By PETER ATKINSON, Deputy Editor

A group of U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps (NSCC) Cadets from the Great Lakes, Mich., Division will be featured in an upcoming Public Broadcasting System television series “Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Adventures.”

The cadets will be part of the “America’s Underwater Treasures” segment, a two-part installment that, according a release from Cousteau, the son of famed explorer and documentarian Jacques Cousteau, “will bring viewers to the rarely visited underwater parks that constitute the National Marine Sanctuary System — a diverse and uniquely American group of ecosystems which promises to inspire an ethic of ocean preservation that will translate far beyond any national borders.”

The series is scheduled to begin airing in April.

Aboard their 80-foot training ship Pride of Michigan, the Great Lakes cadets, their commanding officer Lt. Cmdr. Luke Clyburn, NSCC, and Navy representative BU2 (DV) David J. Campbell from Naval Recruiting District Michigan, joined Cousteau and his Ocean Futures Society crew last fall during an exploration of shipwrecks in Lake Huron.

The Ocean Futures Society is aimed at inspiring and educating people to act responsibly for the ocean’s protection, documenting the critical connection between humanity and nature and celebrating the ocean’s vital importance.

“Our planet is a living organism … what happens to our seas is happening to us,” Cousteau said in a report on the trip compiled by Campbell. “Sea power doctrines must ultimately direct the protection of our natural environment. The Great Lakes Division Sea Cadets is making a vital contribution in preparing our future leaders.”

The cadets spent three days “at sea” diving wrecks, studying the effects of the zebra mussel infestation on the lake, training and gaining invaluable maritime experience from Cousteau and his team, which includes his son, Fabian. 

During the voyage, Cousteau presented the cadets with an Explorers Club flag that flew atop the mast of the Pride of Michigan for the duration of the trip.

“To have had the honor of working with Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Futures Society is really something we will hold dear,” said Clyburn. “If our schools and community leaders could just see what we do out here, what it means to these kids, I’m convinced we’d have even more involvement.”

The Great Lakes Division and Pride of Michigan are sponsored by the Inland Seas Council in Pontiac, Mich.

The six hour-long programs in the “Ocean Adventures” series include: the two-part “Voyage to Kure” that explores the remote Northwest Hawaiian Archipelago; “The Gray Whale Obstacle Course” that follows gray whales migrating from Baja, Calif., to the Bering Sea — the longest and most polluted migration route of any whale species; “Sharks: At Risk” that observes gray sharks in French Polynesia and great white sharks off South Africa; and the two-part “America’s Underwater Treasures.”

Spruance Cadets Get Nasty New Year Surprise

The new year really did begin with a bang for the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps’ (NSCC) Spruance Division in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. An alleged drunk driver crashed a truck into the unit’s headquarters building during the New Year’s weekend, bashing a hole in the wall of its administration office, knocking over a World War II searchlight and damaging some other property, according to a report from Lt. Cmdr. Alan Starr, NSCC, the division commander.

The driver abandoned the vehicle, which was later towed and impounded. After division staff and Fort Lauderdale Council Sea Cadet Committee Chairman Carl Hallberg were notified, the wall was patched with plywood — and insurance procedures initiated with the vehicle’s owner to pay for the repairs.

This is the second time in just over two years that the Spruance Division headquarters building has been damaged, but this time was minor by comparison. A late September 2003 rainstorm brought the entire ceiling and its insulation down, damaging electrical work, desks and furniture, and rendering the building unsafe for occupancy.

The division used a local VFW hall as a temporary headquarters while the water damage was being repaired. The building was rededicated just three months later, with the $13,000 estimated cost of repairs raised through community donations and volunteers from the division’s Parent Support Group, division staff and Navy Leaguers chipping in to help with the work.

Coast Guard, Navy Crews Pitch In During Visits to Puerto Vallarta

With U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships docking within days of each other in Mexico, volunteers with the Navy League’s Puerto Vallarta Council got the new year off to a busy start working with crew members on community service projects and distributing medical supplies to local facilities. A third ship, the frigate USS Ford, also was to have visited around the same time, bringing with it two large containers of medical supplies from San Diego. But it was called out to sea on duty during the trip, according to council member Peter Gray.

