Joe Ertolacci is trying to help me track down lost classmates:
Ray, I have tried numerous times to contact Roger Foster as he was my roommate at the academy with no success.  I know he works at BIW, Bath Iron Works, in Maine but that’s it. 

Art Burns sent a couple photos. One is with Paul Zubaly taken in December 2024 in the Philippines. The other is with Rex Gundle at my home in Wisconsin February 2025. Paul lives in the PI and I was spending some time at the “Winter Home” my wife built there.
Rex and his wife were traveling between North Carolina and Minneapolis. We live about 15 miles off their route so they dropped in to watch the Super Bowl!

Ronda Cobb says hello:
Once again I made it out into the frozen tundra to do Wreaths Across America.  Look at the last person in the line-up of older folks laying the wreaths – with the white hat & scarf – you know, shorter than the rest of the people. This is my last year laying the Merchant Marine wreath as I sort of froze to the pavement and almost fell on my nose!  Funny, not really … But, all for a good cause.

Now, I’m dashing out the door to the NCAA Div III Women’s BB tourney at Baldwin-Wallace here in Ohio. It’ll be nice to support some of the current Midshipmen. I hope this finds everyone well. 

Mark Smith enjoyed some travel:
We took a wonderful trip to South America -10 day guided tour with Gate 1 in Rio de Janeiro, Iguazu Falls, Buenos Aires.  I was last in Rio in November of 1980 as a cadet on the Mormac Glen. We got to spend several days at each stop in South America and experience the sights.  We got see Iguazu Falls from both Brazilian and Argentinian sides, absolutely spectacular.

We then flew to Ushuaia (Tierra del Fuego) for an 18 day cruise to Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falklands.  We sailed with Atlas Ocean Voyages on their World Voyager “yacht”.  It was 126m LOA, we had 159 passengers on this trip.  Had a bumpy 2 day ride across the Drake Passage – 20’ swells.  With the smaller size of this ship we were able to make zodiac landings and tours in Antarctica and South Georgia.  They take bio-security VERY seriously.  All our outer clothes had to be inspected before we went ashore.  Also, the boats they loaned us had to be scrubbed before we got back on the zodiacs and then we walked through a boot washer as we got back on the ship.   Picture of me on the continent representing the class.  Got to see literally a million penguins, along with several varieties of seals and whales.  The crew and the expedition team were outstanding.  They provided daily lectures on penguins, whales, birds, geology, etc.
We actually did a polar plunge in Antarctica – the water was 28 degrees.

Sitting at lunch the first day I hear someone at the next table talking about being a Merchant Mariner.  It was Kirk Barrett ‘87 (see pic).  We chatted quite a bit during the trip, he is a pilot in Mobile.  They let all the passengers on the bridge at various times during the trip.  Very nice.  Couldn’t get into the engine room, apparently company policy.  The Captain was Norwegian and very interesting to talk to.  After his routine announcements during the trip his closing was always “buckle up and enjoy the ride.”  😊

We did get a quick glimpse of the worlds largest iceberg (A23A) (30 miles x 40 miles).  The visibility then dropped and we couldn’t get any closer.  It broke off the continent in 1986.  It had been caught in a circular current in the South Atlantic, but recently broke out and is headed towards South Georgia.

My wife Andi grew up near Niagara Falls and loves the falls, so after seeing Iguazu and talking to other folks on our trip, it looks like our next trip will probably be to Victoria Falls.  It was an incredible trip.  I can highly both Gate 1 and Atlas Ocean Voyages.

In other news, I am still actively umpiring both Little League baseball/softball and High School Softball.  I got to work the plate for the Virginia HS Class 4 semi-final last year.  I also worked the LL Senior (15-16yr old girls) Softball Championship in August.  This year I will be umpiring LL Senior (15-16yr old boys) Baseball Tournament in August.

Steve Keating shares:
Greetings from Alexandria, Virginia.  On 11 January 2025, I retired from the Office of General Counsel of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) after nearly 22 years of federal civil service. I was blessed to have my wife, Cynthia, my daughter Kate, and my brother Anthony, my sister-in-law Barbara, brother-in-law Mark, and over 100 friends attend.

At NGA, I was privileged to work with a number of Kings Pointers, many of who led and supported NGA’s Maritime Safety Office producing international charts and safety of navigation publications for the Navy, Merchant Marine, and Mariners generally. Kings Point provided a great education to prepare me to represent the Maritime Safety Office at NGA, and NGA at the International Hydrographic Organization.  Attached are some photographs from the retirement ceremony.

