NORTHWIND Official Newsletter of District 11 Northern. COMO ROD COLLINS District Commodore, D11N. February 2014 Volume 20, Issue 1

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1 NORTHWIND - OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF D11N NORTHWIND Official Newsletter of District 11 Northern February 2014 IN THIS ISSUE COMO ROD COLLINS District Commodore, D11N Skills Bank Support DISTRICT COMMODORE Page 1 DISTRICT CHIEF OF STAFF Page 2 DCAPT SUPPORT Page 4 BOATSWAIN S LOCKER Page is promising to be a challenging year for the Coast Guard. As their budgets are being decreased they still need to perform their required missions and they acknowledge that for some of these they will be asking for Auxiliarists help. When this need arises how will they be able to find an Auxiliarist that matches the need they have? This is the main objective of the Skills Bank. I believe that all members by now have heard of the new skills bank. The main function of this program is to provide a reporting tool that can quickly identify Auxiliary members by skills and qualifications. If you want to be considered when the need arises then I ask for you to review and update your skills bank data. The updating of your data is painless and provides great value. You can update your skills via Aux Directory. Just call up your member detail record and as you move down the screen you will come up to the Skills Bank Detail. You can add or update your skills and the data is available to the Skills Bank reporting immediately. The other option you have is to update your skills on the Change of Member Information form, 7028, in Section IV Skills Bank Input. Send your updated 7028 to your IS officer for system input. Either way you are updated and available to be considered if your skills are requested. Currently D11N has just 27% of our members with updates to their skills, and I know everyone has skills that should be updated. I am asking all members to update your skills so that we have a current and accurate representation of our member s capabilities. I look forward to seeing everyone at DTRAIN in Sacramento! Rod Collins, DCO DCAPT RESPONSE Page 5 CALENDAR OF EVENTS Page 8 D11N NORTHWIND NEWSLETTER TEAM Curtis Han DSO- PB William Kinsey ADSO- PB Victor Beelik ADSO- PB Dennis Wilson ADSO- PB

2 2 RICH THOMAS District Chief of Staff, D11N NEW YEAR PREPARATIONS ARE UNDERWAY FOR D- TRAIN 2014 Shipmates: I thought I would do an article this quarter on one of the premier events annually for District Eleven North. This of course is the annual District Training, also known as D- TRAIN. This year s event will be in Sacramento, California and will be held on the 14 th through 16 th of March at the beautiful Hyatt Regency Hotel, which is located directly across the street from the California State Capitol. Awards Luncheon Saturday Evening Awards Banquet Sunday Past Commanders Association Breakfast Sunday TCT/OPS Refresher and Dockwalker Classes Chicken Caesar Wraps and Pasta Salad (Above: Sample- size only) Dinner selections are upscale and absolutely delicious. Phil and I sat down with the chef and had tasting samples. Salmon Hyatt Regency Sacramento, California Through the diligent efforts of D- TRAIN coordinator, Phil Sanchez, this event is on schedule to be another great venue for our District. Phil and some of his helpers have secured a great room price for this elegant hotel in a great location. Some of the highlights of this conference are: Division Commanders Pre- Board Meeting Board and Staff Meeting Friday Evening Fellowship Cornerstone Saturday Morning Opening Ceremony Numerous Classes Throughout the Day Typical Classroom Area We will find that the rooms and areas throughout the hotel will be spacious and beautifully decorated. Upper Level Class Area Foyer Have I mentioned the food? You are going to be delighted with the faire served at the meals. The Saturday luncheon will have ample size chicken Caesar wraps and pasta salad. Chicken Steak (Continued on Page 3)

