Thanks so much to all of you in the mighty class of ’83 who contribute to this column! I love hearing from those who haven’t appeared in a while. Remember that you can see all of our past columns at KP83.org, where there are color versions of all photos. Just before submitting this for publication, I saw the notice announcing Brian Foy as Alumni Association Legislative Outreach Coordinator. Congrats, Brian – USMMA needs your skills, which were evident when we were just 2 years out of school and as Navigator of USS Mauna Kea (AE22), you gave an outstanding piloting briefing as we were about to enter port. Our hard-ass Captain couldn’t find anything to complain about!

Dave Tobin writes:
I am owner & president (and sole employee) of Safe Navigation Soulutions. Early in August I was providing ECDIS and IBS training aboard USNS Richard E. Byrd in Guam. While I was there 3 KP cadets joined. I believe they represented the resumption of sea year activity. All 2019. You can guess where I am in the photo, as the semi ancient mariner, 82/83. Mike Phelps (20xx?) was a 2nd Officer but not captured in the photo. They joined a great vessel run by Capt Les Apsley.

Bruce Garrott shares:
Debbie and I celebrated 30th wedding anniversary this past spring with trip to Iceland in March. Our family vacation this year was to Moab in July, highlighted by a hiking in Arches and Canyonlands National Parks and a four day rafting trip down the Colorado River thru Cataract Canyon.

Steve Galati reports that he had dinner with Mark Salinas and his lovely wife Jennifer as they passed through Philadelphia on a two week road trip from Texas to Maine.

Jim Goulden reminisces:
Sugar Ray,
After 33 years (actually 36, I guess) I’m finally over Norton failing me in English 3 plebe year and have gotten the confidence up and self-esteem in place to put pen to paper for you.

Recently I went to a “meeting of the minds and the mindless” with some of our brethren. I got to spend some quality time and break bread with John Rhatigan, P.E., Mickey C, P.E., Mike Keane, Esq., John Carbone, M.D. and Jimmy Quern, Ret.. I was so grateful Mike decided to actually leave the Island of Long and be with us. I know he struggles with separation anxiety when out of traffic and around people who don’t live in Suffolk County. Things started at 1pm on a Saturday afternoon, and after about 13 hours and a heinous amount of scotch and cigars, we finished discussing all of the world’s problems and those of our own. The attached picture was taken—not a bunch of bad looking chaps, eh? As a result of our time together we resolved the following: Rhatigan and Quern would run for President and Vice President with the slogan “Make America Drink Again”. Not sure if they will get on the ballot in most states. By the time this gets printed we will know.

All of us are doing pretty well—maybe a little arthritis here and there, some artificial joints have been installed, kids in and out of college or even married. Mickey mentioned grand parenthood (OMG!/WTF?). I’m down in here in Orlando nibblin’ on spongecake/watchin’ the sun bake hoping the PVC pipe business continues to grow as all of you get on that big retirement bus, make your way down here to God’s waiting room and build your retirement homes. One thing all of us agreed: we don’t miss any opportunities to be together anymore.

Rich Colonna shares:
Who knew that after spending many years at sea and enjoying the services of the USO around the world, that I would be using their services again right here in Philadelphia. My oldest son, Vincent, had flown into Philadelphia from Richmond where he was sworn in as a coast guardsman. I was able to meet up with him and enjoy a nice dinner at the USO at the Philly airport, before he boarded the bus for his initial training and boot camp at Coast Guard Training Center, Cape May, NJ. As I watched the young men and woman board the bus, it brought back fond, albeit distant, memories of our plebe year. How proud I was of all of them for making the commitment to serve.

Jim Romeo reports:
Photo of Jim McGrath class of 82 (at left) and Jim Romeo aboard the USS Cole in Norfolk Virginia. I’m the Force Engineer of COMNAVSURFLANT and have the pleasure of working with so many Kings Point Port Engineers. They are always the best in the business.

Dan Rohde posts:
Rex Gundle was in Savannah for a quick business trip and stayed an additional night for some fun on the boat with Carrie and me. After watching a sunset off St. Catherines Island (with a few beverages) we enjoyed a casual dinner at a local hole in the wall (Sunbury Crab Co.) on the water.

