Distinguished Speaker Program

Transcription

1 The Official Newsletter of the Navy League of the United States Greater Austin Council September October 2013 Citizens in Support of the Sea Services COUNCIL OFFICERS Kathy Pillmore President Vacant President-Elect Bruce Byron Vice President for Administration Stephen Smith Vice President for Business Partnerships Glenn Looney Vice President for Communications Tim Hunsberger Vice President for Education LuAnn Reyes Treasurer &Vice President for Finance Bruce Byron Vice President for Military Affairs Jeanie Coffey Vice President for Legislative Affairs Jim Brotherton Vice President for Youth Programs Brian Colfack Secretary Kaye Johanson Alternate Secretary Tom Griffy Chaplain Michael Murray Judge Advocate General NATIONAL DIRECTORS Max Miller Jeanie Coffey Tim Hunsberger Glenn Looney Jack Ritter Mary Virginia Pittman-Waller NATIONAL V.P. Jack Ritter BOARD OF DIRECTORS Glenn Looney, Chairman Jim Brotherton Bruce Byron Jeanie Coffey Don Jones Max Miller Randy Patterson Jack Ritter Steve Smith Kathy Pillmore (Ex Officio) LIAISONS Brian Colfack Military Services Coalition Steve Smith Marine Corps CAPT John G. Eden, USN CO UT NROTC CDR Brett Fereday, USN CO Navy Operations Support Center OUR NEXT Distinguished Speaker Program Thursday October 31, 2013 Dr Hans Mark Professor of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics University of Texas at Austin TOPIC: NAVY ON THE MOON; MARS IS NEXT Dr. Hans M. Mark specializes in the study of spacecraft and aircraft design, electromagnetic rail guns, and national defense policy. He has published more than 180 technical reports and authored or edited eight books. Dr. Mark is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He is the recipient of the 1999 Joe J. King Engineering Achievement Award and the 1999 George E. Haddaway Medal for Achievement in Aviation. He holds six honorary doctorates. Dr. Mark was born in Mannheim, Germany and lived in Vienna for a time before the Nazi Anschluss via Switzerland. Before the collapse of France, the Mark family moved to London where they lived during the Battle of Britain and the bombing of London. Mark s father was a polymer chemist who took a position with a Canadian paper company, moving his family to Toronto. The family moved to the United States in 1940 where Dr. Mark graduated from New York s Stuyvesant High School and went on to receive his bachelor s degree in physics from the University of California, Berkeley in 1951 and a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in After completion of his doctorate, Mark stayed on at MIT as a research associate and acting head of the Neutron Physics Group Laboratory for Nuclear Science. He returned to UC Berkeley in 1955 and remained there until 1958 as a research physicist at the University s Continued on page 3 DISTINGUISHED SPEAKER PROGRAM RESERVATIONS 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 ARE REQUIRED CALL OR luann@luannreyes.com ONLINE via PayPal at PLEASE NOTE: WE CANNOT GUARANTEE YOUR MEAL WITHOUT A RESERVATION

