Once again, Norm O’Neal has struck the memory chords and taken me back to an incredible two-plus years of my life, commissioning and my first ship, the USS Hawkins. Norm sent an email with a “Smug Mug” link page posted about the Hawk by a sailor whose time aboard almost exactly coincided with mine (1968-69). Sometime today, i will find Gary McCaughey and reconnect if possible. i faintly remember him as i had a great amount of connections to the radio shack as ASW Officer, OOD, and CDO.
i am sharing this because i want Blythe Jewell, Sarah Jewell, and especially grandson Sam and son-in-law Jason Gander (who was a third class petty officer aboard Tripoli when he met Blythe) – hmm, i couldn’t tag him for some reason. i also wanted to share with Andrew L. Nemethy and Rob DeWitt. We shared the Hawk’s forward officers stateroom, a space not much bigger than my wife’s master bedroom closet for several months. Andrew, Rob, and i, along with a number of Salve Regina coeds, most notably Kathy McMahon Klosterman, had an incredible time in Newport.
i was especially struck by Gary’s photos of the Newport Jazz Festival. i saw a number of the performances but the one i remember the most was on sunny Sunday afternoon. i was sitting alone on the hillside during Ray Charles’ session. i was blown away by his rendition of “Eleanor Rigsby.”
For all, Gary’s photos capture life aboard a FRAM destroyer in the late 1960’s. Thanks, Gary and Norm.
i am still an amateur at this blog, Internet stuff, so if this link does not work, copy and paste to your search engine.
https://mac22.smugmug.com/My-Hitch-in-the-Navy-1966-1970-1/USS-Hawkins-DD873/Gary-McCaughey-Pics/i-sWz34jG