So great to hear from so many! Let’s find some of our classmates-in-hiding. Stay out of trouble!
—– Ray Christensen

L to R Cadets Adam Viscovich, Victor Raigoza, and Ben Bailey with Dave Tobin

Capt Les Apsley (l) & Dave Tobin

Debbie & Bruce Garrott in Iceland

Debbie & Bruce Garrott in Utah

Mark Salinas & Steve Galati in Philly

Carbone, Goulden, Rhatihgan, Quern, Cunningham, Keane solving world problems.

Rich Colonna & son Vincent

Jim McGrath ’82 & Jim Romeo on USS Cole

Carri & Dan Rohde with Rex Gundle

Dan Rohde writes:
Carrie and I started a SoCal vacation with a fantastic (but too short) visit with Ann and Joe Walsh. They hosted a wonderful dinner Saturday night and Mark Coynes and Dawn joined us. Sunday, Joe, Carrie and I celebrated National Maritime Day with the USCG Captian of the Port Jennifer Williams (KP 90). Down in San Diego now for the College Sailing Nationals, our youngest is competing with the USCGA team. I was going to wear Joe’s “Beat Coast Guard” hat but Carrie wouldn’t let me.

Del Lewis wasn’t able to hit the Rohde/Walsh get-together, but shared this:
By total chance I ran into Rhonda (Whitaker) Cobb at a business event in Las Vegas! At an open-seating dinner we ended up sitting next to each other! She’s living in Ohio and doing quite well. Even though we hadn’t seen each other in well over 30 years when we traded stories about Wiley Hall, the engineering faculty, and some of the characters in our class, it seemed like yesterday. It was great to catch up!

Brian Foy submitted this photo from May 23rd Blue-Gray Golf Outing at the Westfield’s Club near Washington, D.C. L-R: Bob Ross; Sean Connaughton; Randy Johnson; and Brian, who noted “Good to see a few classmates!”. Bob notes that “Randy won all of the door prizes. Mickey was supposed to join us but bailed out because they were calling for a hint of rain.”

Retirement Corner (please suggest a more playful name):

John Diegoli happily notes:
Last Month I retired from the FAA and am now living up in the mountains of Calaveras County. I just completed my Lifeguard Cert and am working on a Ski Patrol cert program. I still race sailboats down in the Bay Area and do a little flight instruction for fun. I guess a lot of our class will be starting to retire soon.

Speaking of retirement, Skip McAloon was compelled to share:
Jim Quern is retired and now wears shirts like this. This is newsworthy and I think our classmates should know.

Lisa Fields submitted her notice of retirement from her position with The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. She says, “I’m only two days into retirement, but I think I am going to enjoy it. Gary and I decided that now was the time, as our grandsons live as close as they ever will, and their father will be going back to sea duty next summer. This first year will be spent making memories with the boys. My best to all.”

OK, enough of this retirement talk. Some of us need to keep working.

John Rhatigan announces a cool career move:
I have taken a new position that started in January as the Chairman of the Marine Machinery Association(MMA). The MMA is the trade association that serves the interests of the American companies that supply products, systems and services to the world’s shipyards. Our goal is to help return US Shipbuilding to be the envy of the world. To paraphrase George Toma in the last installment of the Kings Pointer, it’s awesome to be in an industry where I get to reconnect with so many Kings Pointers.

John Kimmerlein confirmed that his son David is indeed a member of KP Class of 2020! He adds, “We will stop by the day before for a track and cross country meeting with the coach.”

Mark Faller furnished this important update, so mark your calendars:
Soft Opening for 6 Bears & a Goat Brew House in Fredericksburg, VA is September 2016. Check us out at 6bgbrewingco.com.

— sounds like a good travel destination for all you retired folks with nothing better to do…and then you can drive just 3 hours up the road to Wilmington, DE to have another cold one in Ray Christensen‘s slightly less formal “Beer Room”.

