THE SCUTTLEBUTT

Jan. 2009 U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Scuttlebutt Flotilla 12-8, 7th District Charleston, South Carolina Vol. 35, No. 1-January 2009
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Flotilla Web Site: http://www.uscgauxcharleston.org

Commanders Corner
Joe Fleming, FC 12-8
A Happy New Year to all! With a year of great achievements and rewards behind us, we look forward to another year of success, from our hard work. We will have opportunities to assist the Gold Side. There are many new things coming up in 2009. More training fields will be open to us with opportunities to learn different aspects of recreational boating safety and assisting the Coast Guard. New members will be getting started in crew training, as soon as weather permits. I am looking forward to seeing a big class of members on the water. Being on the water is one way we can assist the Coast Guard with their job as Guardians of the Sea. We have a few new Staff Officers this year. I ask all of you to help them get started with their new job. Outgoing officers need to get any material to them and brief them on anything that is needed for the year. If you have any questions or ideas for 2009, please let me know. The Boat show, coming in January, is our first of show of the year. Help will be needed, so please let FSO-PA know what you can do to make this a great show.
(Continued on page 5)

Vice Commander
Alan Miles, VFC 12-8
Here it is, a brand new year. I pray it will bring each and everyone good health, and great success in everything you do. I also hope, in this year, we will make a significant contribuInside tion to the US FC ............. 1 Coast Guard. VFC .......... 1 The FC and I are de- AN ............. 6 pending on each member to CM ............ 4 contribute to the missions, CS ............. 3 meetings and activities to FN ............. 4 help the Coast Guard. There IS............... 4 is nothing ahead of us but MA ............ 3 opportunity and experience MS ............ 7 MT ............ 3 astern. There will be a meeting of OP ............. 6 PA ............. 5 all Flotilla Staff Officers on PB ............. 2 January 10th. I guarantee it PE ............. 3 will be an awesome time. PS .............. 7 The location is being PV ............. 5 worked out now. The goal SR ............. 4 of the meeting is simple - VE ............. 6 To put together a plan for Calendar... 9 the best organized year ever. Trivia ........ 8 I need all of the flotilla staff to look ahead at 2009 and provide your input and ideas into a master calendar of events they recommend we should attend and support. For example: the FSO-PA
(Continued on page 5)

Confidentiality Notice: Telephone numbers and addresses of members are protected by the Privacy Act of 1974. As a matter of policy, rosters of names, addresses and telephone numbers shall not be made available to the general public or any outside organization. Privacy of all rosters shall be safeguarded and the page clearly labeled. The publication of these rosters, addresses, and telephone numbers on any computer on-line service including the Internet is prohibited by the Privacy Act of 1974. The Auxiliary is guided by the current equal opportunities policies of the Commandant of the Coast Guard. No Person shall be subject to

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Member Training
anuary is a time for looking forward and for looking back. We look at the year just past to see what we accomplished and look at the year ahead with a view toward what we can do to improve on our past performance. We did well with our workshops. Although IT and TCT refresher were the only required workshops, we gave all available workshops. I would hope we can repeat that with even better attendance in 2009. We only had four Specialty Courses completed last year. That was second best in the division but I hope to get the Citadel Detachment enthused over the idea of classes in some of those courses and adding some of our other members for a much more active year in that area. We had a great deal of activity in the various ICS modules. Some of that was due to new crew candidates fulfilling the requirements for that qualification and part of it was coxswains trying to fulfill the new requirement for ICS 210 or 300. That will continue to be an ongoing thing. Two new opportunities we have are the Auxiliary Telecommunications Qualification Standard and the Auxiliary Search Coordination and Execution programs. The ATQ program is now the requirement for having a mobile or fixed base radio. If you already have one of these radio facilities, you are Grandfathered in. Our new FSO-CM, Dean Creed has already expressed a desire to get this program underway. The AuxSC&E replaces the old AUXSAR in the AUXOP program. This one will require a real commitment of time but I hope we can elicit some interest. Bob Mathewes, SO-MT

