All Hands,
Bravo Zulu. That is the first thing that comes to mind when describing the
October 2007 field day event.
With great pleasure, I report an extremely successful October Fall Field day
aboard USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. DD850 in Fall River, MA. Through rain and
..well.. more damp weather, 3 needle guns, two deck crawlers and dozens of
brooms and paint brushes were in action at all times. Having our first
major weekend dedicated to the preparation and painting of the exterior and
interior of the ship in some time, we were not sure how the crew would
accept it. To our great relief, this crew rolled up its sleeves, turned-to,
and accomplished a lot in just three days. One could easily see the extra
effort and elbow grease put into these projects as many started early in the
morning and didn't quit till night or stayed till Sunday mid-day to get a
top coat on the ASROC deck. This dedication and initiative put forth by
these volunteers cannot be overestimated. The crew as a hole was extremely
tired and sore but to a man admired the amount of work completed and that it
was done the right way.
The attendee's and projects for the 18-19-20-21 October 2007 field day are
the following:
Shipmates for October 2007 (with the ship they represent and project team):
Accatatta Tony (USS Harwood DD861 -- ASROC blast shield team)
Albert Bill
Angelini Mike (USS J.P. Kennedy Jr. DD850-- Whaleboat painting, STBD
side prep team)
Angelini Rich (son of above, Port side team)
Beezer Brown (Mk 25 Fire control work, radio work)
Burnett Art (USS William C Lawe DD763 - Stbd side Team, Aft Engine room
B4 painting)
Burnett AJ (son of above - Stbd side Team, Aft Engine room B4 painting)
Byers Gene (USS Richard E Kraus DD849 - electrical)
Calabro Rich (USS Charles Roan DD853 - Port side painting)
Carr Jim (Stbd side Team)
Carr Emily (daughter of above - Stbd side Team)
Capp Jeff
Caruso Jim
Crotteau Maury (USS Harwood DD861 - Radio work)
Crotteau Jeannie (wife of Maury - sewing of chairs on Bridge)
Furlong Don (Port side Team)
Hamilton Bill (USS Barry DD933 - Galley)
Hayes Owen (USS Waldron DD699 - Electrical)
Jensen Bob (Port side Team)
Jones Lee (USS Stormes DD780 -- Welding)
Kallman Tom (USS J.P. Kennedy Jr DD850 - Port side Team)
Kenney Mike (USS Jonas Ingram DD938 - ASROC blast shield)
Kilkelly Bob (USS Perkins DD877 - Aft Diesel painting)
Klein William (USMC - Galley)
Levesque Dave (Seabees and DD850 Sea Cadets - WR Pantry painting, Port
side Team)
Levesque Lee (Wife of Dave and Sea Cadets - Galley, Mess Decks)
Levesque Ben (DD850 Sea cadet, son of Dave and Lee - WR Pantry painting,
Port side and ASROC blast shield teams)
Levesque Nate (DD850 Sea cadet, son of Dave and Lee - WR Pantry painting,
Port side and ASROC blast shield teams)
Lowney Tom (USS Wisconsin BB64 - MT 51 Gun work)
Lundgren Al (USS John Paul Jones DD932 - Bridge painting)
McGuiness Jim (USS Abbot DD629 - Port side Team )
Mulvihill Jim (USS Waldron DD699 - Bridge painting)
O'Connor Richard (USS Vesole DD878 - ASROC Blast shield)
Paplow Dave (USS Glennon DD840 - Port side Team)
Parker Chuck (USS Sarsfield DD837 - Welding)
Parker Bonnie (Wife of Chuck - Welding)
Robertson Ron (USS Charles Roan DD853 - Aft Engine Room B4 painting)
Rositani Vincent (USS Fiske DD842 - Fantail Team)
Rositani Vincent Jr (son of above - Fantail Team)
Rousseau Paul (USS Biddle - Fantail Team, Ropework)
Sandri Blair (USS Forrestal CV-59 - Port side Team, Soundings)
Schall Chuck (USS Charles Roan DD853 - Fantail team)
Sipos Robert (USS Fred T Berry DD858 - Galley)
Sipos Steve (son of above)
Swanson Howard (USS Brownson DD868 - Storeroom)
White Wayne (USS Charles Ware DD865 - Electrical issues in B4, ASROC
Control, TTY Room, DASH)
Whynot Steve (USS Trippe FF-1075 - Welding/mechanical)
Young Bobby (USS Patterson )
Zajkowski Ed (USS Keppler DD765 - Port side Team, Electrical)
Zeglin Phil (Port side Team, Soundings)
Zampino Tony (USS Rich DD820 - Electrical issues in B4, ASROC Control,
TTY Room, DASH)
Total: 51 shipmates
Work Accomplished (Prepping, Priming, Painting):
Fantail Team:
-- Frame 170--entire aft face of deckhouse, Fuel Oil vents, and Aft
quarterdeck station all cleaned of rust and soot, prepped, primed, and
painted
-- Mt 53--entire deck UNDER gun cleaned of grease, prepared, and painted
Portside Team:
-- Portside--main dk--fr 50 to 110fwd--prepared, primed, and painted the
overhead, bulwark, and bulkheads
Starboard side team:
-- Starboard side --fr 75-95 of the bulwark and frame 80-110 fwd--bulkhead
prepped
-- Whaleboat wire wheeled, cleaned, and a coat of gray applied to make it
look clean until it can be swapped out with restored DD715 boat waiting on
pier.
