Volume 3, Issue 4 June 2005

THE DECKPLATE

2005 REUNION WAS A GREAT EVENT! Another great reunion of the USS Schofield is now history. The 2005 reunion began on Friday, April 29th and ended on Sunday , May 1s t . Fourteen members and ten of their guests joined in the fun at Charleston, SC’s Town & Country Inn & Conference Center. Reg i s t ra t i on began around noon on Friday, with the hospitality room opening with refreshments awaiting everyone as they arrived. The official kick-off of the reunion was that evening at 5:00 PM when the Welcome Reception began. The group was welcomed to the hotel by hotel representative, Stephen Clark, and to the reunion by USS Schofield

C o o r d i n a t o r , J a c k Knoblock, and ML&RS, Inc. on-site representative, Marshall Wray. The group q u i c k l y r e n e w e d acquaintances and really enjoyed the reception’s hors d’oeuvres and drinks. Some stayed at the hotel for dinner, while others v e n t u r e d o u t i n t o Charleston for their evening meal . The hospitality room became the hub of activity as a gathering place to relive experiences from the USS S c h o f i e l d . P a u l Halberstadt had prepared a slide presentation set up in the hospitality room fea tur ing the USS S c h o f i e l d W e s t P a c d e p l o y m e n t , M a r c h 1969—Nov.1969. Thanks

so much to Paul for doing this. It was greatly appreciated by everyone! Saturday morning at 9:00 AM, the tour to Charleston’s Patriots Point departed the hotel, with most of the a t tendees opt ing to participate. At Patriots Point the group was able to visit the world’s largest naval and maritime museum, which is home to the Aircraft carrier YORKTOWN, the destroyer LAFFEY, the submarine CLAMAGORE and the Coast Guard Cutter INGHAM. The visit was certainly a highlight of the reunion activities, especially for the men. After lunch in the CPO Mess on YORKTOWN, the group was treated to a fully

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A NEWSLETTER SERVING FORMER CREWMEN OF USS SCHOFIELD (DEG/FFG-3)

Points of Special Interest

• Our cover story gives a brief overview of the wonderful reunion in Charleston, SC. Hope others can be with us

next year.

• A list of reunion atten-dees and the minutes

from the business meet-ing are on page two.

• Mail Call has a letter

about “crossing the line,” one about the reunion and more.

• Pictures from the reun-

ion are on pages 4 & 5.

• See what can be offered at the Reno reunion for 2006. Return the sur-vey and help with the

planning.

VOLUME 3 ISSUE 4 SCHOFIELD DECKPLATE PAGE 2

narrated riding tour of historic Charleston. The tour guide, Chris Cannon, was an exceptionally informative fel low, and his knowledge made the trip that much more enjoyable. After returning from the tour, the Business Meeting was held to decide on future reunions and the leadership of the group. Jack Knoblock was chosen again as Coordinator and Reno, Nevada, was selected as the 2006 reunion site. There was a discussion about ways to improve attendance (east coast vs. west coast) and reunion sites for future years. It was decided to establish annual dues of $10.00. (See Business Meeting notes at the right-hand column for more details.) At 7:00 PM the pre-dinner cocktail hour and photo session were held. Each member and guest was photographed, as well as some group shots, and they will be used for the post reunion publication, the Sentimental Journal. Following drinks and photos, the most anticipated part of the reunion—the USS Schofield banquet—took place at 8:00 PM. Jack Knoblock served as Master of Ceremonies and welcomed everyone to the banquet. After a delicious meal, Frank Conlon, former Captain of the USS Schofield, was recognized as being in attendance. A group of framed pictures of the crossing of the e qu a to r o n t h e W es t Pac deployment were presented to the Skipper. Capt. Conlon then spoke to the group. It was a pleasure to have Capt. Conlon in attendance. After the presentation and speeches, the Memorial Service, led by John Winschel and Robert Cichowski, was held. The service was to remember with honor and respect, all the shipmates of the USS Schofield who have passed away, especially those since the last reunion. A bell tolled as the names were read from the Honor Roll. Following the solemn ceremony, the banquet came to a close. Everyone seemed to have

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We agreed to an annual dues of $10.00, due each year at the an-nual business meeting held during the reunion. If more than 2 years pass without payment, then you will be removed from the Deckplate mailing list The dues pay for the publication of the Deckplate and occasional advertisements for fu-ture reunions. Hopefully more ship-mates will find us. Robert Cichowski has agreed to be our Treasurer. He is also looking into the DE Sailors Association. Jack has again agreed to coordi-nate the 2006 reunion which will be the first weekend in May 2006. Save your money. We are going to Reno. Included will be a dinner cruise on Lake Tahoe. 2007 reunion we will be looking at 3 locations in the South, probably along the Gulf Coast, FL to TX (same time frame) to be decided at the 2006 reunion. The subject of a joint reunion has come up, but there are no plans in the works at this time. Respectfully submitted, Carol A. Fletcher

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really enjoyed the evening, with some even continuing it in the hospitality room. Sunday morning came too quickly, as the breakfast buffet was the last official event of the reunion. As good byes were said, everyone agreed it had been a great weekend and were looking forward to next year in Reno, NV. It is hoped that more shipmates will join in the great times next year. Anyone who comes once, will definitely come again. It’s that much fun! Please be a part of it in 2006 in Reno.

