USS BELL
ASSOCIATION (DD587)
IN THIS ISSUE:
INDIANAPOLIS REUNION
INFORMATION
The 2006 reunion in
Shipmates attending were Arthur Arbogast, Mario Capitanio, Bill
Cavanaugh, Jack Forester, Tom Gutierrez, Ed Klenka, Al
Lewis, Bob Mantel, Maurice Moe and Honorary Shipmate Jon
Diulus. We enjoyed a tour of the City of
Our auction again proved to be a
wonderfully fun time and also generated some cash for the treasury. We had a really nice collection of gifts
for the auction. Many thanks to Mr.
& Mrs. James Henson of Willows,
REMEMBER – One thing you can’t recycle is
wasted time.
By a majority vote, the shipmates attending the
…..My brother Wally Moore QM 3C served on
the
....Bob Moore,
…..Thank you for your kind e-mail about my
brother. I came into the Navy on
March of 1944 and served with the Amphibs in the
Pacific but all I did was train.
After the War, the
…..Bob Moore,
…..I just wanted to let you know how
excited I was to see a picture of my father on your website! My father, Donald L. Nash is the person
listed as Nash in your old pictures of the crew. Sadly, he died on January 27, 2003 at the
age of 80. I may have some
additional pictures that I could e-mail you.
I will have to check my father’s office to see what he may have kept.
…..Kimberly Nash-Yore
…..Bob and I want to thank you for such a
lovely time. We really had fun. Everyone was so nice and friendly and the
tours were just great. Bob and I
can’t believe how much time and effort you put in to have this reunion. We are looking forward to next year. Thanks again.
…..Bob & Marge
Mantel,
NOTE: It was such a pleasure to welcome
Shipmate Bob and his lovely wife Marge to their first
…..I am writing to thank you for the
lovely box of presents I had at my front door the other day. It is most gratifying to have these
souvenirs of my father’s ship. The
package comes with good timing. On
Thursday, I will be meeting my mother, brother and sister at my Aunt’s 90th
birthday celebration. I will let my
family each have a pick of one of the items you sent, including my
brother-in-law, currently serving in the Navy.
Enclosed please find a check for $10.00 in payment of my annual dues. Finally, let me say I am so happy that
someone is taking up the organization of remembering my father’s shipmates.
You are doing a great job.
…..Stephan
Zajac,
NOTE:
Stephan’s father, Roy Ray Zajac was a shipmate
on the
…..My father, Elead
Wegner, served on the USS Bell. He is now in a nursing home in
…..Niki Bell
…..It was wonderful to hear from you.
I live a ways from my dad, but I thought each time I visit, I will take a tape
recorder. I feel the same way you do and have begun
to do a lot of research about the kin of ship my dad was on. I have always wanted to know about his
experiences and have begun compiling a scrapbook of information. I find that I watch as many shows on TV
about WWII that I can. I just can’t
imagine the knowledge these men hold.
I would love to attend a reunion. My
father’s new address is Elead Wegner, Good Samaritan
Care Facility, 412 W. Kennedy,
…..Niki Bell
…..My father, Cissel
Cannon Grimes, served on the USS Bell DD-587 in WWII. We believe he was a machinist mate. We know he service on the Bell October
1942, as we have pictures of he and John Penrod and
someone named Smitty on Newfoundland. My wife and I are trying to trace my
father’s military career. Along with
the
…..Greg Grimes,
NOTE:
Greg, Terri and Mrs. Cissel Grimes attended the
reunion. They had a great time and
enjoyed meeting the shipmates and hearing some of their stories. They are looking forward to joining us at
the 2007 reunion also. In searching
for more information on his father, he came across an interesting article about
Kristen F. Heiberg. He was kind
enough to send a copy of it. Here it
is.
Guide to the Kristen F. Heiberg Oral History Interview, 1940-1946
Electrician’s Mate Class Kristen F.
Heiberg served on six warships during World War II, including the destroyer
U.S.S. Benham DD-397.
While serving on the Benham, Mr. Heiberg
participated in the ferrying of planes to Wake Island just before Pearl Harber, witnessed the immediate aftermath of the Pearl
Harbor attack, accompanied the Doolittle raid on Tokyo, in which Benham fired on Japanese fishing vessels engaging in
clandestine scouting for the enemy, the Battle of Midway, in which the Benham rescued 721 survivors from the carrier Yorktown, and
later rescued survivors from the destroyer Hammann
after both Yorktown and Hammann were torpedoed by the
Japanese submarine I-168. On the
night of 15 November 1942, during the Battle of Guadalcanal, Mr. Heiberg was in
a forward compartment on the Benham, when a Japanese
warship blew off the destroyer’s bow with a torpedo. He and the rest of the crew abandoned
ship in the darkness and were recovered by the U.S.S. Gwin
DD-433, which subsequently sank the Benham with
gunfire. His later war service
included the shakedown cruise of the Fletcher-class destroyer U.S.S. Bell
DD-587, commissioned 1943, the seaplane tender U.S.S. Kenneth Whiting AV-14, the
gasoline tanker U.S.S. Klaskanine AOG-63, the attack
transport U.S.S. Crescent City PA-21, in which he saw further action during the
island-hopping U.S. offensive, and the attack cargo ship U.S.S. Algol AKA-54.
I think it would be great to have a
“U.S.S. BELL” cookbook. So, with
this in mind, I would like to request that you folks send me a couple of your
favorite recipes. I will get started
after the holidays and hopefully by our next reunion, we will have a finished
product. So, get out those old recipes and pick
out a couple of your favorites and let’s share them with others by way of a
beautiful cookbook. I look forward
to hearing from each and everyone.
Remember – Small opportunities are often
the beginning of great enterprises!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS
I
would like to wish each and everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Blessed New
Year. Stay well, stay happy,
remember to say your prayers and let a smile always be a part of your day.
GOD BLESS