3 3 The Dessert To Die For Of Course there will be Vegetarian plates available for our Vegan friends. On Friday evening there will be the Fellowship Cornerstone night on the top floor with an excellent view of the State Capitol across the street and overview of Sacramento. There are outdoor gardens and we will have this entire floor for our event. Phil has arranged a great venue for the evening consisting of a Las Vegas type lounge act for your listening and dancing pleasure. More information should be out shortly regarding the evening. IMAX Theater Shops & Restaurants There will also be some interesting speakers at the event and lots of surprises. Don t forget that the Silent Auction will be in operation again this year and a chance for you to purchase some great prizes at a fraction of their retail value. Whether you are new to the Auxiliary or a long time member, this is the one single event to come out and learn, meet and greet people from all over the district, experience the pride of acknowledgement of our accomplishments and share fellowship in a District Wide event. D Train Hotel Reservations, Registration, and Class Schedule can be viewed at: train/index.html The East Wing of Our Friday Evening There will be many outside activities for those that would like to bring the family and or just explore the sites of the Capitol City. With the grounds of the Capitol across the street, take some time to visit our Capitol. There are several museums in the area and the Railroad Museum and Old Town are nearby. The hotel backs directly to a pedestrian walk area with several restaurants, movie theater, and shops. When you check in there will be information on all the side venues available. Old Town Commodore Collins has selected the theme of D- Train as: PROFICIENCY THROUGH TRAINING and there will be plenty of class opportunities for attendees. The DSO s for PA, PE, and VE attended the N- Train in January and brought back valuable information about the programs. Each staff officer had the opportunity to attended different classes. There was a new section provided this year entitled Rapid Fire short 30 minute presentations by several members in leadership roles that you will find interesting and provide you information you may not know about that is available to you as an Auxiliarist. The information will be provided to our members at the upcoming D- TRAIN. Rich Thomas, DCOS D11NR D- TRAIN Chairperson WHAT S NEW Please check out the What s New page on our District 11NR website for important information for all members: new.html

4 4 SIMONE ADAIR District Captain Support, D11N Our National Commodore Thomas C. Malison has chosen for his watchwords Training, Communication, and Members as a way to guide our focus as we move forward. Commodore Mallison, in his Executive Summary, speaks to the ability of our members to attain personal satisfaction with ever- increasing opportunities for service. Personal satisfaction through service for others, for our communities and for our country is available to each of us. Every Auxiliarist takes an oath of membership pledging their commitment to support the Auxiliary. There is an expectation from day one to operate at much higher level of excellence. We each wear the uniform with pride, train for a myriad of missions, perform our duties as appointed or elected leaders, cooperate with others, and so much more Our Staff Officers in Member Services work tirelessly to support Coast Guard operational, administrative, and logistical requirements here in the District. The very watchwords of our national leadership - training, communication, and members - reflect back to our support staff. The offices of Communication Services, Diversity, Information Services, Materials, Member Training, Human Resources and Publications all work seamlessly with each of the other Directorates to provide our members safe and enriching experiences. Whether you are a new member or a longtime member, there are a multitude of opportunities within the District for you to engage in. There are trainings, operational patrols, vessel safety exams, and information booths. Indeed there is no shortage of activities. Your participation is wanted and needed, and you will be supported. Your hours will count. Your training needs will be met. Your accomplishments will be acknowledged. Our Support Directorate exemplifies the Coast Guard Auxiliary s Core Values. Each of our Staff Officers demonstrates the highest levels of integrity. We value diversity, and we are committed to achieving not only our organization s goals but also the goals of our members. We strengthen our District and look to the future by cultivating the talents of each member. Our Staff Officers are each examples of dynamic, effective, and valuable leaders. They stand ready to meet the needs of our membership and our organization. Simone Adair, DCAPT- S For quick access to our National Leadership page, please click the link below or scan the QR Code. INTERP RETER CORP DO YOU SPEAK A FOREIGN Too implausible for a Hollywood