been invited to man a booth at this concert event on July 26. We will be looking into what is needed for this and let everyone know if we will participate.

2017 Holiday Luncheon – Dick Gonzales met with the staff at the Meydenbauer Yacht Club and it looks like we have a tentative agreement for the event on Saturday, December 2. We will let you know the full details soon, but we expect it to be similar to last year’s event.

Seattle Base Float Home – We are still looking for a new home for the Seattle Base float. If you know of a place or have some storage ideas, please contact one of the Base Officers. We really need to find a place to put the float or we might have to think about giving it up.

Jim DeMott at the June meeting

Jim DeMott, previous Bremerton Base Commander, stopped off to talk with us about Bremerton Base’s recent trip to Yakima to bring the District 4 Traveling Dolphins back to Bremerton. He also invited us over to the Bremerton Base events this summer. Finally, Jim wanted to let us know that he will be running for Western District 4 Commander position in this year’s elections. He wanted to encourage us all to vote in the USSVI local, district, and national elections.

June Program:

Postcard picture of USS E-2, one of the submarines discussed in the June program

Our program for June was by Ric Hedman on a near mutiny in the US Submarine service. The event, as reported by local newspapers, occurred in 1912 in the 2nd Submarine Flotilla at Cape Cod and Newport. The newspaper reports talked about abuses of the crew by the submarine officers and the sabotage of the engines on one of the Flotilla’s submarines. Letters were written asking Congress to investigate and charges were filed against some crewmen, but the outcome of these has not yet been discovered. Ric is still researching the information and provide updates as he learns more.

Good of the Order:
The Navy Exchange has posted more information about the Veteran Online Shopping Benefit (VOSB) on their website. The benefits start on November 11, 2017, but you need to register before you can use the benefit. You can check your eligibility through a website called VetVerify.org. To use the website, your records must have been digitized by the DoD. If your records have not been digitized or you don't want to register online, you can call 1-844-868-8672 to get information on what you need to do. Be sure to check the information and Frequently Asked Questions on the Navy Exchange site. If you have questions that aren't covered on the site, you can contact the Navy Exchange program at email: VOSB@nexweb.org or phone 888-343-8672.