2 President s Message Kathy Pillmore President, Greater Austin Council, NLUS We welcome back a perennial favorite as our October 31 st Distinguished Speaker. Dr. Hans Mark is always interesting and thoughtprovoking. If you read through his bio you will see what a remarkable depth of knowledge and experience he brings with him. We are fortunate that he is always willing to share his insight with us. His topic.navy on the Moon: Mars is Next is intriguing to say the least especially coming from someone with his extensive experience with NASA and all things space related. Make your reservations early before we sell this one out. And yes as it will be Halloween, a few ghoulish surprises are planned. Several of the Council officers met recently to discuss the financial situation of the council and to look for ways to generate additional revenue. The Council has never charged membership dues and only receives a small portion of our revenues from the national organization. However, the consensus thought from the meeting was that the best way to increase revenue is to increase membership. We are looking at ways to beef up our already outstanding speaker series with topics that will get you out of your comfy chairs to spend an evening with your fellow Navy Leaguers. We are also reaching out to reservists, former military, parents of students and corporations who support our mission. We encourage you to bring a guest to one of our dinners and get them hooked on the Navy League. While looking for ways to beef up our bank balance and ability to carry out our mission, we ar also looking for individuals who are willing to step up and take leadership roles in the council. The same individuals continue to serve and it s time to get some new faces involved. See more about this below. We received an update on the USS Texas SSN-775 from Lt. Chris Hoover, Assistant Professor of Naval Science with UT Navy ROTC. Chris was responsible for getting the longhorns to the boat in Hawaii. Remember that we had asked for a photo of the horns mounted on the Texas once it got underway. The ship has been undergoing repairs in Hawaii and Lt. Hoover reports that due to the boat s desire to return to sea, delays in shipyard maintenance and the government shutdown, the fate of the photo has been postponed until the summer of We will again offer the Adopt-A-Cadet program at dinner to help us offset the cost of hosting the many young men and women from the local ROTC, JROTC, Sea Cadet and Young Marine units. It was so successful at our last dinner that it is destined to become a standard part of our dinners. Adopters are recognized in several ways and receive a Certificate of Adoption for their effort (and tax records.) We have one more dinner planned this year on December 5. It will also be our annual collection for Toys for Tots so mark your calendars, purchase a toy for a young boy or girl and bring it, unwrapped, to the December dinner. Until then, fair winds and following seas... Kathy DUTY CALLS All of us, at some time or other, have thought to ourselves: I could do as good a job on that as (The CO, the Boss, or the politicians). Well, here s your chance! As with many organizations, the Greater Austin Council depends on its members to volunteer to lead and administer the activities of the Council. All of us benefit from their willingness to take the helm of some part of the organization and help make the Council better for all members. However, it falls to a relatively few to share these duties, usually no more than ten percent of the membership. We all are busy beyond belief with family, jobs and other worthwhile community activities, but the fact is the Greater Austin Council needs a regular influx of members to aid in supporting our Youth Programs, Distinguished Speaker programs, financial and membership activities, and the other items that come up. If we don t get new helpers, the Council will inevitably wither, and will be of little help in strengthening the missions of the Navy League in the Austin area or at the wider reach of the NLUS. We are most fortunate to have a group of members who have been willing and interested in assisting in Navy League matters in Austin, in Texas, and at the national level. If we are to continue the well-deserved regard of the Greater Austin Council, we must have more of our members who are able to lend a hand. A commitment to serve need not be a burden, and we will all benefit. Please step up and contact President Kathy Pillmore, or one of our Directors to see where you can help. We will be pleased to accommodate your interest, skills, and available time. 2 The Anchor, September October

3 Mark, continued from page 1 Lawrence Radiation Laboratory in Livermore. He returned to MIT as an assistant professor of physics and in 1960 again returned to the University of California s Livermore Lab s Experimental Physics Division. He remained there until 1964 when he became chairman of the University s Department of Nuclear Engineering and administrator of the Berkeley Research Reactor. In February 1969, Dr. Mark became director of NASA s Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California where he managed the center s research and application efforts in aeronautics, space science, life science and space technology. He subsequently served as Undersecretary of the Air Force from 1977 until July 1979 when he was promoted to Secretary of the Air Force. Concurrently he served as Director of the National Reconnaissance Office from August 1977 to October He remained at this position until 1981 when he was appointed Deputy Administrator of NASA by President Reagan, a position he held from July 10, 1981 until September Upon leaving NASA, Dr. Mark served as Chancellor of The University of Texas System until 1992 and moved on to become a senior professor of aerospace engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. He has served on the faculty of the Cockrell School of Engineering since In July 1998 he began work at The Pentagon when President Clinton nominated him as Director of Defense Research and Engineering. In 2001, he returned to U.T. where he currently holds the John J. McKetta Centennial Energy Chair in Engineering. Dr. Mark currently teaches a one-hour introductory course to incoming freshman on Aerospace Engineering. All undergraduates since 2001 have taken his course. He also teaches a history of space flight course and as well as a course focusing on the role of technology in the Cold War. Mark also holds a research position at the University of Texas Institute for Advanced Technology. DEATH OF NAVY TRADITION An obituary for Navy Tradition (USN, retired) : In a press release from Washington D.C., the Navy Department announced the death of Navy tradition after a long illness. Navy Tradition was born into a world of turmoil and revolution in Starting with nothing as a child, Navy Tradition evolved to become an essential part of the most powerful Navy the world had ever seen. He was present when James Lawrence ordered, Don t give up the ship as he lay mortally wounded on the deck of the Chesapeake. He witnessed cannon balls bounding off the copper-shielded sides of the USS Constitution, Old Ironsides. He fought pirates off the Barbary Coast and suffered with his shipmates on the battleship Arizona during the attack at THANK YOU to our September 12 Adopters Peggy Jones Chris & Bruce Byron CWO5 Rocky Hulse Sylvia & Max Miller Kathy & Bob Pillmore Mary Virginia Pittman-Waller Mary & Jack Ritter Pearl Harbor. He fought his way across the Pacific with Nimitz and saw MacArthur fulfill his promise to return to the Philippines. Navy Tradition was there when sailors fought bravely to save the frigate Stark after it was hit by a cruise missle and witnessed the launch of Tomahawk missles from the battleship Missouri at the outset of Desert Storm. Through all the strife, good times and bad, Navy Tradition was there to support his shipmates and give a balance to the misery that sometimes accompanied a life at sea. Be the nation at peace or at war, Navy Tradition made sure that we always remembered we were sailors. He made sure that promotions were celebrated with an appropriate wetting down ; crows, dolphins and wings were tacked on as a sign of respect from those already so celebrated; chiefs were promoted in solemn ceremony after being initiated by their fellow brethren; and only Continued on P. 7 The Anchor, September October