Steve’s travel’s sometimes involved meeting other Kings Pointers in airports.  In 2024, Steve bumped into Del Lewis at Denver International Airport.

Overall, it’s been a great 42 years of sailing in the Merchant Marine, working as a Defense Contractor, serving in the Navy Reserve, and working as an international law counsel for DoD.  Kings Pointers have made great shipmates and work colleagues along the way.  In a year or so, my wife and I will plan on relocating to Burlington, North Carolina.  There, we plan to enjoy family, walking, fly fishing, sailing, hiking, pickle ball, and tennis.

Ray, thank you for keeping us all in touch with each other and with Kings Point over the years.
Acta Non Verba 

Erin Gantt is “laying low at NAVSEA trying to avoid the reaper”, but alerted me that Willie Barrere is now the AMO Pres.  AMO press release excerpt:

“The National Executive Board of American Maritime Officers has elected Willie Barrere to serve as the union’s national president in accordance with Article VIII, Section 1 (l) of the AMO National Constitution. He will complete the term of former AMO National President Paul Doell, who retired from AMO. Barrere was elected AMO national executive vice president in 2022.”

As noted in Alumni Assn Scuttlebutt email, Scott Brueggeman joined Core Scientific as Chief Marketing Officer to drive market expansion as well as visibility. “With over 20 years of experience in digital infrastructure and technology businesses, Brueggeman will play a pivotal role in strengthening the company’s brand presence, driving growth, and expanding market opportunities.”

We can always count on A.J. Murphy to bring us some colorful news:
Happy Mardi Gras from New Orleans!
So much good food and drinking going on here, plus it was great to meet up with classmates as well.  Was able to catch up with Yvette (Smith) Pigott just before her Krewe of Iris parade.  She loves riding in the parade and it was a beautiful day as well.

Anne, Tommy and Jim Quern also arrived for our parade party.  Jim was “in character” and some of the younger kids were impressed!  They now kow that you know who is truly watching all year. The last shot is Gretchen and I watching the parade pass.

Yvette Pigott adds:
I retired from teaching high school science three years ago and have been enjoying traveling with my husband Don. This year we will celebrate 38 years of marriage. Here we are enjoying a toga party on a recent cruise.  I’ve taken up art and paint daily along with drinking more coffee. If anyone is interested, you can find my art on Instagram yknot_art
I was just in my hometown of New Orleans to ride in the Krewe of Iris for Mardi Gras. I was lucky to meet up with AJ Murphy and his wife Gretchen. That’s not much to say but I’m on the road visiting my daughters.

Finally, I needed to grab this Facebook photo by Dave Ferchau of Larry Migliozzi allegedly singing “Mustang Sally” for anyone who missed it online. Maybe he’ll sing at our next reunion?

After a pretty cold Winter here in Delaware and all over, I look forward to Spring more than usual. As always, see this and all past columns at KP83.org.
Peace!

Scott Metheny leads off:
Been a long time. Sorry to hear about Jim Wei – great guy. Well, I retired from the Navy as CDR a long time ago after 22 years. I recently retired from working full time. The hassle just wasn’t worth it anymore. Spent some time with the Cunningham crew in Jupiter. Coons, Ratighan, et al. Great seeing you all and catching up. When I worked in NOLA a while back caught up with Quern, McAloon, Liantonio, and others. Good time. On to the family. Wife still as beautiful as ever. Oldest Jake is an ICU nurse at Tampa General and will be starting CRNA school in January, then possibly Air Force. Nick is a Navy doctor and just shipped out to Yokosuka, Japan for two years. He speaks Japanese! Katie is an L2 law student at University of Virginia. She’s made the dean’s list and is crushing it, but doesn’t want military, despite being JROTC cadet of the year (she had more ribbons than Patton). Guess they get their smarts from their mother (also a nurse). She should write a book. Anyway, that’s what’s keeping me busy. All for now. Big hello to all my classmates!

Brian Foy reports:

Greetings, Shipmate! All is well down here in the Nation’s Oldest City – St. Augustine. It has been a fairly quiet few months of late; but that all changed with the Election. I will be gearing up for a very busy 2025 in Washington, DC and on Capitol Hill representing the USMMA Alumni Association & Foundation (AAF), as well as the interests of the USMMA. New Congressional faces, committee assignments, and staff changes should keep me quite busy as I reinforce the importance of USMMA and the vital role our graduates play in both economic and national security.