The destroyer USS Higgins and U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Morgenthau did arrive in Puerto Vallarta on schedule. Crew members from the Higgins and a council delegation led by President Jeff Miltenberger, Dusty Graham and Bill Clark visited the Asociación Feminil Vallartense, which aids and supports abused women and children. They also pitched in to give the facility a fresh coat of white paint.

The paint job was finished by a complement of 28 crew members from Morgenthau, who also provided some repair work and assisted with a plumbing project that provided a water hook-up for a beautician training program at the facility, according to Gray. Morgenthau also brought more than a dozen boxes of medical supplies that were delivered to a local warehouse for distribution

Broward County Adopts Coast Guard Air Station, Amphibious Assault Ship

The Broward County, Fla., Council conducted a pair of adoption events with the Coast Guard and Navy in February. At its monthly meeting Feb. 9, the council officially adopted Coast Guard Air Station Miami. The council has enjoyed a close relationship with the local Coast Guard units, according to council Secretary Marianne Giambrone, and previously adopted Coast Guard Station Fort Lauderdale, the Aids to Navigation station and Coast Guard Cutter Gannett.

The agreement was signed by Capt. Keith Taylor and First Vice President Gayle Malone-Neary on behalf of President Joseph Giambrone. After the signing, the council presented an award and certificate to the Air Station’s Enlisted Person of the Year, Aviation Maintenance Technician First Class Jodie Morse. The council members then enjoyed a presentation by Air Station Miami personnel, who had performed rescue operations in the Gulf Coast area after Hurricane Katrina.

A week later, the council adopted the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan when it was in town on a port visit that was made possible because of mechanical problems experienced by another ship. The council decided that it was the perfect time to make the relationship, which began during Fleet Week 2005, official, according to Giambrone.

The adoption agreement was signed by Capt. David C. Hulse and Malone-Neary at an onboard reception attended by members of the Broward County, Everglades and Fort Lauderdale councils, as well as Broward Navy Days. Again, the council’s first official act was to present awards and certificates to Bataan’s Sailor of the Year, CS1 (SW/AW) Stephen D. Wilson; Petty Officer of the Year, ET1 (SW/AW) Keisha A. Gibbs; and Bluejacket of the Year, AN (AW) Daniel A. Kilhefner.

Hulse also presented certificates to Andrea Hill, owner of Second Edition Bookstore, and Broward Council board members Al and Shelly Stein for their efforts in donating books to visiting Navy ships. The Steins, with the assistance of Hill and others, ensure every ship visiting Fort Lauderdale receives cartons of books for their library.

Short Bursts

• Former Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman and Air Force Academy graduate Chad Hennings was the guest speaker at the Dallas Council’s November luncheon meeting. A two-time Academic All-American at the academy, Hennings flew A-10 Thunderbolts with the Air Force after graduation, include 45 missions in support of Operation Provide Comfort in northern Iraq following the first Gulf War. He joined the Cowboys after receiving his discharge from the Air Force. Along with stories of his flying experience, life at the academy and winning three Super Bowls during his nine years with the Cowboys, Hennings stressed the importance of commitment and teamwork during his remarks.
• Retired Army Maj. Gen. Wayne P. Jackson stood in as Installing Officer when the Palm Beach, Fla., welcomed its new slate of council directors and officers in February. Navy League Past National President Thomas Morris was to have presided over the ceremony, but bowed out because of health issues. Jackson, a friend of both Morris and Council President Tom Sullivan, a retired Army colonel, agreed to fill in. Jackson and Sullivan began their military careers in the Navy. As it turned out, Morris was able to attend the ceremony.
• Navy League life member Wayne E. Meyer was presented with the 2006 Hall of Fame Award by the Naval Postgraduate School during a Feb. 23 ceremony on the Hermann Hall Quarter Deck. Meyer, a graduate of the school who was dubbed “The Father of Aegis” for his work with the Aegis weapon system, retired in 1985 as rear admiral. At that time he was the deputy commander for weapons and combat systems and naval sea systems at Naval Sea Systems Command and Ordnance Officer of the Navy. The award was presented by school president Rear Adm. Richard H. Wells. The Hall of Fame Award recognizes distinguished alumni and friends who, by virtue of their public service, have made significant contributions to the school and the nation.

Send items for “Council Digest” to:

Peter Atkinson, Deputy Editor
Seapower/Navy League News
2300 Wilson Blvd.
Arlington, VA 22201-3308
E-mail: patkinson@navyleague.org