4 Snapshots from the September 12, 2013 Distinguished Speaker Program &Dinner (L R) GAC President Kathy Pillmore presents guest speaker RADM Patrick Hall with a custom-made pen as a token of appreciation; Two Vista Ridge NJROTC cadets chat with Capt. John Eden, CO of the UT NROTC unit; WWII Vet Jud Brodie with RADM Hall (L R) Nancy Looney and Chris Byron enjoy a glass of wine before dinner; Mary and Jack Ritter visit with two cadets from the Vista Ridge NJROTC; Conrad Derdeyn and Tom Howard visit with three young ladies from Vista Ridge High School. (L R) GAC member Pat Harris (right) visits with Vista Ridge students; RADM Hall discusses Carrier Strike Group NINE; Nancy Looney and two Vista Ridge students chat before dinner. (Top Left) Vista Ridge NJROTC cadets, some of whom had not yet received their uniforms, were special guests at the dinner; (Bottom Left) Vista Ridge High School cadets with RADM Hall and WWII Vet, Jud Brodie. (Right) Former GAC board member George Haley dropped by for a visit with our greeters Sharon and Dean Nobles photos by Bob Pillmore 4 The Anchor, September October

5 NLUS Legislative Affairs team prepares for its visit to Capitol Hill Ninety members of Navy League Councils from all over the United States will pay a visit to more than 60 members of Congress on November 14. The purpose of the visit is to inform them that the United States, its allies and friends, depend upon strong and well-maintained sea services for their economic well-being and national defense, and to solicit their support for funding for the sea services so they can carry out their mission. At the close of the meeting the congressman always asks, what can I do for you? The questionnaire below has been prepared as an answer to that question. The Capitol Hill Fly-In is a precursor to the Navy League s National Board of Directors meeting that begins the following day. GAC recognizes UT unit and individuals for their support At the September dinner, GAC Chairman Glenn Looney presented a Certificate of Appreciation to the UT NROTC Unit for their color guard service to the Council in President Kathy Pillmore presented a well-deserved Certificate of Appreciation to Lt. Chris Hoover, Assistant Professor of Naval Science, UT NROTC for his perseverance in getting the pair of 7 ft. longhorns, donated to the USS Texas SSN-775, to Hawaii; and Capt. John Eden, CO of the UT NROTC Unit was presented with an Honorary Membership in the Greater Austin Council. CLOSING COMMENTS As you know, the Navy League actively supports the Sea Services. (Navy, Marine Corps, US Flag Merchant Marine, and Coast Guard) Each of these services has matters that are concerns of the Navy League. The following are subjects on which we would appreciate hearing your comments and viewpoints NAVY 1. Do you support funding for 306 US Navy ships in order for our Navy to carry out its mission? 2. Can you support a $21B funding level in the Shipbuilding & Construction account each year to have this number of ships? 3. Do you support the US Navy proposal to fund a separate program to develop and build the Ohio Replacement (Ballistic Missile) submarine? COAST GUARD Can you support an annual US Coast Guard acquisition, construction, and improvements budget of $2B per year for building Fast Response Cutters, Off Shore Patrol Cutters, and National Security Cutters? U S FLAG MERCHANT MARINE 1. Do you support the U S Flag Merchant Marine Food for Peace and other cargo preference programs? 2. Do you support using the $8B (est.) in unspent funds in the Harbor Maintenance Trust fund to maintain America s harbors, land locks, dams, and waterways? MARINE CORPS 1. Do you support the new F-35 plane for the Marine Corps? 2. Do you support keeping the Marine Corps troop size to 182,000, to ensure they are able to respond to any global crisis? Please respond with your thoughts and comments to your local Navy League voter at : The Anchor, September October

