Distinguished Speaker Program

Transcription

1 The ANCHOR The Official Newsletter of the Navy League of the United States Greater Austin Council May June 2010 Citizens in Support of the Sea Services COUNCIL OFFICERS Randy Patterson President Bruce Byron Immediate Past President Jeanie Coffey Vice President for Legislative Affairs Randy Patterson Vice President for Education Kathy Pillmore Vice President for Communications Bruce Byron Vice President for Administration Vacant Vice President for Business Partnerships Ray Roark Vice President for Finance Lee Hagan Vice President for Youth Programs Jim Brotherton Vice President for Military Affairs Brian Colfack Secretary Kaye Johanson Assistant Secretary Michael Murray Judge Advocate Tom Griffy Chaplain NATIONAL DIRECTORS Jeanie Coffey Glenn Looney Max Miller Jack Ritter BOARD OF DIRECTORS Max Miller, Chairman Jim Brotherton Bruce Byron Jeanie Coffey George Haley Glenn Looney Jack Mayo Kathy Pillmore Jack Ritter Steve Smith Randy Patterson (Ex Officio) LIAISONS Brian Colfack Military Services Coalition Steve Smith Marine Corps Jack Ritter UT NROTC CAPT Mike Spence, USN CO UT NROTC LCDR Mike Evans USN CO Naval Operations Support Center Lee Hagan Navy & Marine Corps JROTC Jack Mayo Commissionings OUR NEXT Distinguished Speaker Program THURSDAY 24 JUNE 2010 F. Michael Pestorius, PhD Senior Research Engineer Applied Research Laboratories, University of Texas at Austin TOPIC: What UT Does For the Submarine Force Dr. Pestorius is currently employed as a Senior Research Engineer at Applied Research Laborataories, UT-Austin (ARL:UT). From January 2000 to January 2004, he served as the Technical Director of the Office of Naval Research International Field Office (now ONR Global) in London, UK. This office, with its subsidiary offices in Tokyo, Singapore, Melbourne, Australia and Santiago, Chile, is responsible for finding and evaluating international research collaboration opportunities for ONR and other US Navy R&D organizations. Previous to accepting this position, he served for twelve years as the Executive Director of the Applied Research Laboratories at the University of Texas at Austin. ARL: UT is a Navy designated University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) and is one of five such university laboratories officially associated with the US Navy s science and technology program. Dr. Pestorius is a retired U. S. Navy Captain. He served on active duty for close to 27 years, primarily in the submarine force. Highlights of his career include command of the USS Mariano G. Vallejo, SSBN-657, and command of SPAWAR Systems Center (then Naval Ocean Systems Center) in San Diego and serving on the Chief of Naval Operation s Strategic Studies Group. He is a graduate of the US Naval DISTINGUISHED SPEAKER PROGRAM Austin Woman s Club, Chateau Bellevue 8th and San Antonio (Parking entrance on Nueces between 7th & 8th Streets) Social 1815 Dinner 1915 Program 2015 Members & their Guests- $30* Military in Uniform & their Guests - $20 Cadets & Midshipmen and their Guests - $15 Reservations: rglennl@alumni.utexas.net Continued on page 2