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2005 REUNION ATTENDEES

James & Susie Borowicz Robert Cichowski & Patricia James Frank & Patricia Conlon Charles Dickens Nelson & Pam Ewing Mark & Carol Fletcher Paul & Sheidan Halberstadt Michael & Ruth Jones John (Jack) & Sandie Knoblock Charles Prahst & Ruth Pauley Joe & Brenda Sissel Ronald Spagna Kenneth Wilson & ShaMarie Dixson John Winschel Total Members: 14 Guests: 11 GRAND TOTAL: 25

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USS SCHOFIELD 2005 BUSINESS

MEETING

Balance after 02/05 issue $323.88 Funds received since 02/05 issue $851.55 Funds available for 06/05 $1175.43 Expended 06/05 newsletter $328.26 Balance for 09/05—$847.17 Contributions should be made to Schofield Association and sent to Robert Cichowski, Treasurer, 386 Holly Ridge Rd, Winter Haven, FL 11113.

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FINANCIAL REPORT A TOUCH OF HUMOR

Due to inherit a fortune when his sickly, widower father died, Robert de-cided he needed a woman to enjoy it with. So he went to a singles bar and he searched until he spotted a woman whose beauty took his breath away. “Right now, I’m just an ordinary man,” he said walking up to her, “but within a month or two, my father will pass and I’ll inherit over 20 million dol-lars.” The woman went home with Robert. Four days later she became his step-mother. Will men never learn?

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VOLUME 3 ISSUE 4 SCHOFIELD DECKPLATE PAGE 3

Michael Bayliss (1977-79) YN3 11716 Oak Creek Dr Lakeside, CA 92040

619-594-0967 mbayliss@mail.sdsu.edu

Fredric Weber (1981-82) HT1

2222 Poipu Way San Diego, CA 92154

619-429-1832

Elliott Clayton (1968-69) SF1 Eng 83 Alridge Rd

Leoma, TN 38468 931-762-5646

Bill Tiede (1979-81) BM1

281 Holden Rd Inman, SC 29349

864-472-2676 billyboats@earthlink.net

George Mocaby (1965-67) STC

317 Maple Ave Emmett, ID 83617

208-398-7270

Glenn Young (1968-70) DK2 611 Second St

Gridley, KS 66852 620-836-2841

eldergyoung@yahoo.com __________

WELCOME MAT

The following shipmates have been located since the last newslet-ter. Welcome aboard. We hope to see you at the next reunion and that you will take an active part in the association. We welcome:

MAIL CALL

Published By: Military Locator & Reunion Service, Inc PO Drawer 11399 Hickory, NC 28603 828-256-6008 (voice) 828-256-6559 (fax) Dinamlrs@charterinternet.com Karenmlrs@charterinternet.com www.mlrsinc.com (web site) “Our Reunions Work So You Don’t Have To”

TAPS The Schofield Deckplate has learned of the following deaths since the last newsletter. Our deep-est sympathy goes out to the fami-lies and friends of the deceased.

Donald Gould, Jr. Died January 30, 2005

William Farris

(1970-72) BMC Died January 2, 2003

Gordon Turner

Died February 1995 Anyone who knows or learns of a shipmate’s death, you are re-quested to notify the newsletter so that person can be listed in TAPS and also on the Honor Roll at the next reunion.

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Hello Karen, My name is Robert Cichowski from the USS Schofield’s reunion, and you asked if the “Crossing the Line” is still done. My finance’s son, who is a HM1, crossed the line just last year, and his ship did it, as I saw pictures of it in their cruise book. They also have a mixed crew. However, it has been toned down. I myself have crossed the line 4 times. The first time be-ing in 1974. Ours was toned down from when my father went through it in 1943. The more things change, the more they stay the same. This tradition goes back over 3.000 years and is practiced by many navies, not just the U.S. It

is a sailor thing. Have a great day. Robert Cichowski

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Schofield Deckplate, Correction to Knoblock’s mes-sage. The EMC who was lost with the Frank E. was named Edward P. Hess EMC. He was a student of mine when I was an instructor in EMC-B School. He had it backwards. The chief electrician returned to the quarters to look for the chief hospital corpsman. The corpsman had already gotten out. The EMC was lost with the ship. The family lost was not the son of the EMC. I can look up the names if you want. The Frank E. was one of my other duty stations my first ship as an electrician EM3. Rick Cohagan