ASROC Deck team:
-- Entire ASROC blast shield on 01 level prepared with deck crawler, needle
gunned, primed, painted
Interior cleaning, prepping and Painting:
-- Wardroom Pantry -- Space masked , cleaned, prepped, prime, and a complete
coat of white semi-gloss applied.
-- Main passageway Cleaning Gear Locker -- cleaned, prepped, primed, painted
-- B-4 Aft engineroom -- Reduction gear and throttleboard painted light
equipment gray.
-- Aft Diesel --electrical boxes and equipment painted light equipment gray
-- Continued painting bulkheads and equipment in Bridge
Work Accomplished (Non-painting):
Welding:
-- Fixed and Welded in Flare Locker on 02 level starboard side Bridge Wing
-- Fabricated DASH transmitter equipment rack in Auxiliary Radio
Mechanical:
-- Tightened all bolts/nuts in Bridge windows
-- Remounted original 2JV growler ID plates on growler 2JV system in
respective compartments.
-- Installed door knob on ET shop door.
Electrical:
-- Repaired and reinstituted original 440volt wiring in B-4 back to switch
board from previous emergency circuit setup.
-- Exercised anchor windlass and capstan
-- Took amp readings on FB-108 to check imbalance in FWD Engine room
-- Checked ship for grounds via switchboards in B2 and B4--none aboard
-- Repaired receptacles + lights in ASROC control station
-- Mt 51 work--energized ventilation blower + heaters
-- Wired UGC-6 No 1 and UGC-25 No 1 teletypes in Secure TTY Room to original
power source. Also laid out plan for wiring remaining equipment that was all
acquired from strip trips.
-- Repaired switch in CPO qtrs
-- Repaired receptacles in hangar
-- Began troubleshooting and mounting MK25 FC Radar equipment in original
cabinets. These spare modules came from a strip trip on USS Des Moines
CA134.
Services:
-- Meals for the crew
-- Haircuts
-- Manned storeroom
-- Monkey fists were made for deck gear and Deck office displays
-- Sounded and inspected all tanks and voids--no water found
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Some Highlights to be mentioned from the field day:
1. Chuck and Bonnie Parker drove all the way up from VA to attend the
October field day once again. They have been doing this for about 5 years
now.
2. Art and AJ Burnett attended their first KENNEDY field day after driving
all the way from the Cleveland, OH area and said they will be back!
3. There were 8 families working aboard KENNEDY during the past field day.
One father-daughter team (Carr's), two husband-wife teams (Parker's), 4
father-son teams(Burnett's, Rositani's, Angelini's, and Sipos's), and one
father-sons-wife team (Levesque's).
4. The USS Charles Roan DD853 had the distinction of having the most
attendees at this major field day. Ron Robertson, Rich Calabro, and Chuck
Schall totaled three to represent their ship. They were followed by two
representatives each from Harwood 861, Kennedy 850, and Waldron 699.
5. The Levesque family, who also represents the DD850 Sea Cadets, were very
involved in many aspects of the field day. They worked in the galley, mess
decks, painted the WR pantry, and prepped the outside of the ship. Nate and
Ben Levesque both got their first exposure to a needle gun and deck crawler
as they turned-to with the outside work. Is this the beginning of the next
generation of leaders for KENNEDY? We certainly hope so.
6. The Galley crew was outstanding once again. Thanks to all those who
helped prepare food for the crew including Bill Klien, Bill Hamilton, and
Lee Levesque.
