It was 50 yrs ago that a group of boys started an adventure. Today they are old men and the adventure continues. . .
In 1972 the Vietnam War saw three U. S. Allies leave South Vietnam. Australia, New Zealand & Thailand which had sent military contingents, withdrew them. Negotiators in Paris were trying to reach a peace agreement and come up with a withdrawal strategy for American forces. When the North Vietnamese launched the Easter offensive, it lead to a large increase in airstrikes and a resumption of bomb attacks. Back home, the largest University protests became violent.
Servicemen then did not receive the “Thank you for your service” accolades that are commonplace today. They were called, “baby killers” & spat on when in uniform at the airport. When the war ended there was no “Welcome Home” for them. Despite what was going on above deck and back home it was the responsibility of R-Division to maintain the U. S. S. John F. Kennedy. Over three football fields in length with over 5000 men on board (no women on ships yet) the aircraft carrier was a floating city that just happened to have an airport on top of it. The men of R-Division were also the fire department and the first responders for damage control.
From 1972 -`1975 some sailors were discharged, some stayed in the Navy & some made the ultimate sacrifice. Those who came home built lives and went on with them. Many years later, like 35 years later, two of the old R-Divison guys, Dan Baker & John Kress found each other and met in Western New York State where John still lives. Like lighting a fuse, a spark was created that traveled through a wire or in this case a wireless device. The internet was full of sites where people could try and reclaim relationships: classmates, neighborhoods, organizations and . . veterans. My husband, who loves living in the past, was trolling one of these sites when he received a message. It was from Dan Baker who was asking if he was the Don Russo who served on The JFK. Further investigation lead to finding 2 more shipmates and The Original Five, as they’re now known, were planning a reunion. Unbeknownst to me at the time, the reunion was going to be held at Rancho Russo. So it seemed I was going to be spending the July 4th holiday of 2010 with a bunch of strangers.
And strange they were! One guy needed to be picked up at the airport because when he got off the plane he realized his drivers license was expired so he couldn’t rent a car. He called the house asking if Don could rent one for him. Uh, HARD NO from me. I stared at my husband and asked just what kind of deadbeats he was bringing to my home? (Duffey, who I most affectionately refer to as “The Admiral” for his ability to throw his weight around and secure us free rail passes at Great Meadow, free tours, museum visits and various other jaunts, was not a deadbeat after all.) During this first reunion the guys visited all the monuments in Washington, D. C. & we had a hot but spectacular July 4th at Gread Meadow which included an air show, skydiving & awesome fireworks.
After the reunion the guys stayed in touch by creating a Facebook page that they would use to live chat with each other once a week. They talked about the good old days and how they didn’t appreciate those times and lamented that they wished they could visit the ship just once more. They found a few more R-Divison guys but a lot of other Kennedy veterans found them. Through the magic of Facebook, Don’s Kennedy page had about 3500 members. It was the largest Kennedy Veteran’s site to exist at that time. It became so big & crowded that they guys retreated to a separate private Facebook page for just former R-Divison members from 1972-1976. The volume of engagement that the Kennedy page attracted caught the attention of a group called the Rhode Island Kennedy Project. This organization was raising money to make a floating museum out of the Kennedy to be located in Rhode Island.
The Kennedy had been decommissioned in 2007 and was now sitting in mothballs up at the Philadelphia Naval Yard. One night Don received a phone call from a man named Frank who was looking to gain support from Kennedy veterans for the Rhode Island Project. There was a fundraising event planned that was to be attended by a lot of big wigs. Congressmen, astronauts, admirals and the like were to receive tours of the Kennedy docked in Philly so the vision for the project could be spread. Frank needed the veterans on board, so to speak. He offered Don a position on the board of directors. Don accepted with one condition . . .
December 2010 on the waterfront in Philly was cold. The guys spent 2 days touring the ship. Unfortunately, the below decks areas that the R-Division shops occupied were off limits for security reasons. Boy, if they could only get down to the old haunts! The shipyard workers were also onboard during these tours. They silently observed as all the important guests were being led around with these 5 ordinary guys. The Yard Birds, as these workers are referred to, came up to Don and inquired exactly who they were since they were obviously not dignitaries. Don explained that they were just regular “squids” who fell into this opportunity quite accidentally & he filled in the story details. He finished the tale by saying, “And what we wouldn’t give to see our old stations again!” The Yard Birds responded with, “Tell us where you want to go.” This is how the Original Five had their dreams come true.