2 President s Message It seems that the business of Washington has shifted to the production of overstuffed laws, reports and regulations (vis: 2,000 page bills, volume on volume of tax rules, environmental regulations and the like), most of which cannot be read or easily digested by ordinary citizens, much less the members and staffs of our Congressional delegations. There are, however, a couple Randy Patterson President, Greater Austin Council of recent reports which are of interest to Navy Leaguers. It will be hard to find the time to complete more than a cursory review, but the effort to understand these papers and some of their source notes could be critical to furthering the League s purpose to support the Sea Services in the minds of many members. The first of these is a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) study entitled An Analysis of the Navy s Fiscal Year 2011 Shipbuilding Plan (May 2010). While it is easy to diminish the impartiality and even the competence of the CBO, this study does explain many of the issues facing the Navy s oft-stated requirement for the 313-ship Navy, and thus sheds some light on the Navy League s efforts to support this goal. In particular, the grassroots program that is effectively and enthusiastically pursued in Texas by Jack Ritter, Max Miller, Jeanie Coffey and other Navy Leaguers can be much better grasped by the rest of us by a reading of this 12-page CBO study. (It can be accessed by a brief search of the CBO website or by visiting an interesting website which compiles blogs on maritime affairs, called Information Dissemination and searching around for links to the CBO study). Take a look when you have a few minutes. While few of us are able to take the time to understand the complexities of all the issues, we can gain a better grasp of the dilemmas of maintaining a strong and effective Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. The good news is that the CBO has provided a second look at the Navy s estimates for shipbuilding schedules and costs through the years from The bad news is that there is, perhaps not too surprisingly, quite a disparity in the estimates that will insure that the Navy ship inventory will not be at or above unless the dollars available are increased, ships are kept in service years longer than planned, or costs are reduced dramatically. All these scenarios are problematic at best, but the assumptions and estimates deserve careful study and open discussion. Of course, any number of geopolitical, economic, technical and military events can (and will) Take place over 30 years, but we have to deal with what is known now and what can be reasonably expected. The more we know as informed Navy Leaguers and the more we discuss the various possibilities, the more likely it will be that our leaders will make better decisions on the future Navy. Another interesting study which is no doubt a more thorough analysis of Sea Service operations, but runs to 100-plus pages, is entitled Naval Operations Concept Implementing the Maritime Strategy. This one could be what the more analytical types among us will find useful, but I confess I have not read much of this one. I may glean some comments to include in a future ANCHOR - stay tuned. Randy RADM BUTLER TO RECEIVE CBE RADM John D. Butler, USN Ret, VP Fleet Ballistic Missle Program Requirements, Lockheed-Martin Corporation, UT graduate and frequent speaker for the GAC was recently notified by Her Majesty s Foreign Secretary that Her Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth II has awarded him the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE.) The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom to fill gaps in the British honours system. Originally, the Order included only one division; however, in 1918, soon after its foundation, it was formally divided into Military and Civil Divisions. Details of the presentation to be held at the British Embassy are pending. Pestorius, Continued from page 1 Academy and holds graduate degrees from Harvard University and the University of Texas at Austin. His research areas include underwater acoustics, signal processing, and satellite geodesy and information technology. He is a fellow of the Acoustical Society of America and serves as an officer of the Naval Submarine League. Dr Pestorius will discuss ARL: UT s association with the U. S. Navy s Submarine force. 2 The Anchor, May June