7. Many shipmates take vacation time from work to attend our field days. It
is VERY much appreciated.
8. We had five field day first timers. They were Art Burnett, AJ Burnett,
Chuck Schall, Paul Rousseau, and Ron Robertson. We hope to see you aboard
again!
9. Our two original Worthington Low Pressure air compressors from WW2 took a
beating the whole weekend but never quit to supply air for our needle guns.
10. The sheer amount of prepartion, priming and painting work done by all
teams, who bonded greatly over the weekend and never quit.
11. The 12 hour struggle to wire the 440v power cable into the Aft
switchboard in B4 to recreate its original setup.
12. The crew atmosphere to support each other and THEIR ship. KENNEDY
belongs to all of us now.
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Restoration News:
1. With the DASH radio transmitter racks fabricated in the Aux. Radio Room,
we can mount and install the DASH electronics we acquired in New Mexico to
completely represent the look of this space in the 1960s. Look for these
final pieces to be installed later this year.
2. The Bridge is in the final stages of painting according to the correct
paint scheme of a late 1960s FRAM I Gearing. We expect to have this
completed within the next month.
3. The Wardroom Pantry has been painted and the installation of the dish
racks, artifacts, and other period items will be put on display by the end
of November.
4. The Aft Diesel Space is in the final stages of painting. We expect this
interesting area to be completed by early 2008.
5. Power was brought back to our MT 51 5"38 gun mount to test the
ventilation and heating system. It worked perfectly !
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Sea Cadet News:
Most know that we have a USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. DD850 Sea Cadet Corp
aboard. Many of you may not know that they have a work party monthly.
Here is their report of work accomplished since the October Major Field Day.
"From: ENS J. Pietruszka, NSCC; Battleship Cove Liaison Officer
To: Captain John S. Casey, USN(Ret.); Chief Operations Officer Battleship
Cove
CC: Mr. Richard Angelini; Assistant Curator Battleship Cove
Subject: Report of USNSCC Work Party 28 October 2007
1. I am writing to report on the work party that Joseph P. Kennedy Jr.
Division held yesterday 28 October 2007. We began the work party at 1200 and
continued until 1500. During that time several things were accomplished to
help with the upkeep of KENNEDY:
a) approximately eight feet of the overhead, port side, forward, outboard of
Kennedy was painted
b) the bright work in the main passage way (forward to aft), as well as the
bright work outside of the bridge and CIC, was polished
c) the wardroom pantry painting was completed- except the painting of the
deck
2. A significant portion of the unit turned out for the evolution. Those who
participated were: Levesque, C, NLCC Levesque, N, NLCC Levesque, B, NSCC
Levesque, D, LT(j.g.) NSCC Levesque, L, ENS, NSCC Miller, P, NSCC Coffey, M,
NLCC Pietruszka, J, ENS, NSCC "
The Sea Cadets will be hosting a training weekend during the November mini
field day on 16, 17, 18 November. If anyone is interested in giving talks
to the cadets about certain compartments or areas of the ship, please advise
me soon. We wish to support this training weekend for the Cadets. If you
are attending the November field day and wish to teach a class during the
day or special talks at night, please let us know.
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Other News:
1. The Naval Academy Prep School Cadets from Newport Naval Station will be
starting a working party 2-3 times a month aboard KENNEDY to support our
restoration and maintenance issues. Projects include exterior preparation
and painting and the cleaning, prepping, priming, and painting of the Bosun
Locker, Aft Engine room equipment, CIC, and passageway areas. These future
Naval officers are learning Navy heritage first hand with this exposure to a
FRAM I Gearing class Destroyer.
2. The next field day is 16-17-18 November.
3. If you live too far away to come up on a short weekend, maybe consider
coming up from Wen through Sunday of a given field day. We usually have
volunteers aboard to greet you and get you settled early. Work details are
typically underway by Thursday morning prior to the field day weekend! If
you live too far away to drive, consider flying into Green Airport,
Providence, RI. We are only 20-25 minutes away from that airport and can
possibly make arrangements to pick you up. Please contact us about coming
up early or by airport to see want can be accomodated.
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I apologize if I left anyone out or any job as it is all very important.
Thanks again to all for the outstanding efforts. Hope to see all hands at
the November field day.
Please consider helping KENNEDY in any manner you can..history and this ship
depend on YOU.
Fair winds and following seas,
Rich Angelini
Assistant Curator, USS JOSEPH P KENNEDY JR DD850
http://www.ussjpkennedyjr.org