It was decided that the following summer there would be another reunion. This time in a Pennsylvania state park. It would be a camping trip. It would be fun!
Turns out it would be the hottest week of that summer with temperatures in the low 100s. We were tent camping but least you think we didn’t have amenities I can assure you we were pretty well equipped. Duffey came rolling in with a trailer that held an entire camp kitchen complete with a suckling pig for roasting and the apparatus to do so. Don had brought our long, event canopy & John had a generator that powered 2 fans at either end of the canopy. There was a lake in which my soul sista Amy (Johns wife), my son Darren & I immersed ourselves from morning until dinner time in an attempt at not melting away. We picked up 2 new R-Divison guys, Mike & Donovan (Mike worked for Hershey Candy at the time and brought an entire cooler full of chocolates much to my delight). I took a lot of guff for my “glamping” tent as the guys couldn’t believe my set up.
Then Don hit the motherlode. He found the guy who was assigned to mentor him when he first arrived on board the Kennedy. Reno Righetti (not a made up gangster name) grew up not far from us in The Bronx. He & Don had never met prior to the Navy but they became fast friends and Don had been searching for him for a while. We had our own reunion with Reno & his wife, Donna in Atlantic City, NJ and when Don told him all about the R-Divison reunions he was all in for the next one.
In 2012 Boston, MA was the site of the next, and biggest reunion thus far. The Duffeys live on a lakefront property outside of Boston & they had big plans. There was swimming & fishing at the lake and trips on their “party barge”. Duffey was working for the National Parks Service at the time and had arranged for us to have a tour of the USS Constituiton. “Old Ironsides” as it’s known, is the oldest commisioned war ship that’s still afloat. There’s a museum on site and we had access to that as well. They day also included a luncheon at the Union Oyster House which has been in operation since 1826.
A few more R-Division alumni attended Boston as the guys kept contacting more & more shipmates. People came from all over the country. New additions were Rick “Bear” Morgan, Wayne Horton & George Mousakis.The Boston Reunion was also the first time all the wives were together. Amy & I were the OG wives and I am the only wife to attend every single reunion. The Women of R-Division Ladies Auxilliary was founded.
Western Pennsylvania would host the 2014 reunion as Cyndi & Dan Baker stepped up to the plate and found us a lovely rental house. This was to be a smaller reunion. The house had 2 big porches, a backyard, plenty of rooms and even an apartment upstairs that Don, Damian & I occupied that weekend. The house backed up to a walking trail that ran alongside a creek. We made use of this peaceful path. Amy & Damian even took up litter patrol and cleaned up any wayward trash along the way. This was the first reunion missing one of the orginal 5 as the Duffeys couln’t make it to Pennsylvania that year.
Then in 2015 it was all hands on deck as we joined the Shipwide Reunion held in Norfolk, VA. This reunion was open to all the Kennedy veterans and the Rhode Island Kennedy Project was hosting a reception for its members to provide a status update. There was a dinner banquet and various other events throughout the weekend. Some of the other Kennedy veterans groups that our guys knew were there as well. Cyndi, Amy, Damian & I stole off to the beach for an afternoon. Frank, who was the president of the Rhode Island Project, thought it would be a good idea to put Don in charge of procuring the alchohol for the reception. I was always very suspect of Franks decision making after that. Needless to say, much alcohol was consumed and after breaking off from the big groups the boys went late into the night in the lobby sitting areas.