3 UT NROTC Buccaneer Platoon Captures Awards at Colorado Drill Meet By MIDN 2/C Elliott In April, the University of Texas at Austin Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps Unit (NROTCU) Buccaneer Platoon participated in the 2010 Colorado Drill Meet hosted by the University of Colorado s NROTCU. Eight schools competed in the meet including UT s rivals from Oklahoma. The purpose of the invitational meet was to test physical endurance as well as proficiency in drill, sailing, and shooting. Drill was broken down into three different categories; platoon drill, squad drill, and color guard for a total of seven events. It was a positive learning experience for the Midshipmen that invoked esprit de corps among the individual teams. The pistol and rifle competition took place Friday. The UT team placed third overall. The Endurance Team competed in rope climbing, pull ups, 4 by 800 pack relay, swimming, a 12-mile pack run, ammo can carry, ammo can press, fireman s carry, and a Kim s game quiz. The high altitude proved to be the team s undoing, knocking them out of placement. The main event of the meet was the platoon drill, squad drill, and color guard. The purpose of platoon drill is to test each unit commander s ability to successfully and strategically maneuver the unit within a restricted space while the rest of the members maintain military bearing. The team finished in first place overall. Squad drill consisted of seven individuals who performed most of the same techniques as the platoon plus moves that challenged each individual s bearing. The UT team placed second overall. The last portion of the meet was the Color Guard event in which the team placed first overall. NATIONAL DIRECTORS MEETING ATTENDED BY GAC OFFICERS NLUS National Directors Max Miller, Glenn Looney, and Jack Ritter (pictured below l-r) attended the Navy League National Directors meeting held in Arlington, VA 2-4 June, The meeting was productive and they report that the Navy League is better financially than a year ago. The space in the NL building in Arlington is 96 percent leased. On the other hand, membership is down. Membership is one of the priorities of NLUS National President, Dan Branch. Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr., USCG, the new Commandant of the US Coast Guard, was the guest speaker at the annual dinner Friday evening. He succeeds Admiral Thad W. Allen, USCG. Admiral Papp was on his way to the Gulf Coast region to deal with the oil spill. photo courtesy of Max Miller Although the unit did not participate in the sailing or rifle portion of the event, they finished second overall behind the University of Colorado. Our teams maintained the excellence of the University of Texas Buccaneer Platoon and are already preparing for next year. This year s Drill Team members (shown below) included: Guide: MIDN 1/C Olander First squad: MIDN 4/C Reyes, MIDN 3/C Goodrich, MIDN 2/C Doherty, MIDN 4/C Gordon, and MIDN 4/C Stavridis. Second squad: MIDN 3/C Zuber, MIDN 4/C Culpepper, MIDN 4/C Lowe, MIDN 4/C Wright, and MIDN 3/C Nuon. Third squad: MIDN 4/C Knight, MIDN 2/C Darst, MIDN 4/C Shirley, MIDN 4/C Peterson, and MIDN 2/C Elliott. The Anchor, May June

4 Snapshots from the April 29th, 2010 Distinguished Speaker Program &Dinner Randy Patterson thanks our speaker R.V. Burgin who shared his harrowing experiences as a young Marine in the Pacific Theater during WWII. GAC member Miller Hicks celebrated the anniversary of his 39th birthday as a guest of the Navy League. A guest previews Burgin s novel, Islands of the Damned. GAC Past president Jim Brotherton visits with Navy recruiters: (not necessarily in order shown) HM2 Leslie Ashcroft, Navy Recruiting Station North Austin; ETC Jeffy Brown, Navy Recruiting Station, Round Rock; BMC Johnny Savedra, Navy Recruiting Station Georgetown; BU2 Moses Silva Navy Recruiting Station Round Rock, and LS2 David Luking, Navy Recruiting Station North Austin; (not pictured) Lt. Elizabeth Leonard, Navy Officer Recruiting Station, Austin. Jackie and Ned Ash enjoy pre-dinner conversation. CDR Dave Hogsten, UT NROTC XO brought his sons Brandon (left) and Conner to hear Burgin. Hays High School (Hays CISD) MCJROTC presented the colors for the meeting. Shown here (l-r) are C 2dLt Carl Sheldon; C/Col. Nathaniel Sigman; Major D. C. Hamil, USMC Ret., Sr. Marine Instructor; C/LtCol Ryan Druell, and C/ Capt Christian Thompson. Chateau Bellvue was packed for Burgin s appearance. 4 The Anchor, May June