movie? Yeah, probably so! FROM THE BOATSWAIN S LOCKER First, let me thank you for all of your hard work and the outstanding contributions made by you and your peers supporting the Coast Guard s missions during the past year. I think we can all agree the 2013 was a trying year with resource challenges and the funding hiatus. From the looks of things, 2014 will bring similar opportunities for us to find better, more efficient ways to operate while still delivering the superior mission support our customers have grown to rely on. I d like to take this opportunity to recap some recent changes in policy and highlight some initiatives I m driving this coming year. PATROL REIMBURSABLE EXPENSES LTJG Leahey from Sector San Francisco raised an interesting point before Christmas that sparked a good discussion about reimbursable patrol expenses. The big takeaway I d like for coxswains and facility owners to remember is that funding for patrol expenses is fluid and some reimbursable expenses may not remain consistent throughout the year. (Continued on Page 5)

5 5 BILL STOLZ District Captain Response, D11N Greetings District 11 North. Welcome to the year of the Coast Guard Auxiliary s 75 th birthday. As the only new member of the EXCOM for District 11N, I thought I would introduce myself. I have been in the Auxiliary for 9 years and hail from Division 11, the Sierra Division that serves the Lake Tahoe, Reno and the surrounding region. Prior to joining the Auxiliary I had been an avid small boat catamaran sailor. I joined the Auxiliary thinking that I had a pretty good knowledge base, but soon learned there was so much more to learn. I have enjoyed taking the Specialty Courses that led up to becoming AUXOP. I am also an Instructor, Program Visitor, Vessel Examiner, Aids Verifier and Coxswain. The past 9 years have been very rewarding and I look forward to the years to come. Commodore Collins has asked me to work with the Response District Staff Officers. I am very excited with this assignment and with the knowledge and expertise these officers have I should learn a great deal. I look forward to working with them. I have also been assigned to work with Divisions 3, 8 and 10. I pledge to assist them in any way I can. This time of the year the days are short and cold for the most part and much of our district have put their facilities into storage. So what can we do now? 1. PLAN Plan on attending D- Train, March Again, all members are encouraged to attend. Plan on attending an OPTREX (Operational Training Exercise) events. Please see the following table for 2014 OPTREX schedule. Please check the District Calendar online for any updates or changes to the schedule. DATES UNITS LOCATIONS POC APR 12 DIV 5 OPEX CGSTA Vallejo Curtis Han APR 25 FL 35 OPTREX Antlers Carl Pierce MAY 3-4 DIV 10 OPEX Lake Kaweah Rod Rollins MAY 10 DIV OPTREX TBD William Burns JUN 7 DIV 5 QE ONLY CGSTA Vallejo Curtis Han AUG 8-9 DIV 7 OPTREX Jordanelle Reservoir, UT COMO Mike Williams SEP FL 88 OPTREX Braitos Marina, Clear Lake Bruce Rogerson OCT DIV 10 OPTREX Millerton Lake Rod Rollins OCT FL 3-10 OPTREX Sacramento/Joaquin Delta Dean LaChapelle 2. STUDY Review the AUXMAN and Patrol Manual. Go to the District Operations Web pages. There is a wealth of information indexed with 203 titles of publications. These three sources should answer almost any question you will have concerning operations. If you can t find the answer there, please use your Chain of Leadership to acquire the answer. 3. PREPARE Facility owners should thoroughly check over there boat and equipment and replace or repair as necessary. Some of the overlooked areas are the cleat backing plate nuts and stanchion mounts that take a toll during tow evolutions. Please take advantage of all the opportunities the Auxiliary has to offer. I wish everyone a safe and fun season Bill Stolz, DCAPT- R FROM THE BOATSWAIN S LOCKER: (Continued from Page 4) The order issuing authorities, SECSF and SECHB, both have the responsibility to determine the level of funding for Auxiliary patrols in their AORs. That being said, Sector San Francisco will now reimburse bridge toll expenses incurred while travelling from your residence to the homeport of your facility. You may add Bridge Toll to the Other Reimbursable Expenses box in AOMS. Since we are talking about patrol expenses, I need to put another reminder for you to closely scrutinize the expense amounts you submit in AOMS. FINCEN has dedicated auditors on staff to review AOMS claims. They look for things like $75 ice or $100 oil additives. D11N policy is for receipts to accompany all reimbursable expenses; this includes expenses less than $75. D11N also requires coxswains and facility owners to refuel following each sortie regardless of the amount of fuel consumed. I know this practice is troublesome for those of you that own larger facilities, but it s necessary to ensure accurate accounting of limited and closely scrutinized funds. On those limited occasions when you can t get fuel following a sortie, capture the circumstances in your remarks for the OIA and auditors at FINCEN to validate. (Continued on Page 6)