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Shipmates, I had the truly wonderful experi-ence of attending the 2005 USS Schofield reunion in Charleston, SC. Checked in on Friday mid morning. As soon as I got to the desk, I looked toward the dining area and immedi-ately spotted a couple of ex-shipmates. “Doc” Knoblock and Chief Winschel were having a bite with Doc’s wife Sandie. I immediately felt something special. Went over and introduced myself and felt right at home. Memories came flashing back from my Schofield days. From that point on, the whole weekend was wonderful. There were fourteen sailors there from the crew, as well as some guests (significant others). I am a plank owner, and most of the atten-dees were also. There were a few sailors who came aboard after I left the ship, but never the less, I felt a bond with these sailors as well. We were all Schofield alumni. Just was nice meeting a few who came after us. We were honored to have Cap-tain Conlon join us on Saturday eve-ning for our banquet. What a treat as we were not sure he would be at-

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VOLUME 3 ISSUE 4 SCHOFIELD DECKPLATE PAGE 4

tending. We also had a sailor, Joe Sissel, who came over after the Frank E. Evans tragedy, and it was extra special meeting him and his wife Brenda. My old Weapons Offi-cer, Lt. Halberstadt, was also there with his wife Sheridan. Strange calling him by his first name, Paul!!! Events were kept to a minimum, and just the fellowshipping and get-ting acquainted/reacquainted were the best part of the reunion. Lots of memorabilia to look at. A couple of sailors wore dress uniforms and that was neat. There was also a Sea Cadet group that came in for our banquet and presented the col-ors. We had a memorial for ex-shipmates who have since passed on, and this was certainly a touch-ing experience. The reunion was small, but the quality was outstanding. This was my first one, and hope that I can attend next year’s as well. Sorry I never got to earlier ones! I would hope that we can get more sailors on board so as to perpetuate this experience. Location of reunion certainly has a play in ability to at-tend, and this will always be a con-sideration for many. I for one will make every effort to attend, and will bring my wife as well. Everyone was just so gracious and welcom-ing. Doc and Sandie just were per-fect hosts and their efforts are ap-preciated. Hopefully we well do this again next year and I do look forward to seeing old shipmates and meeting new shipmates. The plans are in the works for 2006 and I am sure some announcements will be com-ing out shortly. Until then, Ron Spagna FTM2 Plankowner Pre-comm. 1968-Dec 1971

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Cadets standing ready to Present the Colors at the banquet

Group aboard the Yorktown

Tourists aboard their bus heading out.

CORRECTION The e-mail address for Harry Aldridge in the last issue’s Welcome Mat should have been as follows: Brenda.Aldridge@mail.wvu.edu

VOLUME 3 ISSUE 4 SCHOFIELD DECKPLATE PAGE 5

Dear Schofield Family, Well now that were all settled back into our daily routine, after what I think, and I think I am speak-ing for everyone, what was a great reunion. The presentation of the colors by the Sea Cadets, and their interac-tion with all of us, gave an added touch to our Saturday night gala. In addition to that, the presence of a former Commanding Officer of Schofield, Captain Frank Conlon, was a special treat, especially for those of us who had the pleasure of serving under him. The business meeting was lively, with several issues discussed. After input from Marshall from ML&RS and others it was decided that Bran-son was not the best choice for our next reunion. After considering vari-ous locations, it was decided that Reno, Nevada would be the home of our 2006 reunion. (see minutes) I want to thank Carol Fletcher for once again agreeing to take the minutes of our Business Meeting, and Robert Cichowski for agreeing to be Schofield Association Treas-urer. Dues shall be sent to Robert not ML&RS. Checks should be made out to Schofield Association. Robert will maintain an accounting, and will make a report in each Deckplate. Monies will be used to support the Deckplate, and for pos-sible future purchases of i.e Schofield Hats for resale. In preparation for the Reno Re-union, one of our shipmate’s wife has a close contact, and has offered to work with ML&RS to secure the best possible price for the event. I will be out of communiqués starting the 3 June, and until we get settled in our new home in Cas-cade, Idaho. Again I want to thank my ship-mates/friends for entrusting me with the opportunity to once again be your coordinator for another year. Jack Knoblock (Doc)

COORDINATOR’S CORNER

Ken Wilson and John Winschel getting their orders from the Skipper

Paul Halberstadt presenting plaque of photos he prepared on be-half of the Schofield crew to Captain Frank Conlon, second Com-

manding Officer of Schofield.