Publications
Bob Mathewes, FSO-PB
ere we are with the inaugural issue of 2009. We have some new faces on the staff and are looking forward to another good year. Bob Orenstein has moved into the FSO-MS position. Bob Lovinger is the new FSO-PE and Barbara Thibodeaux has taken the FSO-PA position on the staff. Last month we added the column from the Citadel Detachment. That is missing this month since the Cadets were on Christmas Furlough. I look forward to picking that up again in February. While on the subject of the detachment, I hope you all saw the great article about them in the last issue of The Breeze. The goal this year, as every year, is to have 100% participation from the elected and appointed officers of the flotilla. We reached that this month. Our FSO-SR, Rick Miller, draws a bye this month since we had no business meeting in December. Those of you who missed the Change of Watch and the James Island Outboard Motor Club missed a great time. The food, fellowship and location were all conducive to a really fun evening. Dont forget that your articles are due not later than the 25th of each month. That is not to say that they can not be submitted earlier. With our new Flotilla Bridge in place, there are some elevated expectations for the year 2009. That should provide a lot of material for your articles. Remember that your article in The Scuttlebutt is your monthly report to the flotilla on activities in your area of responsibility. Let the membership know what was accomplished and what is planned. Lets make this a great year. Bob Mathewes, FSO-PB

Bob Mathewes, SO-MT

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Communication Services John Sikes, FSO-CS

Public Education
oating education is one of the faces the Auxiliary shows to the general public and it is a very important activity in supporting the role of the Auxiliary in life saving. When we are out on the water we often see people do things that are poorly executed, foolish, or dangerous and a basic boating course can help people learn how to have fun safely and get home in good health. For this reason, the flotilla needs your help. As Eric Kilpatrick, our outgoing PE officer for 2008 who did a fine job for the year, had mentioned in his last column, there will be another ABC class of running for four consecutive Tuesdays, starting on 24 February. If you would like to be involved, please call me (843-762-6136) or email me at rlovinger@earthlink.net and lets see if we can get you involved in teaching what you are comfortable with and know. Especially if you are crew or coxswain certified, you have a lot to teach so give me a call. I hope we will have enough interest and a large enough class to be able to offer Boating Skills & Seamanship, perhaps this Fall. Bob Lovinger, FSO-PE

ith January comes the usual influx of new flotilla staff officers. It's also a busy time for your CS officer, what with necessary changes on the web site. I would appreciate any comments that our new staff officers might have on their respective page if there is already one, or ideas on new pages to convey their messages. I also welcome thoughts from others in the flotilla on what they'd like to see on the site. Good examples of items that need to be on the flotilla's calendar page include boating safety courses, VSC blitzes, etc. Feel free to drop me an email with your planned activities. I have received a list of the new staff from our commander and gotten the links set up for respective email messages. Each officer is encouraged to try the link to him/herself and send a message using the link. Please let me know if the message does not go through and I'll check on it. Each staff officer has an email address through the web site that may be used to protect his/her own email address. For example, Joe Fleming's address would be fc@uscgauxcharleston.org and mine would be fso-cs@uscgauxcharleston.org . Try your address by sending a message to yourself, and let me know if it does not work. And don't forget that this is YOUR web site. It provides an opportunity to get the Auxiliary message across to the public as well as to our own members. John Sikes, FSO-CS
Dont forget the Division 12 quarterly meeting and Change of Watch at the Beach Colony Resort in Myrtle Beach on 2 & 3 January!

Bob Lovinger, FSO-PE

Materials
Tom Beauchemin, FSO-MA

aterials have been slow as is the case during the Holiday Season. Things will be picking up shortly as the January boat show gets the public in gear for the season and we may run short on some items. So order early. Tom Beauchemin FSO-MA

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Information Services
Frank Leister, FSO-IS

Communications
Dean Creed, FSO-CM

ou should check to determine if all the hours you performed in your various missions have shown up in AUXDATA. If you are missing hours, you may find yourself REYR for 2009. There is not much you can do at this late date to gather more hours but we can make sure the hours you reported have made it to the AUXDATA files. To that end, you will find posted on our web site at www.uscgauxcharleston.org/Act/ act0812.pdf a list of all your hours. Check that and if you have a problem, email me at 128FSOIS@Gmail.com . Do not wait until next year, as the longer you wait the more difficult it becomes to get your records straight. Frank Leister, FSO-IS