6 6 FROM THE BOATSWAIN S LOCKER: (Continued from Page 5) SUPPORTING MARINE EVENTS D11N Auxiliary crews contributed over 8,000 hours of marine patrols in Many of these hours were in support of marine events throughout the district. One issue that came to light recently is Auxiliary units supporting non- permitted marine events. Those situations will face closer scrutiny during the coming year. For those of you that regularly patrol in the Sector s AORs, make sure the event has been permitted and approved by the OIA. Conversely, do not schedule to MOM patrol to coincide with a non- permitted marine event in your AOR without briefing the OIA first. The larger issue at play here is the Coast Guard now requires event planners to provide their own safety personnel and resources in order to minimize expenses to the taxpayers. Having CG AUX resources provide free safety resources undermines this policy, CG resources are provided to enhance public safety for spectators or ensure the commercial waterway in minimally impacted by the permitted event. For those of you that patrol inland lakes, the scenario for supporting marine events gets trickier. Lakes within sole state waters do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Captain of the Port (Sector Commander) but CG AUX activity on these lakes and rivers are covered on Memorandums of Understanding between the CG and the States. In cases where CG AUX operational resources are requested to support a marine event, the State Boating Law Administrator is required to contact the Order Issuing Authority to request the resource. Bottom line: In cases when you (as an Auxiliary member) are requested to provide a boat to support a marine event, such as a swim, triathlon, fireworks, etc., it is strongly recommended that you put the requesting party in contact with your Order Issuing Authority to coordinate the support. Otherwise, you may run the risk of not being reimbursed for patrol expenses or any damage/injury claims that may occur. As long as the OIA approves the patrol, with a full understanding of the circumstances, you are free to support the event. SUPPORTING LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES Remember that the Auxiliary Operations Manual prohibits any activities that vest Auxiliary members with general police powers or activities that would convey the impression to the boating public that Auxiliary members are conducting direct law enforcement. You may be asking yourself, What does that look like? I ve seen a few examples over the past eighteen months and have discussed others with my fellow OTOs. Here are a few examples: Pursuing a vessel suspected of being operated under the influence at the request of local LE. Standing at the entrance to a marina in your CG Auxiliary uniform and telling boaters to slow down before they enter. Directing a vessel s operator to return to the pier when you become aware of a safety infraction, such as insufficient PFD s. It s imperative that coxswains understand and are capable of communicating their limitations to local LE agencies and remain aware of the public image they are portraying. In the first example, local sheriffs or park rangers may have little understanding of CG policies and in the heat of the moment are looking for any resources available to assist them. In those cases, the coxswain needs to be the one to speak up in order to prevent the situation from getting out of control. In the second example, the member in question has the best intentions, but the delivery was flawed. In your role of promoting recreational boating safety, you are well in bounds educating boaters about the proximity of hazards or slow speed zones. But, you must draw the line at education. Any verbal or non- verbal task direction you give to a boater to comply with a regulation could be construed as a law enforcement activity. Choose your words carefully. The final example is the most