When you send your “retirement announcement”, you should probably rub it in a bit and include a smiling photo of yourself doing what you enjoy! Take care and share your news with me often.
—– Ray Christensen

Joe & Ann Walsh, Ann Walsh, Mark Coynes, Carrie Rohde, Dawn Coynes

Dan Rohde, Capt. Jennifer Williams (90) (USCG Sector Commander & Captian of the Port of Los Angeles – Long Beach), Carrie Rohde, Joe Walsh

Bob Ross, Sean Connaughton, Randy Johnson, Brian Foy

Jim Quern

The Alumni Assn notified us of the tragic news that Tim Hallock had passed away on Feb 28, while hiking the mountains of New Hampshire. He was owner of Hallock Marine Services in Orient, NY since 1989 and founder of Northeast Mountain Guides in 2004. See our CLASS NOTES area of www.KP83.org for further details and links to articles.
Articles & Tributes here

Big thanks to George Toma for the following testimonial & photo regarding Tim:
It is with heavy heart that my family and I receive this news. Tim was a great classmate, a dear friend throughout the years. He visited us in each of the homes I have lived in with my family, from Florida, and Virginia, to Arizona, and spent time getting to know and touching the lives of our three children. He even took the time to visit our oldest son a few years ago, at Northern Arizona University, and took him climbing, another area of the USA that Tim was certified to teach and guide.

His kindness, love for family, and love of nature will always resonate with our entire family. It was his dream to use the outdoors as part of our overall educational process, to bring the concept back to the classroom. Let us count those fortunate lives that have been touched by his warmth and grace, never forget his love for life, nature and family.
God Bless Tim. And may the glory of God’s heaven bring his family peace.

On happier notes, George adds:
I wanted to share with you a photo that John Rhatigan, Tom Aufiero and myself took, during the International Workboat Exhibition. It is wonderful to be able to work in an industry where from time to time, your work allows you to cross paths with old friends. I am sending the photo we took from the waist up as the two giants allowed me to stand on our booth platform, so that I did not look like one of their children.
My wife Michelle (of 30 years, she hasn’t left me yet) made sure to record an evening we had together, with Steve Dear (85). See photo. Steve is currently a Chief Engineer with Noble Drilling and stopped in while we were both in Arizona at the same time.

John Kimmerlein shares cool news:
Hope all is well. Not sure that I have ever sent any news, but now have a good reason to: My older son David has received an appointment to the USMMA class of 2020! Although he has an application into USNA and USCGA and is still in the mix there, I believe that KP is his #1 choice. Any other classmates have kids there now? By the way, David has been in touch with the track coach at KP and plans on running while there–imagine that!

There’s quite an ’83 contingent in the Seattle area. I see Bill Sliker, Mark Allen and Jon Kjaerulf at least a few times a year, and have seen Steve Kimmel, Marc Lund, and Mark Kirschenbaum on occasion. Joe Maggiora, Doug Barlow and Neil Kelleher are also around, but I have not run into them. I also worked with Joe Walsh quite a bit (he’s near LA).

Mark Faller writes:
Hope you are well. Wanted to report that I, and the other 6 owners of our parent company Harkcon, Inc. are starting a microbrewery in Fredericksburg, VA.
6 Bears & a Goat Brewing Company – six of us retired from the Coast Guard (mascot – the Bear), and one Annapolis grad (the Goat) started a government contracting company 10 years ago – Harkcon Inc. Harkcon provides Human Capital and Training solutions to numerous government agencies and several in the private sector. Harkcon now has about 125 employees in 10 different states. Anyway, as a passionate home brewer, I pitched a business plan to start a craft brewery to the other 6 owners and we’re moving forward! Closed on the 10,000 sq ft building in Fredericksburg, VA, not far from my house, a couple weeks ago. The building sits on 4 acres so outdoor venues will be included. Have an amazing commercial brewer on board, and we’re partnering with a renowned restaurateur to run a full kitchen. I stepped aside as Harkcon’s CFO in August to hit this initiative full speed. I will manage the brew house while the other 5 bears and the goat keep Harkcon running strong. We will start with a 15-barrel operation, scalable to 30 barrels. Soft opening Summer of 2016. Check us out on Facebook – look for some free beer initiatives for KP’ers. Plan to launch the website soon also. Hope the Class of ’83 comes to visit! Prost!