The Kresses took the task for planning the 2016 reunion which entailed us renting several cabins at Letchworth State Park in western New York. Renowned as the Grand Canyon of the east, this parks main feature is a gorge which is cut by the Genesee River. There are 2 waterfalls as well as all the structures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Unfortunately we were visiting during a severe drought which held the falls to mere trickles but the scenery was spectacular anyway. There was a trail near our cabin which I would take to the lower falls in the morning for a great meditation spot. Early there were no other visitors for a little while so it was exremely peaceful while communing with nature. We took turns cooking meals and held ‘arts & crafts’ sessions where the boys engraved their names on an axe which is one of the symbols for the hull technicians on board the aircraft carrier. The girls and the kids made bookmarks with washi tape provided by Amy and we had a memorable girls night of card playing at Camp Kress. We mad an ice cream run for a local favorite, “Perry’s Ice Cream” and I swooned over their flavor named, “LemonChillo”. Nigths were spent by the fireside.
The new R-Divison guys now wanted their chance to see the Kennedy while it was still docked in Philly. It only made sense to host the 2018 reunion in the City of Brotherly Love. On a prior visit Don & I had scouted out a location that could meet our needs. It had to have an area where the guys could congregate & just hang out and chat. We also had to be able to hold a ceremony that had become integral to the reunions. A flag that was retired from service was burned as a tribute to the R-Division members who had passed away since the last reunion. (Most of R-Divison were exposed to numerous service related toxins: asbestos & fire fighting foam being at the top of the list.) We found a hotel that had an expansive back patio that overlooked the river. We could set up canopies and the manager even provided for us to be able to burn our flags. Once again, we attracted some more new members who hadn’t attended prior reunions. It was a rousinig success! The guys went off to the Navy Yard and myself and some of the girls hit the next door casino. WIN/WIN! A local restaurant even sent a van to shuttle us over to them so no one had to worry about alchohol consumption.
The 2020 plans were interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic and by 2022 the guys were needing a get together. The Rhode Island Project lost their bid for possession of the Kennedy and at this time it is slated to be towed to Texas and disassembled for scrap. It currently remains in Philly.
Time for a return to Rancho Russo, where it all began. Although smaller by comparison to the Philly reunion, once again the guys unearthed another newly found brother who joined the festivities. The folks at the Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air & Space Museum provided a wonderful guided tour for our guys and while the weather wasn’t ideal the rain didn’t damper any spirits.
The Bakers had been noticeably absent from the past 3 reunions and they offered to host the 2023 reunion and move it west to Kentucky. This would enable more of the heartland & western dwelling members an easier commute as everything to date had been held more to the east. Several Airbnb locations were acquired and a hotel wasn’t too far away. Williamstown, just a short deviation off the Bourbon Trail, was the chosen site. This affair would turn out to be the reunion all others will be judged by as the Bakers pulled out all stops and literally got the whole town involved.
Behind the scenes the Bakers had acquired a list of sponsers who provided us with food & beverages, tickets to the Ark Encounter (full-sized Noahs Ark anchors this theme park), a parade en route to a tour of & reception at Patriots Landing ( a showroom for the Veteran-staffed workshop producing fine crafted wood products. All made in America by this nonprofit organization that supports a host of veterans causes.) We also paid our respects at the newest veterans memorial in honor of Gold Star families. All of this occured while still allowing for plenty of socializing, visits to Buffalo Trace distillery, attending a music festival and patronizing the local shops & restaurants. Did I mention the local news coverage? TV & newspaper both came out and interviewed the guys who turned out to be quite the local celebrities that weekend. Everyone in the town new about them and they were finally welcomed home with open arms.
The Brandwine Valley area of Pennsylvania, specifically near Valley Forge will be the site of the next reunion. Admiral Duffey will no doubt be using his influence to make some more notable memories for the men of R-Division. Frankly, I think they’ll be happy just to sit around together no matter where that occurs. They keep a close watch on the Kennedy and are planning to try to be there when she takes that last voyage to Texas. That will be a sad day for them. I am keeper of the artifacts from the reunions. There’s a scrapbook, many photos, a slide show I update, books, newspapers & other ephemera that I’ve colected for them. They’ll always have those memories and the new ones they create each time they meet. Fair winds & following seas to you.
for Margaret
Shout outs to these fine folks:
The Old Stone Wall Airbnb in Willliamstown, KY & the best hosts on the planet, Susan & Steve Amorese
Kentucky Times Airbnb in Williamstown, KY
Patriots Landing – shop at http://operationhonor.org/collections/all
The Ark Encounter
7 Hills Church
Follow