challenging one to accept. In those cases where you witness illegal activity or non- compliance with boating safety regulations, you cannot exercise law enforcement powers. Your best course of action is to notify the nearest LE resource and be the best witness possible. In cases when you become aware of a safety concern, educate the boater about the risks they are taking and suggest they return to the pier to correct the matter. Again, verbiage here is key; you do not want your actions or wording to be construed as compelling compliance with a regulation. DAMAGE CLAIM PROCEDURES We were fortunate to only have two minor damage claims submitted during the last calendar year. For general awareness, I d like to recap the procedures to follow in the event you sustain damage to your facility or others property while on patrol. You must notify the Order Issuing Authority immediately. I would not recommend you rely on AUXCOM or even the local station to notify the OIA. Phone the Sector Command Center (SCC) as soon as practicable and brief them on the events and the damage sustained. You must then follow up with notifying DIRAUX via D11auxnorthern@uscg.mil address within 24 hours of sustaining the damage. The OIA must give authorization for you undertake repairs of the damage. This step is important because the OIA has to open an admin investigation into the mishap and document the damage. That means the investigator may need to take pictures of the damage. Upon notification of the mishap via , I will send you the Auxiliary Mishap Reporting Worksheet to complete and route to the OIA for processing. Please understand that this process can be cumbersome and ultimately requires approval from the Claims and Litigation Staff in Norfolk, VA. (Continued on Page 7)

7 7 FROM THE BOATSWAIN S LOCKER: (Continued from Page 6) PPE WAIVERS The water is cold, but the air and sun are toasty. This is a common scenario in our AOR. For those of you patrolling within the Sector Humboldt Bay AOR, contact the Sector Command Center when you need to request a waiver for PPE or operational matters. Coxswains patrolling within a Station s AOR under OPCON of Sector San Francisco may contact the controlling Small Boat Station to request waivers. Those facilities patrolling outside of a Station s AOR must contact the Sector San Francisco Command Center at (415) to request waivers. Bear in mind that the waiver process is not quick and may take upwards of an hour to get approval up the chain of command. Plan accordingly and request the waiver early based on forecasted weather. Waivers are on a case- by- case, sortie- by- sortie basis only. In absence of an approved waiver, plan accordingly to manage heat stress and hydration among your crews. That may mean pulling into the dock every couple of hours to hydrate and dress down for a bit before resuming patrol. I typically do not wear my full ODU underneath my Anti- Exposure coveralls; in most cases, I doff my blouse and stow it in my go- bag. Feel free to copy that practice, just be sure to have your ODU blouse available should you pull into a public marina and choose to half- dress your AEC for a bit or take it off for lunch. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. LOOKING AHEAD I will be promulgating a regional Qualification Examiner policy in the next couple of weeks. There are no major revisions in the document, it basically codifies in policy the direction set forth in the Auxiliary Boat Crew Training Manual. COMO Gail Ramsey will continue to offer her superior organizational and leadership skills as the Chief QE Coordinator. We also designated a Boat Crew Advisory Board that will convene during D- Train this spring to evaluate new QE applications. CG- 731, the Office of Boat Forces, will be promulgating a new Rescue and Survival Systems Manual in the coming months. Depending on the final verbiage of the manual, there may be some changes coming down with regards to how we issue, maintain, and use PPE. I predict you will be seeing more situations that require boat crew helmets be worn. I ll put out a synopsis of the new manual once it is published. In concert with the other Auxiliary regions, we are exploring the need to promulgate some guidance regarding towing boat/comms/coastie trailers. As with any other guidance DIRAUX publishes, we will endeavor to keep this guidance short, sweet, and to the point. You can expect to see that guidance before the summer boating season kicks off in earnest will be full of opportunities to show the value we