Submariners Jiving in the area of the University of Virginia, in and around Charlottesville, VA, made an unusual presentation to the Midshipmen’s Battalion of the UV A Naval ROTC on Friday, 8 April 2005. Their action originated almost a year ago following the annual ROTC awards ceremony at Mr. Thomas Jefferson’s Akademical Village. At that time, it was noted that the Midshipmen’s Wardroom housed a number of worthy books and other reading material, mostly having to do with professional or historical Navy topics. Although the table in front of the overstuffed leather lounge displayed a coffee table book entitled, The Brownshoe Navy, no similar volumes could be found that expounded on the history or the merits of life in the Silent Service.
Accordingly, local retired submariners obtained a copy of the Naval Submarine League’s 2002 book, United States Submarines. The title page of this wonderful treatise on life and service in the Submarine Force was inscribed as follows, above the title:
Presented to the University of Virginia NROTC Battalion for use in the Maury Hall Midshipmen Wardroom. The undersigned, proud members of the Submarine Service who now live in the Charlottesville area, hope that young Cavaliers will find information and inspiration in this volume that may ultimately lead them to a rewarding career in the Silent Service.
Eleven submariners with service in fifty submarines and afloat submarine staffs signed their names and a list of their submarine service below the title. Service represented mostly Cold War years, although one signatory served in DENTUDA during WW II. Signatories included:
CAPT. Jack McNish, USN (RET)
CAPT. Joseph C. Dobes, USN (RET)
CAPT. Anthony H. Hastoglis, USN (RET)
CAPT. George W. Greene, USN (RET)
CAPT. John W. Renard, USN (RET)
CAPT. Jerry E. Jones, USN (RET)
CDR. George K. Fraser, Jr., USN (RET)
CDR Norman S. Gutzler, USN (RET)
Mr. F. Daniels Butterfield
Assoc. Prof. Patrick 0. Riley
Mr. Richard C. Bryan, LT, USNR (WWII)
The book was given to the Midshipman Battalion Commander, Midshipman l/c Peter D. Andrews, by CDR George K. Fraser, Jr., for use by all members of the Battalion. CAPT Jack McNish, CAPT Anthony A. Hastoglis, and Mr. Dan Butterfield all accompanied George Fraser at the ceremony, representing all retired submariners in the Charlottesville region.
At the same time, CDR Fraser presented Midshipman Andrews with the Naval Submarine League’s annual Frederick B. Warder Award for Outstanding Achievement, in recognition of his demon-strated superior, sustained performance in a difficult and challenging academic and operational environment. Midshipman Andrews, a chemical engineering major, will be attending nuclear power training followed by Submarine School following his commissioning in May of this year.
Other awards to UV A NROTC Midshipmen and to members of the other service ROTC’s will be presented at a joint awards ceremony scheduled for 26 April 2005, when Midshipman Andrews’ award was originally scheduled to be presented.
The joint presentation of United States Submarines and the Frederick B. Warder award was scheduled to coincide with a briefing for the NROTC Battalion about the Submarine Service, to acquaint them with details of submarine operations, life and career paths. CAPT Michael T. Poirier, USN, from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Program Analysis & Evaluation, gave a highly informative briefing that might well have convinced several of his listeners that the Submarine Service was an attractive option for their future career choices. CAPT Poirier was previously Commanding Officer of USS TOLEDO (SSN 769) during both phases of the recent Iraq war, and participated in several Tomahawk missile launches.