Joe Bishop writes:
I’m currently at AMO headquarters, doing my annual small arms refresher and enjoying the South Florida weather.
I’ve been sailing union for 16 years now and starting to look forward to retirement. I recently had an awesome phone call catching up with Al Reeves over in Houston. We chatted for almost an hour and a half. He’s doing well, having just wound up a 30-year career with GE. Some of my former 3rd Company plebes are now running the local Alumni chapter (Space Coast) and every now and again I venture up to Jacksonville to visit Scott and Glenda O’Connor. I actually had a big surprise a few years ago when I took a short relief job on the SS EL Morro. When I went below to take the 12-4 watch, the 8-12 engineer was none other than their daughter, Kate, working her first job on her license. Time is catching us all, I’m afraid.
Not to worry, though, my midlife crisis is in full swing. I’ve bought a Harley Davidson Road King and learned to ride it. While I had some challenges with that, I have to tell you, it’s worth it.

I mainly follow our classmates who are on Facebook, but I see some people every now and again. Chris Foss is running a sizable business in Columbia, SC, dealing in all manner of collectables, from toys and comics to rare books and movie memorabilia. Chris is now nationally recognized as an expert in such things, I believe. I’ve heard that Mark Simmons is moving back to Tampa after a number of years in Dayton, OH, but I haven’t talked to him in quite a while.

Dave Ferchau took a break from his rigorous schedule to share:
I guess you’ve noticed by my Facebook post that I’ve been struggling through the winter by supporting our submarine fleet in places like San Diego and Pearl Harbor. I’ve been the program manager for submarine modernization for NSWC Philadelphia for the last dozen years or so. The travel locations often make the stress of the job worthwhile, but I do feel guilty when my wife is stuck at home in New Jersey with a house full of rescue animals and 20 inches of snow to shovel. When I’m back in the office, I do occasionally run into our classmates that have remain there since 83, Kevin Fauvell, Bumper Kunkel, Tom Bodman, Dan Hicks, John O’Brien, Bill Higgins, Bill Kraynick, and Dave Heinbockel. It’s usually when Jim Romeo comes up from Norfolk and we invariably always start talking about retirement.

Speaking of retirement, I’ve been working in the background for several years now trying to get retirement credit for the years at Kings Point for all of us in federal service. Hopefully for my own sake as well as for that of our KP brothers and sisters, we’ll have success shortly.
Almost forgot to mention, back in December at the Army Navy game in Philadelphia, I ran into big Bob Bennett and invited him down to the local KP alumni chapter tailgate. One of his daughters will be a senior at Annapolis next year, so I’m looking for a really great tailgate party that he’ll be hosting next year. FYI, you better spell check this because I’m in Honolulu and I’ve already had at least four Hawaiian iced teas. LOL

Glenn Gardner dances in:
Ran into Tom Bodman last week at NAVSEA. He has taken over driving Commonality Across Platforms at NSWC Philadelphia in support of NAVSEA. Commonality is about reducing variation of specifications, standards, interfaces, systems and components to a level that results in the lowest total ownership costs for the Navy. With Tom in charge, I see a lot of potential to improve affordability of our ships.

Thanks very much to all who shared news. If I haven’t heard from you in some time, it makes my day to receive text and photos. Call anytime. Webmaster Ray is almost always available. Besides creating websites, I now offer very affordable mobile apps to businesses and organizations who want to better engage with customers/members, so please refer me to business owners.

As we keep Tim Hallock‘s family in our prayers, we continue to remember all of our lost classmates and can probably honor their memory by making an effort to stay in touch with each other.
—– Ray Christensen

Tim Hallock photo from news article

George Toma with Tim Hallock at 30th reunion

John Rhatigan, Geoge Toma & Tom Aufiero

George with Steve Dear