provide to the Coast Guard, taxpayers, and the boating public. Seize the opportunity during the down season to look over your facility and equipment and perform any necessary maintenance or improvements. Go through your go- bags and associated equipment to make sure first aid supplies are not expired and everything has fresh batteries. Network with your fellow operators and establish a commitment to train hard and learn something new this coming season. Stay fit and sharp this winter. Thanks again for all of your support and feedback. D11N is staffed with an outstanding group of volunteer operators and leader s, I m very proud to work with you all and look forward to seeing you on the water. CWO2 Matthew J. James Operations Training Officer, D11N Feedback and questions are welcome. Contact D11N DIRAUX at d11auxnorthern@uscg.mil RELATED LINKS OF INTEREST: Please click the underlined links below or scan the QR Codes Operations Training Officer Bulletins etins.htm District 11 NR Operations Department ops.htm CWO2 Matthew James oversees the coxswain and crew candidates during Flotilla 55 OPTREX at CGSTA Bodega Bay

8 8 District Calendar of Events FEBRUARY - JUNE, 2014 FEB 10 EXCOM Meeting Webinar 1900 Hours FEB 15 District Board and Staff Meeting No Orders/Webinar CG Island, Alameda, CA FEB 28 Deadline: Auxiliarist of the Year National Award MAR 14 EXCOM, District Board and Staff Meeting D- TRAIN, Hyatt Regency Sacramento, CA MAR Annual District Training Conference Hyatt Regency, Sacramento, CA APR 12 Division 5 OPEX No QE Session CGSTA Vallejo POC: Curtis Han APR 16 District Board and Staff Meeting Webinar 1900 Hours APR 19 Aviation Safety Workshop , Gresham Hall, CG Island, Alameda APR 19 Aviation Swim Test Aviation Crew Members 1600 Following Safety Workshop APR 30- MAY 4 Flotilla 39 OPTREX (Antlers) POC: Carl Pierce MAY 1 Deadline for Boating Safety Award of Excellence MAY 3 4 Division 10 OPTREX Lake Kaweah POC: Rod Rollins MAY 10 Division 1 OPTREX Berkeley Marina POC: William Burns MAY 19 EXCOM Meeting Webinar 1900 Hours MAY 21 District Board and Staff Meeting Webinar 1900 Hours JUN 7 Division 5 OPTREX QE Session Only CGSTA Vallejo POC: Curtis Han JUN 20 EXCOM Meeting 1930 Hours Executive Inn, Alameda, CA JUN 21 District Board and Staff Meeting 1000 Coast Guard Island, Alameda, CA JUN 30 Deadline Three Star Award for Diversity Due to DSO- HR JUN 30 Deadline NACO Award Recruiting of 5 Members Due to DSO- HR JUN 30 Deadline Recruiting Ribbon 7 Members or More Due to DSO- HR JUN 30 Deadline NACO Award Flotilla Net Gain of 2+ Due to DSO- HR JUN 30 Deadline NACO Awrad Division Net Gain of 2+ Due to DSO- HR Please refer to the online District 11N Calendar for recent updates and information: Disclaimer: The NORTHWIND reserves the right to proof read and edit- copy all articles submitted. It takes no responsibility and accepts no liability for damages caused by errors left in the document. It cannot accept responsibility for the validity of web sites that link from this publication. It also cannot accept responsibility for any content submitted by any author. Articles published in the NORTHWIND must be consistent with the stated policies of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. Telephone numbers and addresses of members are protected by the Privacy Act of As a matter of policy, rosters of names, addresses and telephone numbers shall not be made available to the general public or any outside organization. Privacy of all rosters shall be safeguarded and the page clearly labeled. The publication of these rosters addresses and telephone numbers on any computer on- line service including the internet is prohibited by the 1974 Privacy Act.

9 9 NORTHWIND is the official publication of the United Stated Coast Guard Auxiliary, District Eleven North. Article contributions by the following: Rod Collins, District Commodore Rich Thomas, District Chief of Staff Simone Adair, DCAPT- Support Bill Stolz, DCAPT- Response Additional article contribution by: CWO2 Matthew James, OTO D11N Photograph contributions by: Curtis Han, Division 5 Rich Thomas, Division 8 Dennis Wilson, Division 5 Website: NORTHWIND Publications Team: Curtis Han DSO- PB William Kinsey ADSO- PB Victor Beelik ADSO- PB Dennis Wilson ADSO- PB District 11 North Webmaster Jimmin Chang DSO- CS Design and Layout: Curtis Han dso- pb@d11nuscgaux.info NORTHWIND Official Newsletter of District 11 Northern Commander (dpa- n) Coast Guard Island, Building 50-2 Alameda, CA [Addressee] [Street Address] [City, ST ZIP Code]