5 This is your casting call! Help take our Council presentation to central Texas civic clubs Greater Austin Council is developing a Navy League presentation that will connect us with our friends and neighbors in Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions, Optimist, Civitan, Knights of Columbus, Jaycees, and similar groups like the Methodist Men s Club. This is your invitation to join our team. We especially need your help if you belong to any of these groups. Review our planned presentation to see if it would interest your group, then help get us on their program schedule. This is an opportunity for you to inform friends and neighbors on national security issues facing our country along with the role of sea service forces in current humanitarian relief in areas hit by natural disasters. MAX MILLER IS ONE OF THE HONORED SPEAKERS AT ANNUAL MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONIES Each year the Thankful Hubbard Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) and the Patrick Henry Chapter of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (NSSAR) sponsor a Memorial Day Service at the Texas State Cemetery, Austin, Texas. GAC Chairman Max Miller and Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell were invited to speak at this year s Memorial Day Service. Miller spoke about the meaning and history of Memorial Day and how it is observed. Mayor Leffingwell spoke about memorial services in today s times and about our service men and women in Austin. Both speakers were awarded a Presidents Medal by the SAR president George Finch for their participation in the Memorial Day Services. Cast members needed: Speakers (talking points are on each slide) Technicians (we provide PowerPoint projector) Booking Agent (an easy stay-at-home job) A brief training session is available to help carry this message to our community. To join Greater Austin Council s community service organizations presentation team, jackmayo@austin.rr.com Please start your subject line with CSOP Max Miller (left) and Mayor Leffingwell accept their President s Medal from SAR President Finch, Memorial Day LONE STAR REGIONAL CONFERENCE CARRIES ON THE BUSINESS OF NLUS AT THE LOCAL LEVEL The Lone Star Annual Regional Conference was held in Rockport, Texas on May, Greater Austin Council members who attended were Jim Brotherton, Glenn Looney, Randy Patterson, Jack Mayo, Max Miller, and Jack Ritter (shown here.) Nominations were made for area and region Officers as well as national directors. Glenn Looney was once again nominated for Lone Star Region president and Max Miller was re-nominated for area president. Glenn and Max, along with Jack Ritter were nominated to continue as national directors. Bill Waylett from NLUS gave a training session on the Navy League s new Community Services Outreach Program (CSOP). This program is designed to tell community organizations such as Rotary and others about the Navy League. He also gave a training session on membership retention that addressed membership needs for all councils. The Anchor, May June

6 T H E O D O R E R O O S E V E LT N L Y O U T H M E D A L S Each year, under the leadership of Lee Hagan, the Greater Austin Council, NLUS presents awards to outstanding Sea Cadets and high school JROTC cadets. Although this list ran in the last Anchor, many awardees were not yet named. We are running it again so that all award recipients may be recognized. William B. Travis Division Navy League Cadet Corps William B. Travis Division Navy League Sea Cadet Corps Bastrop High School NJROTC (LCDR Joe Cave) Fredericksburg High School NJROTC (Capt Gene Garrett) Georgetown High School NJROTC (Capt Wayne Gusman) Jack C. Hays High School MCJROTC (Maj David Hamil) Lehman High School, Kyle, Texas (LCDR John Berry) New Braunfels High School MCJROTC (LtCol Carey Weston) Round Rock High School MCJROTC (Maj Jeffery Rey) Round Rock High School MCJROTC (Maj Jeffery Rey) Marksmanship Award Stony Point High School NJROTC (LCDR Kevin Sanders) Travis High School NJROTC (WO2 Calvin Henry) Brenham High School MCJROTC (Capt Tofel) UT NROTC SEA CADETS JUNIOR ROTC: HIGH SCHOOL League Cadet Petty Officer Second Class Thomas D. Wintenburg Sea Cadet Petty Officer Third Class James D. Pruitt Cadet Justin Medrano Cadet Chief Petty Officer Deacon C. Peterson Cadet Josef Psencik Cadet Second Lieutenant Carl Sheldon Cadet Chief Petty Officer Gonzalo Diaz Cadet Joshua Green Cadet Second Lieutenant Ariel Brown Cadet First Lieutenant Robert Royer Cadet Christian Winckel Cadet Chief Petty Officer Angelica Frias Cadet Major Jessie Mondes UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS NROTC Cadet Christopher Olander Randy Patterson presents NL Youth medal to Fredericksburg HS NROTC Cadet Deacon Peterson Randy Patterson congratulates Georgetown HS NJROTC Cadet Josef Psencik Kathy Pillmore presents a certificate and medal to Hays HS MCJROCT Cadet 2L Carl Sheldon Kathy Pillmore congratulates Lehman HS NJROTC Cadet CPO Gonzalo Diaz Lee Hagan congratulates UT NROTC Cadet Christopher Olander 6 The Anchor, May June

