USS BELL
ASSOCIATION (DD587)
IN THIS ISSUE:
As you can see, I did not get to
finish the newsletter timely and before the holidays. I did survive the
holidays and truly look forward to a wonderful 2005. I should be in my new
home by spring and do so look forward to being out of this apartment. My
cat, Pitty Pat will also be very happy to have her big yard to
play in once again. She has been so good, but cries a lot as she misses
her old neighborhood.
Well, we had a great time at our
reunion in
Shipmates attending the reunion
this year were Arthur Arbogast, Lawrence (Larry) Assip, Jimmy Faith, Maurice Moe, Mike
DiVeronica, William Cavanaugh, Mario Capitanio,
Tom Gutierrez, Edward Flowers and Al Lewis, along with many family members and
friends of the
Our City Tour was really great.
We had a guide that was so knowledgeable about the area around each of the
cities. After the tour, we stopped at the Hofbrauhaus
for lunch. The food was good and the entertainment was fun. There
was an accordion player named Jack Frost and he had everyone involved in the
songs and fun. The owner was also quite entertaining.
Our Memorial Service at the World
Peace Bell was beautiful. A bagpiper played Amazing Grace after which Gina
Daniels gifted us with her beautiful voice in song. Shipmate Jimmy Faith
conducted the memorial service message. Sherry Chapman and Kathy Neilson
(Jimmy’s daughters), read the names of the deceased shipmates and Maurice Moe
rang the ship’s bell. After our service was over, we were taken outside to
see the Peace Bell up close. Debbie Kayse
who is with the Verdin Company, who made and donated
the bell, hosted our group. She told us the very interesting history of
the
On Saturday morning a brief
business meeting was held after which we had a fantastic auction. Shipmate
Al Lewis (being a professional auctioneer) conducted the auction. It was
so much fun. We had so many great gifts to auction and everyone was really
into it. We made almost $800 for the treasury and looks like this will be
one of the highlights of our reunions from now on. Saturday night was our
Farewell Banquet. As usual, we all enjoyed our time together and it seemed
as though our time had gone by entirely too fast.
The shipmates met Saturday
afternoon to review all the information we received from the hotels and
convention bureaus this year wanting to host our 2005 reunion. The
decision was made to hold the 2005 reunion in the
Dear Friends, Family & Shipmates:
Happy Holidays! I hope your
2004 was as good to you as it has been for me. This year has been filled
with trips to see my girls in
I began the year doing various
things around my house in
My grandchildren are getting
bigger. I enjoy being near them very much. Thomas is now 13,
Danielle 12, Lauren 7 and Andrew is 3 ½. In March I visited Kathleen &
Tracy in
In August, I put my home in
I can’t leave out Andrew (911).
I can’t tell you how much I enjoy being back and having the time to be with this
little adventurer! He keeps me moving and I really enjoy the company.
God willing, I will have all my girls here for Christmas, naturally the
grandchildren and the dogs. You all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New
Year.
Ralph Marino, 3889 Paseo de Cardo,
I can hardly see but I will try and write you a line. Here is a check for
my dues. I am sorry I am so neglectful, but that goes with my 86 years.
Yours truly, Donald Wall,
Thank you for the card from all the USS Bell people and a special to you, Ann.
Thanks for the calculator. It has nice big numbers. That was very
nice of you to send this. THANKS. I hope the reunion went well. Tom says
the next one is in
My father, Roy A. Cameron, served on the USS Bell in WWII. He is in an
assisted living (
People I love you and pray for you. Have a good one and many more to come.
Harold Hughes,
Good news! Dues are still $10.00 per year.
I received an E-mail from a gentleman who had served in the Navy during WWII.
He said he had found some USS BELL artifacts listed on EBay and thought I might
like to check it out. I wasted no time in checking for the information on
EBay and found the notice he was talking about. They were asking .50 for
the items. I am not familiar with the EBay process, but e-mailed the
gentleman and told him that I would like to speak with the person who was
advertising these items for sale but did not know how I could get in touch with
her. He soon E-mailed me and gave me the lady’s personal E-mail address.