Include are a few photos of me with ‘83 classmates at various events. At the National Maritime Strategy Workshop in DC in October, I got to catch up with John Rhatigan and Willie Barrere. John is President of the Marine Machinery Association and Willie is President of the American Maritime Officers (AMO) Union. Willie has settled in the Space Coast area of Florida but you are more likely to catch him on the road than at home.

The other two pictures are from the AAF Golf Outing in New Orleans on November 11 – Veterans Day. The Class of ‘83 dominated the volunteers for the Outing. It was great to see Frank Liantonio, Jim Quern, Skip McAloon and Rick Boudiette. Needless to say, there were a lot of laughs. Quern’s socks stole the show. It always amazes me how we can all just pick up where we left off, whether it’s been a few years or thirty years!

On the home front, Karen and I celebrated our 34th Anniversary in August. While my daughter Melissa, son-in-law and granddaughter (who is now a junior in college) still live in OKC, my three boys all live nearby. James and his fiancee are both JAX police officers and my youngest, Connor, is in the Florida National Guard. My oldest son, Vincent works in JAX and spends most of his time hanging out at EverBank Field mingling with the Jaguars’ players.

Matthew Bucherati weathers the storm, sharing his account of Hurricane Helene:
“Greetings from the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Hurricane Helene really took its toll on the mountain communities of North Carolina.  We retired full time two years ago and moved to our mountain second home in Ashe County, NC.  We have owned and loved it for 17 years but have really cherished living here full time.  Helene brought the worst flooding in the mountains in over 100 years.  First, let me say that the Bucherati home was blessed despite 70+ MPH winds and 26”of rain.  We only lost one tree and our home, which is situated on the crest of a mountain at 3,500 feet, was safe.  Many other homes and properties on our mountain were, unfortunately, not so blessed.  Four power poles and at least 100+ trees came down on our mountain alone.  It took 13 days to fully restore power in our community.  I had a whole house generator installed about seven years ago and I supplemented it with a large battery back up system two years ago.  Both performed flawlessly and we sort of became the Cool Ade house for our neighbors offering hot showers, hot coffee and hot meals to all who needed.  My neighbor, who is a retired Marine and I spent almost three weeks behind our chainsaws and wood splitter helping our neighbors recover.  It was inspiring to see how those in our community pulled together to help each other out.

In balance, we were still fortunate compared to many areas of the mountains around us.  Our County of Ashe, population of 24,000, lost 700+ power poles and 30 bridges were washed away.  The New River, which runs through the middle of our county, overflowed its banks by 22 feet causing tremendous damage to low lying homes.  Parts of our county near the towns of Lansing and Creston, were absolutely devastated.  Our neighboring county of Watauga, which is home to the town of Boone, was also hit very hard.  King street, which runs through the middle of Boone and Appalachian State University, was turned into a river.

Even now, two months later, there are signs of the devastation evident everywhere.  You may have watched on the news that the FEMA response up here was very poor and the stories are sadly true.  If there is one shining hero through this disaster, it is Samaritan’s Purse Ministries, headed by Franklin Graham.  They have a long history of responding to natural disasters all over the U.S. and the world.  This disaster happened in their own backyard and they came out in force.  They mobilized thousands of volunteers including coordinating the efforts of countless church communities.  They were everywhere on the ground with relief crews, food, water shelter and more.  From our church property, I was able to personally watch them deliver emergency supplies by helicopter to many cut off homes.  For those interested, their disaster relief and donation page is https://samaritanspurse.org.

It will likely take a few years for all of the communities to recover and the remaining damage to be cleared.  Sara and I thank God for protecting us and our home.  The Blue Ridge Mountains are a beautiful place to live and we cherish every day we have here.”

 

Bravo Zulu to my KP roommate Mathew for helping his community! It always warms my heart to hear that my classmates are people of action, trying to make the world a better place. Email me a note and photo of your news for the next column, especially if classmates are involved. Peace!

We mourn the loss of Jim Wei, who passed away 7/24/2024. Send me any photo or remembrance you happen to have so I can add it to his page at KP83.org.

We congratulate Mike Logan for his induction to the USMMA Athletics Hall of Fame on 9/6/24!