7 UT NROTC COMMISSIONS FIVE OFFICERS May 20, 2010, the Naval ROTC Unit at the University of Texas commissioned four new Ensigns into the U.S. Navy and one Second Lieutenant into the U. S. Marine Corps. The ceremony was hosted by Captain Mike Spence, Unit Commanding Officer and Professor of Naval Science and took place in the Senate Chamber of the Texas State Capitol. The guest of honor was Rear Admiral William Moran, Commander, Navy Patrol and Reconnaissance Group. Each new officer took the Oath of Office and received their new officer insignia from family members. Ensign Christopher Lu has orders to the Navy Nuclear Power Training School while Ensigns Mathew Mayo, Elizabeth Page and Rebecca White are destined for flight School. Second Lieutenant Jason Stowers has orders to The Basic School, Quantico, Virginia. GAC Calendar 24 Jun Distinguished Speaker Program F. Michael Pestorius,PhD Senior Research Engineer Applied Research Laboratories, University of Texas at Austin 4 July Independence Day 20 Aug NROTC Unit Change of Command and CAPT Spence retirement, Texas State Capitol Senate Chamber 26 Aug Distinguished Speaker Program Speaker TBA 21 Oct Distinguished Speaker Program Speaker TBA RADM William Moran Ensign Christopher Lu and Capt. Mike Spence, CO UT NROTC 2 Dec Distinguished Speaker Program & Annual Meeting/Awards Speaker TBA Dates are subject to change to accommodate the speaker. For calendar updates go to Ensign Mathew Mayo Ensign Elizabeth Page * Please Note * Due to an increase in meeting expenses, the cost of meals was increased to $30 for members and their guests. The increase also helps to offset the cost of meals for uniformed military, cadets and midshipmen. Thank you for understanding. Ensign Rebecca White Newly commissioned officer s Hook em 2d Lt. Jason Stowers UT ROTC Staff Hook em George T. Jones, U. S. Navy WWII Veteran and Navy League Member George T. Jones Scholarship Fund provides scholarships to graduating seniors in Navy and Marine JROTC and Sea Cadet programs Contribute Now! Send your contributions to Greater Austin Council NLUS George T. Jones Scholarship Fund c/o Ray Roark Fountainbleu Circle Austin, TX Donations are tax deductible The Anchor, May June

8 The ANCHOR Kathy Pillmore, Editor Jupiter Hills Drive Austin, TX The ANCHOR is the official newsletter of the Greater Austin Council of the Navy League of the United States. It is published six times annually and distributed free of charge to all its members and to other interested parties. The Greater Austin Council is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and as such is exempt from Limited Sales, Excise and Use Taxes per the IRS Code. FIRST CLASS MAIL RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Supporting the U. S. Sea Services COMMUNITY AFFILIATES Ricon Products HELP US BUILD OUR MEMBERSHIP Use the form below and sign up a new member. Bring it and your new member to our next council meeting, or mail the form, together with the fee (check or money order payable to NLUS,) to Kathy Pillmore, Jupiter Hills Drive, Austin, TX 78747; or Sam Williams, 3509 Arrowhead Dr., Austin, TX The new member will be added to our mailing list immediately. YES! Please enroll me as a Navy Leaguer Today I am a U.S. Citizen I am not a U. S. Citizen Name: (Mr., Mrs., Dr., Etc.) First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name Name of Spouse: (Mr., Mrs., Dr., Etc.) First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name Address: Number, Street, Name (Apt., Suite, P.O. Box) Date of Birth City State Zip Code (+4) Type of Membership (please check one) Individual One-Year Membership...$50 Joint Husband/Wife One-Year...$85 Individual Two-Year Membership...$90 Individual Three-Year Membership...$125 Individual Life Membership...$500 Joint Husband/Wife Life Membership...$750 Some NLUS Councils may charge local dues Method of Payment Check enclosed (Make payable to NLUS or Please charge my Visa MC AMEX Home Phone Business Phone Card# Exp. Date Sponsor s Last Name Sponsor s Membership # New Member s Council Signature Billing Zip Code