I quickly sent her a note asking about the artifacts. She said she had
been to an estate sale and had purchased some of the furniture and a few other
little things. She said there was an envelope in one of the desk drawers
with some papers regarding the family member that had served in WWII. She
said he was a tailor on the ship and apparently the widow was either moving in
with family or into a smaller residence. I told her I was
interested in purchasing these items and she said that she would be happy to
send them to me at no charge. She was just happy someone wanted to keep
them. They arrived a few days later and when I opened the envelope, the
first thing I saw was the USS Bell logo. I took the papers out and saw the
collection contained some newsletters and other papers from WWII. I
discovered these belonged to Mr. Pat DeSimone who was
a tailor on the USS Bell. What a nice person to try and find someone who
would be interested in this material.
UNITED STATES SHIP
Thursday 1 July 1943 - 0800
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1016 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Friday, 2 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. Made
weekly test of magazine sprinkling valves. Condition satisfactory.
Saturday, 3 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Sunday, 4 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Monday, 5 July 1943 – 0750
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Tuesday, 6 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Condition normal.
Wednesday, 7 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection of
magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1425
HARDIN, R.B. SC3c, USN, was transferred to MCB, Argentia,
Nfld. With bag, hammock and transfer papers for treatment.
Thursday, 8 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Friday, 9 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. Made
weekly test of magazine sprinkling valves. Conditions satisfactory.
1330 BROWN, Robert E., S2n, V-6, USNR; WILCOX, Donald E., S2c USN, were
transferred to RecSta, Boston, Massachusetts for
general detail, records and transfer papers forwarded by registered mail.
Authority: ComServForLandSubOrdCom railgram.
Saturday, July 10, 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. Captain inspected crew,
living spaces and engineering spaces. 1100 Made daily inspection of
magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Sunday, 11 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Monday, 12 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Tuesday, 13 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Wednesday, 14 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Thursday, 15 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1300
Transferred WALL, Donald W. S1c, V-6, USNR with bag, hammock, records and
transfer papers to NOB Argentia,
Nfld, for treatment. Authority BuM&S Form
“G”. The Disbursing Officer issued semi-monthly monies to the Officers and
crew.
Friday, 16 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. Made
weekly test of magazine sprinkling valves. Conditions satisfactory.
Saturday, 17 July 1943 – Mustered
crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection of
magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1600 Six
(6) inch hole made in port side frame 28 by tug coming alongside. Repaired
same.
Sunday, July 18 1943 – 0745
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1400
Pursuant to BuPers desp.160235 of July 1943 Lieut (jg) V.D. GORMAN (E-V(S),
USNR, was detached from this vessel and ordered to report to com. Three New
York, NY for further assignment. 1718 ADAMS, G.I. S2c, V-6 USNR; DICKMAN,
C.J. S2c, V-6, USNR; DOW, E.B. S2c USNR; GUILIOU, F. J. S2c, V-6 USNR and
MILLWEE, D.F. S2c, V-6 USNR were transferred with bag and hammock to NOB Argentia, Nfld, FFT RS NORVA FFT
Radar Operators School, Virginia Beach, VA., records and transfer papers
accompanied men. Authority: Comservforlant.
KALISH, A (n), EM1c, USN and SCHMITTNER, J.C. MM1c USN, were transferred with
bag and hammock to NOB Argentia Nfld. FFT to RecSta, Long Beach Long Island, NY for FFT to USS PICKING
detail, records and transfer papers accompanied men. DEAN, H.M. Cox, USN;
GILLELAND, J.E. SM1c, USN; RUTLEDGE, J.B., Cox, V-6, USNR and STIEBER, A.B.,
Cox, USN were transferred with bag and hammock to
Monday, 19 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Tuesday, 20 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Wednesday 21 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1800
Pursuant to BuPers Des. 171066 of July 1943 Lieut.
R.C. STARKEY, USN was detached from this vessel and ordered to duty at NAS,
Thursday, 22 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection of
magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal.
