A Military tour of the area was held on Friday, October 12, including the McArthur Memorial, The Battleship Wisconsin, Nauticus and Waterside Norfolk. Due to the events of September 11, the Norfolk Naval Base was off limits and could not be included in the tour.
Friday evening, a Hospitality Room complete with snacks and drinks was provided for the reunion attendees to get acquainted and visit with old shipmates.
On Saturday, October 13, a business meeting was held in the morning in the hospitality room. Lt. Commander Ron Bishop called the meeting to order. We had 15 Plank Owners from commissioning on March 7, 1964 and 77 shipmates. Our total, including guests, was 116 people. The person traveling the furthest was Mark McBride from Dayton, Oregon. During the meeting, shipmates were asked to help compile a list of deceased shipmates (attached at the end of this newsletter). Shipmates were also asked to bring memorabilia to our next reunion (or donate for permanent display). The memorabilia on display at this reunion for shipmates to enjoy included many albums, pictures and yearbooks. Drew Thomas donated a jacket to be included in our permanent memorabilia library.
Other business discussed during the Saturday business meeting included:
- How often should we have a reunion? Attendees voted for once every two years.
- Where should we have the reunion? Suggestions included Branson, Missouri; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Pensacola, Florida and Norfolk, Virginia. Norfolk was the favorite and was chosen for our next reunion site.
- When should the next reunion be held? Fall, 2003 was determined to be the best timeframe.
- Dues. After much discussion, it was voted that each shipmate should pay $20 every two years to cover administrative and reunion related costs, plus a registration fee at the time of the reunion.
Chairman & Committee - David and Betty Cunningham
Chairpersons - Steve Gray, Ron Bishop, Bill and Bert Rouse
Web Site - Bob and Sally Lathem
Newsletter - Russ Thompson
Golf Tournament - Steve Gray
Saturday afternoon was free leisure time to enjoy recreation or visiting with shipmates. Beginning at 5 p.m., a photographer joined the group to take pictures of each shipmate (and their spouse or guest) for our pictorial reunion album. While the photographer snapped our photos, we enjoyed drinks and another chance to visit prior to dinner. We also had the opportunity to purchase tickets for a 50/50 raffle and a Basket of “Cheer”. Proceeds from these raffles will go into the treasury for our next reunion. A total of $457.00 was contributed to the treasury.
The banquet was the highlight of the evening and the culmination of a great event. Lt. Commander Ron Bishop was the master of ceremonies. After a delicious meal, we were privileged to have The International Sojourners perform for us. This group is made up of retired Military Masons. Their program was a reading and an actual building of the original flag showing the meaning of each of the 13 stars and stripes. It was a most impressive ceremony and thoroughly enjoyed by all! We concluded the evening with drawings for our raffles and closing comments. After many exchanges of phone numbers and addresses and many farewells, most of us departed Sunday morning with fond memories of wonderful weekend. A great time was had by all and we eagerly await the next reunion! We all want to extend our thanks to Betty and Dave Cunningham for all their hard work putting together this wonderful reunion!
Outstanding Job!!!!!!!
If anyone would like a CD with candid shots of the reunion, please send E-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it Please include full name and mailing address in the E-mail.
DID YOU forget to pay your dues when we met last October? It’s not too late. Please send your check for $20 to Dave Cunningham as soon as possible.
If you weren’t able to join us last October, we don’t want you to miss the next reunion! Send your $20 dues in today so you won’t miss out!
Make your $20 check payable to: Richard E. Byrd
Mail to: Dave Cunningham
Note to those that ordered albums of our first reunion: We have run into a slight delay with the picture albums. Apparently our photographer took off with our money without producing the books. Detective Betty Cunningham is tracking him down and we will let you know as soon as we have more information. A sample book was provided, but none of the other orders were filled. If you ordered an album and paid for it at the reunion, please let Dave Cunningham know via E-mail at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
AND THE NEXT REUNION WILL BE ………. OCTOBER 2-5, 2003
Hilton Norfolk Airport
1500 North Military Highway
Norfolk, VA 23502
Tentative plans include:
Thursday, Oct. 2
Golf Tournament (those playing would arrive on 10/1)
Main arrival day
Friday, Oct. 3
Tour – Mariner’s Museum and Air & Space Museum
Evening – Hospitality Room
Saturday, Oct. 4
Morning – Business Meeting
Lunch Cruise on the Spirit of Norfolk and tour of the Naval Base
Evening – Cocktails, Dinner, Memorial Service, Raffles, Dancing
Sunday, Oct. 5
Departures
Richard E. Byrd Deceased Shipmates
Name Date of Service Deceased Notes
Abraugh, Al
Capt. Bird, Charles Nov. 1987
BMC Brady Plankowner
Cox, Kermit June, 2001
FC Deter, Frank 1984
SM3 Fleck, Jim 1963-1967 Plankowner
AT3 Hawkins, Jim Plankowner
FTM2 Quaddlebaum, Ray
BM1 Roberts, Dwight Sept. 2001
STG3 Surprenant, Roger 1964-1965 Plankowner
Weapons Officer
Walker, Dave
Plankowner
YN1 Witherspoon, K.T. Plankowner
FT Zimmerman, Ricky Oct., 1999