6 The Chaplain s Corner During WW2 soldiers, sailors and airmen were given Bibles with the following inscription from President Franklin D. Roosevelt: As Commander-in-Chief I take pleasure in commending the reading of the Bible to all who serve in the armed forces of the United States. Throughout the centuries men of many faiths and diverse origin have found in the Sacred Book words of wisdom, counsel and inspiration. It is a fountain of strength and now, as always, an aid in attaining the highest aspirations of the human soul. The Bible occupies a unique place in the world of literature. Through the centuries it has been one of the major influences of western thought. No one can claim to be fully educated who is not familiar with the Bible. The Bible is an ancient book, yet it is still acknowledged by many to be the final authority on religious matters. In contrast, Hippocrates is no longer considered to be the authority on medical matters nor Archimedes on matters of science. The Bible was originally written in Hebrew and Greek (with a smattering of Aramaic). Since few of us are fluent in these languages, we read the Bible in English translation. Many people worked diligently and some suffered greatly to bring us the English translations we have today. One of those men was William Tyndale ( ). William Tyndale studied at Oxford and Cambridge. He was fluent in eight languages. His proposal to translate the New by Tom Griffy Testament from Greek into English was opposed by the ecclesiastical authorities in England. In 1524 he boasted to his clerical enemies, If God spare my life, ere many years I will cause a boy that drives a plough to know more of the Scriptures than you do. Determined to produce an English translation of the NT, he was forced to flee to Hamburg and then to Cologne. In Cologne 600 copies were printed before he had to flee once more, this time to Worms. Tyndale completed his translation of the New Testament in Twenty thousand copies, in six editions, were smuggled into England hidden in bolts of cloth or in barrels between the years 1525 and Church authorities did their best to confiscate copies of Tyndale s translation and burn them, but they couldn t stop the flow of Bibles from Germany into England. Tyndale learned Hebrew while in Germany and produced a translation of the Torah in Antwerp in 1530 with the help of Miles Coverdale. Tyndale was not only an excellent linguist; he was also an extraordinary wordsmith. Tyndale s translation of the Bible is still admired for the clear, poetic quality of the writing. (Eighty- Three percent of the King James Bible, published in 1611, comes directly from Tyndale.) Tyndale was captured by Catholic sympathizers and was strangled and burned at the stake near Brussels on October 6, His last words were, Lord, open the king of England s eyes. Navy League of the United States Establishes Washington Navy Yard Survivors Fund do our best to help members of our extended Navy family through this difficult time This fund will be closed at a date to be determined, with 100 percent of the donations going to help the victims families and those injured in the attack. To find out how you can help, visit The Navy League of the United States has established the Washington Navy Yard Survivors Fund to provide financial assistance to those families most affected by the tragic events at the Navy Yard on Sept. 16, It is our duty, as a trusted partner of the sea services, to do what we can to ease the burden of those whose lives are forever changed by this tragic event, Navy The Latrobe Gate at the Washington Navy Yard League National President James H. Offutt said. We look forward to working Stacy McFarland, Staff Vice President, De- For more information, please contact with like-minded nongovernmental organizations, community leaders and others on this endeavor. We are going to or via at velopment and Programs at or development@navyleague.org. 6 The Anchor, September October