Friday, 23 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1130 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. Made
weekly test of magazine sprinkling valves. Condition satisfactory. 1445
CAPITANIO, Mario Augustino, F1c, V-6, USNR; McRAE, James Albert, S1c (SV) USN and BOROWICZ, Leo Thomas,
S2c, USN, reported aboard this vessel for duty. 1700 BYLSMA, John Duane,
S2c, V-6 reported aboard this vessel for duty.
Saturday, 24 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. No absentees. 0920 Pursuant to SOPA, Argentia, Nfld. Letter of 24 July 1943, GEIER, Theodore H.,
Y3c, USNR, OSBORNE, George W. S2c, V-6 USNr; ENOS,
Duncan J., S2c V-6, USNR; ESKRIDGE, Kimsey C. Y2c, V-6
USNR, and OLSZEWSKI, Edward (n), Cox, USN reported on board for passage to the
Sunday, 25 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1130
Captain held mast and awarded the following punishments: BOROWICZ, Leo
Thomas, S2c USN, failure to relieve the watch. Sleeping in another man’s
bunk. Fifty hours extra duty. BECKER, John Albert, MoMM2c, V-6 USNR,
shirking duty, to carry out the unexecuted portion of sentence of S.C.M approved
by ISIC on 6-11-43. To be discharged from the U.S. Naval Service with a
Bad Conduct Discharge.
Monday, 26 July 1943 – 0730
Mustered crew on stations. No absentees. 1100 Made daily inspection
of magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. 1700
BECKER, John Albert, MoM2c, was discharged from this vessel and the naval
service with a Bad Conduct Discharge in execution of the sentence of a summary
court-martial. 1800 HARE, Oswell Hobart, MM1c,
USN was discharged from this vessel and the naval service with an honorable
discharge by reason of expiration of enlistment.
Tuesday, 27 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. Absentees: BRANCH, John Ellis GM3c, USN;
SCHEID, Harry Logan, Bkr2c, USNR and STOEKLE, Albert Edward F1c. USN. 1000
BRANCH, John Ellis, GM3c returned absent over leave since 0745, 27 July 1943.
1100 Made daily inspection of magazines and smokeless powder samples.
Conditions normal. 1130 The Captain held mast and awarded the following
punishments: BRANCH, John Ellis, GM3c, failure to check out on liberty and
Absent Over Leave two hours and fifteen minutes, fifty hours extra duty.
1400 HARE, Oswell Hobert
MMJ1c, this date reenlisted on board this vessel for a period of four years.
Wednesday, 28 July 1943 – 0800
Ensign Kent Ellis, E-V(S), left ship on three days leave. STEVENS, W. H.,
SoM3c left ship on three days leave. Mustered crew at quarters.
Absentees: CHILDERS, B. SC2c; COLLIGAN, G.J. EM2c, and JENKINS, C.W. F1c.
0845 CHILDERS, B. SC2c, returned absent over leave since 0745 28 July 1943.
1000 Made daily inspection of magazines and smokeless powder samples.
Conditions normal. 1030 KANERVA, Arvo
Konstantino, S1c(SV) and LIPKIN, Benjamin (n) S1c(SV,
reported for duty on board this vessel. 1115 BOGUSKI, C.K. S2c, was
returned aboard by Shore Patrol in a drunk and incapacitated condition.
1130 The Captain held mast and assigned the following punishments:
STOECKLE, A.E. F1c, Absent Over Leave about 21 hours and 30 minutes. 100
hours extra duty; SHEID, H. L. Ekr2c, Absent Over Leave about 18 hours. 80
hours extra duty; CHILDERS, B. SC2c, Absent Over Leave about one hour;
incapacitated for the proper performance of duty due to previous indulgence of
intoxicating liquor, Bad Conduct Discharge. BOGUSKI, C.K. S2c, drunk and
incapacitated for the performance of duty, 25 hours extra duty. 1340
NEWMAN, C.R. WT1c, left ship on 3 days leave. 1400 SMITH, R.D. TM1c, left
ship on four days leave. 1445 COLLIGAN, G.J. EM2c was returned aboard by
Shore Patrol. 1500 CHILDERS, Buford, SC2c, was discharged from this vessel
and the naval service with a bad conduct discharge in execution of the sentence
of a summary court martial. 2130 TILLMAN, H.F. CGM(AA), BERNSTEIN, L.P.