Photos from the 2005 reunion can be viewed on the Schofield web site. Go to:

www.ffg3.org/

REUNION PHOTOS Those who have not already paid their $10.00 association dues should send a check made out to Schofield Association to: Robert Cichowski, Treasurer 386 Holly Ridge Rd Winter Haven, FL 35880-1113

ASSOCIATION DUES

VOLUME 3 ISSUE 4 SCHOFIELD DECKPLATE PAGE 6

Exciting Reno, Nevada will be the site for the 2006 USS Schofield re-union, and we hope a great number of you will choose to attend this great event. “The Biggest Little City in the World,” as it likes to be called, is a somewhat downmarket version of the glitz and glamour of Vegas. Located with the majestic Sierra Ne-vada Mountains as a background, the Truckee River winding through the center of town and world-famous Lake Tahoe nearby, Reno is a superb setting for a reunion. Reno rests at a comfortable 4,400 feet above sea level, and gets over 300 sunny days each year. The average high temperature for May (your re-union time table) is a spring-like 73.2 degrees. So if your pleasure is gam-ing or the outdoors, Reno has some-thing to offer everyone. Reno is the second largest city in Nevada, after Las Vegas, and serves as the seat of Washoe County. It is a busy resort with large gambling casinos, but also is a com-mercial, distribution and manufactur-ing center situated in a livestock-raising and mining region. Its prod-ucts include building materials, elec-tronic equipment, and metal and wood items. It has also gained a reputation as the divorce capital of the world. The site of present-day Reno was settled about 1858 and was subsequently known as Lake’s Crossing. The population of the community grew after a large silver deposit, the Comstock Lode, was discovered nearby in the late 1850’s. In 1868 the railroad reached here and the settlement was renamed for Jesse Lee Reno, a Union general in the American Civil War. The city developed as a resort after the le-galization of gambling in Nevada in 1931. Please read the following sum-maries of some of the attractions around the area, and then fill out the survey to the right. This will let us know what you would like to do at the reunion. We will use your re-sponses, along with your coordina-

tor’s input, to plan your reunion ac-tivities.

Reno City Tour: Discover how Reno earned its intriguing name on this narrated tour which helps unravel the historical and cultural mysteries of this fasci-nating city. You’ll stop at Nevada’s History Museum, see impressive mansions built by great railroad, casino and mining barons. See “Divorce Bridge” where thousands of newly divorced persons toss their wedding rings; step back in time to see the National Automobile Mu-seum where magnificently restored antique autos are on display in their natural setting, 1950 and 1890 streets. There is much more to see and do, so you don’t want to miss this exciting experience. Lake Tahoe Dinner Cruise: Watch the colors of Lake Tahoe change as you enjoy an early eve-ning Twilight Dinner Cruise on the luxurious paddlewheel as the sun slowly sets. After a beautifully pre-pared dinner, stroll the decks and enjoy the mountain air, the beautiful clear water of the lake and the ma-jestic Sierra Nevada Mountain scen-ery. To enhance your evening, an interesting narrative and music area is also provided. There is an open promenade, two heated decks, two full service bars and a galley manned by excellent chefs. There are numerous deck chairs and com-fortable indoor seating which affords magnificent views from every direc-tion. Virginia City Tour: Visit famous Virginia City-circa 1859. You will recall that Virginia City was near the Ponderosa, where Ben, Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe lived. Stroll along the wooden sidewalks, see history come alive with colorful saloons, mansions, mines, and ghosts. You can’t possi-b ly miss th is th ree hour (approximate) adventure.

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In order to insure we provide the kind of reunion that you want, please take a few minutes to fill out this sur-vey and return it to ML&RS, Inc by August 1, 2005 at this address:

ML &RS, Inc PO Drawer 11399

Hickory, NC 28603

Or Fax: 828-256-6559

Reunion format:

Would you like a welcome reception the first evening? ___yes ___ no; Would you like breakfast as a group each morning? ____ Or just a farewell breakfast on Sunday? _____ Do you want entertainment after the Saturday night banquet? _____yes _____no

Reunion Agenda Please check any (or all) of the ac-tivities that you would like to see on the agenda. Reno City Tour ____ Lake Tahoe Dinner Cruise _____ Virginia City Tour _____ (Note the Reno City and Virginia City trips are approximately 3 hours long, leaving plenty of free time for remi-niscing. ) Your comments on how to make the reunion more attractive to you are invited below: _____________________________ _____________________________ _____________________________

COME TO RENO, NV, IN 2006 USS SCHOFIELD 2006 REUNION

SURVEY, RENO, NV