Mark Suter reports (he and Craig Ellixson provided these photos):
What a great weekend! Our Class of ‘83 football team gathered together to celebrate longstanding friendship and our Captain Mike Logan’s long overdue induction into the USMMA Athletic Hall of Fame!  The dinner was held at the Mariner’s Estate.  Jane and Mike Logan, Erin and Bob Bennett, Kira and Kevin Fauvel, Rich Colonna, John Rhatigan, Jim Goulden, Craig Ellixson, and Jeanann and I began our reunion at KP Friday afternoon waterfront at Eldridge pool in glorious sunshine and a reminiscent walk around the campus.

Many of Mike’s family were in town including his 96 year-old mother! So many stories were re-told plus a few that I have not heard before. I haven’t laughed that much in a while! One of the weekend’s highlights definitely included having Coach John Campo and his wife Regina join us for the festivities. Coach Campo performed Mike’s induction. He recruited most of us back in 1978/1979 and impressed us with his incredible recall of our lives, families, and personal backgrounds. 

Saturday was the march-on and football game vs Western Connecticut.  Mike performed the coin toss and was featured on the scoreboard throughout the game along with the other Athletic Hall of Fame inductees.  Happy to report KP won 44-27.

Difficult to describe the heartfelt, warm feeling Jeanann and I felt throughout the weekend being around so many of our good friends at the academy which holds special memories for us, including the Mariners Chapel.  We will be married 40 years this October 6th!  Time sure flies. We all shared updates on our families and lives but it’s so much more that uniquely binds us together as trusted friends, teammates, and sailing partners.

Mike Logan remarks:
“This past weekend at Kings Point was truly special.  I am truly humbled, grateful and honored to be inducted into the USMMA Athletics Hall of Fame!  This recognition is a shared victory for my classmates and teammates!  I had a great time with Bob Bennett, Rich Colonna, Craig Ellixson, Mark Suter, Kevin Fauvell, Jim Goulden, John Rhatigan, Coach John Campo,  and my family. I want to say thanks for all of their support and friendship.   I would not  have been able to achieve this honor without them!  Awesome men!”

Reprinting (without permission) Rex Gundle’s 7/24 Facebook post:

Standing around at the Charlotte airport deciding if the third delay of my plane was a sign that I should go back home, when out of the corner of my eye I see somebody who looks familiar, just a bit older than I remember! So now being of that age that I will go talk to almost anybody, and nevermind if this guy is bigger than me.

Sure enough it was Jim Goulden! We spent a nice bit of time catching up before I said goodbye to Jim, my delayed plane and that ridiculous airport! Small world.

Maureen McKeever sends:
To my KP Classmates. Happy Fall! As an A-Split this is my favorite time of year – especially since it seems like the 90 degree days are behind us! I really enjoyed watching the Olympics this year – especially the Breaking! It brought back memories of watching Kevin Brofford and Bill Solis breakdancing at the company parties.

It also brought back memories of running into Erin Gantt at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul – I was in Korea doing my ACDUTRA and she was there to go to the Olympics – and I saw her at the Men’s Platform Diving Prelims. We spent the evening wandering around Seoul. It is true – if you want to run into a Kings Point classmate just go to the other side of the world!

Acta non Verba everyone and Go Mariners!

Erin Gantt chimes in:
The AAF asked me to sing the Nat’l Anthem at the 2024 Homecoming game.  I will march onto the field with other female grads first to honor the 50th anniversary of women at KP.

Also, Young Heinbockel, Lisa Fields, & I attended a service academy women’s night at the National’s baseball game on 09 Aug 2024 along with other KP grads.  The first class of KP women was highlighted with photos on the jumbotron during the opening ceremonies.

Lisa Fields adds:
The Nationals recognized women from all service academies, but paid a special tribute to the 50th year anniversary of women at KP.  Erin Gantt, Young Heinbockel and I met at the park to be part of the celebration. Here are a couple of photos.  The highlight of our evening was when we went to our seats. The usher, Heather, stated that her brother had graduated from Kings Point. Her brother is our esteemed classmate, Lee Forsgren!

While visiting our daughter’s family in Hawaii in June I was fortunate to be able to catch up with Jeanne (Kleis) Dressel for lunch. We had a great time, lots of laughs while thinking back to our plebe year days!  We certainly remembered all of our 7th company classmates!