7 George T. Jones, U. S. Navy WWII Veteran and Navy League Member DEATH OF TRADITION Cont'd George T. Jones Scholarship Fund provides scholarships to graduating seniors in Navy and Marine JROTC and Sea Cadet programs Contribute Now! Send your tax deductible contributions to Greater Austin Council NLUS George T. Jones Scholarship Fund c/o Lu Ann Reyes Pantara Dr. Austin, TX those worth were allowed to earn the title shellback. But in his later years, Navy Tradition was unable to fight the cancer of political correctness. He tired as his beloved Navy went from providing rations of rum to its sailors to conducting Breathalyzer tests on the brow. He weakened as he saw Going into harm s Way turn into Cover your backside, and as Wooden ships and iron men morphed into U.S. Navy, Inc. A lifelong friend of Navy Tradition recalled a crossing-theequator ceremony during World War II: I had to eat a cherry out of the belly button of the fattest sailor on the ship. It was disgusting. But for that few minutes, it took our minds off the war and to this day it is one of my greatest memories. In lieu of flowers, the family of Navy Tradition has asked that all sailors who have earned their shellback and drunk their dolphins; who remember sore arms from where their crows were tacked on and were sent on a search for relative bearing grease or a length of water line ; who ve been through chiefs initiation or answered ship s call in a bar fight in some exotic port of call, to raise a toast one more time and remember Navy Tradition in his youth and grandeur. Fair winds and following seas, Shipmate. You will be missed. GAC Program Calendar Oct 31 BOO! Nov 14 Dec 5 TBA TBA TBA TBA ~2013~ Dr. Hans Mark, Professor of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at the University of Texas, Austin. Former chancellor of the U.T. System, Secretary of the Air Force and Deputy Administrator of NASA. Anchors Aweigh Capitol Hill Fly-In. Meet Congressmen on the Hill to present NLUS priorities. (See article p.5) Holiday Dinner and business meeting. CAPT George Fadok, USN, RET ANNUAL TOYS FOR TOTS COLLECTION ~2014~ Congressman Michael McCaul, 10th District, U. S. House of Representatives scheduled to discuss cybersecurity. Edwin Dorn, Professor of Public Affairs, UT LBJ School of Public Affairs scheduled to discuss national defense policy. Vice ADM Peter H. Daly, former Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff U. S. Fleet Forces Command. Texas General Land Office Commissioner, Jerry Patterson Dates are subject to change to accommodate the speaker. For calendar updates go to Advertise your business in The Anchor. For information go to www. navyleagueaustin.org/ newsletter/asp or kpillmore@ austin.rr.com The Anchor, September October

8 The ANCHOR 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 Citizens in Support of the Sea Services The Navy League of the United States is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating our citizens about the importance of sea power to U. S. national security, and supporting the men and women of the sea services and their families. SUPPORT OUR 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,) Lu Ann Reyes, Pantara Dr., Austin, TX The new member will immediately be added to our mailing list. YES! Name: (Mr., Mrs., Dr., Etc.) Name of Spouse: (Mr., Mrs., Dr., Etc.) Please enroll me as a Navy Leaguer Today I am a U.S. Citizen Address: Number, Street, Name (Apt., Suite, P.O. Box) Your Company s Name Here Ask us how I am not a U. S. Citizen First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name Date of Birth City State Zip Code (+4) Type of Membership (please check one)* Your Company s Name Here Ask us how Individual One-Year Membership...$50 Husband & Wife One-Year Membership...$80 Individual Two-Year Membership...$90 Individual Three-Year Membership...$125 Individual Life Membership (55 and below)...$1,000 Individual Life Membership (56-75)...$750 Individual Life Membership (76+)...$500 Method of Payment Check enclosed (Make payable to NLUS) or Please charge my Visa MC AMEX Home Phone Business Phone Card# Exp. Date Greater Austin Council Sponsor s Last Name Sponsor s Membership # New Member s Council Signature Billing Zip Code *Student memberships available online at navyleague.org ($25)