CRM(AA); BOWERS, E. J. S2c(SV); BURCHARDT, A.J F2c(SV); CHERRIMGTON, K.K.
F2c(SV; CUSHING, L.C. s2c(SV); DAMERON, W.P. S2c(SV0; DANIELWICZ, L F2c(SV);
DEPA, J.A. F2c(SV); FAITH, J.W. S2c; FREDERICKSON, A.R. F2c(SV); HUERTA, F. S2c;
JORDAN, C.T. S2c; KRATZ, W.H. S2c(SV); MOORE, W.R. S2c; PANGANIBAN, C.C. Matt1c;
RUSSELL, W.A. S2c(SV), WHITE, J.B. Cox; WOODS, M.L. S2c; and ZEIGLER, P.E. S2c;
reported for duty on board this vessel.
Thursday, 29 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. Absentees: CONROW, Joseph Oral F2c. 1015
The Disbursing Officer issued semi monthly monies to the Officers and crew.
1100 Made daily inspection of magazines and smokeless powder samples.
Conditions normal. 1115 The Captain held mast and assigned the following
punishments: COLLIGAN, G.J. EN2c, drunk and asleep ashore, 25 hours extra
duty; JENKINS, C. W. F1c, Absent Over Leave for a period of about 23 hours and
45 minutes, 100 hours extra duty. 1400 PLACEMAN, William Bentz, PhM2c, was transferred with bag, hammock, records and
transfer papers to the U. S. Naval Hospital,
Friday, 30 July 1943 – 0800
Mustered crew at quarters. Absentees: CONROW, Joseph Oral F2c. 1100
Made daily inspection of magazines and smokeless powder samples.
Conditions normal. Made weekly test of magazine sprinkling valves.
Condition satisfactory. 1400 Pursuant to BuPers
dispatch 282209 of July 1943, Ensign John C. WARD, E-M, was detached from this
vessel and ordered to nearest Naval District for temporary duty pending further
assignment.
Saturday, 31 July 1943 – 0040
NEWMAN, Cleo R. WT1c, returned aboard from three days leave. 0235 STEVENS, W.H.
SoM3c, returned aboard from three days leave. 0300 Ensign Kent ELLIS
(E-V(S), returned aboard from three days leave. 0800 Mustered crew at
quarters. Absentees: CONROW, J.O. F2c. 1100 Made daily inspection of
magazines and smokeless powder samples. Conditions normal. MARELLA, Louis
Charles S2c; BURK, John Walter, S2c; DeWOLF, Robert
Frederick, Jr. S2c; and KLENKA, Edwin Felix, S2c, reported for duty on board
this vessel. 1130 GIBBS, Francis Raymond WT1c, and NEWMAN, Cleo Robert
WT1c, were transferred with bag, hammock, records and transfer papers to
RecSta,
And we thought we made mistakes!
Read on!
Newspaper ad on Monday: “For
sale: F.D. Brown has one sewing machine for sale. Phone 758 after 6p.m. and ask
for Mrs. Smith who lives with him cheap.”
Newspaper ad on Tuesday: “Notice:
We regret having erred in F.D. Brown’s ad yesterday. It should read: One
sewing machine for sale. Cheap. Phone 758 and ask for Mrs. Smith who lives with
him after 6 p.m.”
Newspaper ad on Wednesday: “F.D.
Brown has informed us that he has received several annoying telephone calls
because of the error we made in his classified ad yesterday. His ad stands
corrected as follows: “For sale: F.D. Brown has one sewing machine for sale.
Cheap. Phone 758 after 6 p.m. and ask for Mrs. Smith who loves with him.
Newspaper item on Thursday:
“Notice: I, F.D. Brown have no sewing machine for sale. I smashed it.
Don’t call 758, the telephone has been taken out. I have not been carrying on
with Mrs. Smith. Until yesterday she was my housekeeper, but she quit.”
I
look forward to seeing you all in
WISHING EACH AND EVERYONE A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!