Stan Cutler shares:
I can write this midday Friday because I’m now retired! I taught for 35+ years after a couple of years of sailing, and now I’m spending my time playing Senior Softball 3 days a week, going out to plenty of live music, working out, and spending time with my 90-year-old dad. I’m also about to launch a music blog (www.mayorofmusic.com) aimed at local musicians and venues. A friend gave me the nickname “Mayor of Music” a couple of years ago since I usually know what bands are playing, and when. I see a lot of local bands (a couple of which let me sit in and play my Cajon drum!), and this summer I’ve seen Imagine Dragons, Styx and Stones, Foreigner, Def Leppard/Journey/Cheap Trick, REO Speedwagon, Alanis Morrisette, Blink 182, Welcome to Rockville festival….so, if anyone is in the area and wants to catch a gig, hit me up (407-435-9726)! I’ll hopefully see Willie Barrere tomorrow at the UCF football game. And next Wednesday I look forward to my first Social Security check!

Bumper Kunkle has also been seeing some bands:
It’s hard to believe that the summer is over.  I have been fairly busy going on several trips and even managed to look-up a couple of classmates on some of them. My son, Jimmy, and I went to the final round of the US Open at Pinehurst in June.  It was very hot but we did get to see some good golf. Later that month, my family met up with Sue and Tom Bodman in Chicago.  They were on their way out west and spent a couple of days there.  We even got to see the NY Mets play and WIN.

We went to Florida at the end of the month for Maria’s nephew’s graduation party and got a chance to have dinner with Nat Agrippina’s family while they were on vacation. In July, Maria and I went to the Journey/Def Leppard/Steve Miller Band concert in Nashville.  Boy those guys are getting old (I guess we are too).  We also saw Travis Tritt at the Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary.  Brushy Mtn is a historic place.  It once held James Earl Ray.  It’s a cool place to visit if you are in Eastern Tennessee.

In August, we went to Las Vegas to do a little sight seeing and to see Morgan Wallen perform at Allegiant Stadium.  While there, we got to have dinner with Tom Heberle.  He looks great and seems to be enjoying retirement.

The last photo is several months old but had to be included.  We were honored to attend Emelie Klehr’s wedding last October in New Jersey.  That’s Chuck Klehr KP ’85, his dad, Charles Klehr KP ‘57 and me. Things slow down a bit in the fall.  I only have a couple of trips planned.  I will be in the Philly area in October to play in the Kayla’s Hope for Kids Golf Tournament.  John Ayres KP ’88 and Chuck Klehr (KP ’85) are also playing. On a closing note, Congratulations to Mike Logan on his induction into the USMMA Athletic Hall of Fame!

Mark Smith continues to call balls and strikes:
Expecting our 3rd Grandchild (a girl) in early October.
Spent a lot of time with Little League this summer.  I was the Umpire in Chief for the Virginia State Senior (14-16) Baseball Tournament which our District hosted.  Then I umpired the 8-10 State Softball Tournament before heading to Salisbury, NC to umpire at the Senior Softball Regional. Got to umpire in the Regional Final. (picture attached).  Then we were off to volunteer at the Little League Softball World Series in Greenville,  NC for a week.  I did a lot of video replay for that and some other Tournaments.  Finally, we went to Williamsport, PA to sit back, relax and catch up with friends while we watched some great baseball.  The fall Honor Flight season is about to kick into full gear which will keep us busy through October.

We are booked on a month long tour to Rio/Iguaza Falls/Buenos Aires and a cruise to Antarctica in January.  Really looking forward to checking off 6th continent (still got to get to Australia).

Speaking of travel, Tom Lighsey sends:
Took this picture on this weekend’s Cozumel dive trip. Kudos to who decided the swag should include a dry bag! For the record, the empty bottle of tequila in the picture is not ours. I swear.

Here’s a recent post that begged to be lifted from Kevin Brofford’s facebook feed:
“What a fantastic time in Los Angeles last weekend! I had the privilege and honor to promote my daughter Kelsey to Major, United States Space Force!  Fantastic!  The icing on the cake, we had the whole family there! Simply wonderful!”

Ray Christensen thanks all for your wonderful contributions to this column! Check the website for additional photos. I continue to run 20-25 miles/week, participate in Knights of Columbus activities and fundraisers and help my brothers with projects such as constructing a new barn at our family farm in the Catskills. Peace!