Finance
Frank Leister, FSO-FN

here is no change in our financial profile since the last report in November. We will expect the invoice from Div/District dues in January and February. FC Fleming has scrubbed the roster to the point, I think, that we have no "lost" members. Our costs on bringing the Fotilla's OPFAC up to specs has been way below the estimate. As always, if you have a question or want more information, email me at FSO128FN@yahoo.com Frank Leister, FSO-FN

uxiliary communications activities consist of qualified Auxiliarists operating radios in vessels, vehicles (land mobile stations), homes, offices and other buildings (fixed land stations), aircraft, and direction finding stations, both Coast Guard and Auxiliary owned. Duties are generally associated with surface or air missions, and include standing radio watches at Coast Guard or Auxiliary communication facilities. Participating is straightforward. To begin, you must become certified as a Telecommunications Operator (TCO). Ill be glad to help you with that, and with getting your radio accepted by the Director of Auxiliary (DIRAUX) as an official facility. Those of you who were Comms qualified through taking the Communications Specialty Course will remain qualified indefinitely, but I encourage you to join me in pursuing your TCO certification. We owe it to ourselves to remain current. The TCO program became effective 01AUG 2008 and reflects the current operating environment. Many things have changed! For more information, visit www. auxodept.org/telecoms.htm and/or get in touch with me. Dean Creed, FSO-CM

Secretary Records
Rick Miller, FSO-SR

Flotilla Meeting 14 January at 1900 in the Brass Buckle.

ince we had the Change of Watch in December, rather than a business meeting, there are no minutes to report. Rick Miller, FSO-SR

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Public Affairs
Barbara Thibodeaux, FSO-PA

(VFC, Continued from page 1)

appy New Year to All and I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I look forward to serving you this year as your Public Affairs Officer. You can also expect me to be contacting you for HELP!!! The first event for 2009 is the Charleston Boat Show at the North Charleston Coliseum January 23rd through 25th. We will need to man our booth throughout the show dates. I will be soliciting for assistance in achieving this task. I look forward to a great year and I would appreciate it if you would contact me if you have ideas and/or events that the unit needs to be involved in and I need to get the word out about. Barbara Thibodeaux, FSO-PA

(FC, Continued from page 1)

Just a reminder, Jerome Bishop is still at Roper Hospital and would be happy to see visitors. He is in room 4026 in The Towers. In my second term as Commander, my wish is to do all I can to keep our flotilla up front and ahead of all others in all aspects of our job. We will have our staff meeting the week before our business meeting, this way the staff is on top of all things that we need to handle. The VFC will set up the time and location of the staff meeting. Please let him know if you have any preference regarding meeting time or location. I am looking forward to the New Year. Joe Fleming, FC Deadline for articles for February issue is 25 January. Don t get left out!

might suggest the boat shows and the Southeastern Wildlife Expo. Should we do these things this year? What successes have we had and what failures have we had in the past? What major events should be highlighted in the local and Auxiliary media, such as local parades and festivals? Should we provide a boating safety and life jacket demo booth at the Grits Festival in St. George? Should we have rescue personnel standing by with life rings at the gritsdunking tank, perform an impromptu Search and Rescue? We want to get Exposure to the media in order to maximize our exposure to the public with our message. Get the picture? It is up to us to define and assemble the program which will set us apart from the rest of the crowd. Each and every department will be expected to give their input to the year. The Citadel should be prepared to provide their input so we may both contribute to each others programs. We are One Team, and have One Mission: To support the USCG in the execution of its duties and responsibilities. The entire years details and calendar will be worked out together as a team, and we will define our goals. If you cannot attend the January 10th meeting, then plan ahead and get another Staff Officer to present your ideas for you at the Jan 10th meeting. Stay tuned in for the specific details and locations of more staff meetings throughout the year. Alan J.P. Miles, VFC

Partner Visitor
Paul Berka, FSO-PV
With the new year coming I will be looking forward to increase the PV ranks. Paul Berka, FSO-PV

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Vessel Examinations
Joe Fleming, FSO-VE

Operations

he New Year calls for new things to do. I have the first of the new decals in hand. I will have them at our meeting. Alan Miles and I are working on a couple things that we think will get the attention of the younger boating public and this should get the parents to remember safety first in boating. January is full for events; lets see what next month has to offer in weather for us. New Members VE testing is on line, take the test and let me know so we can get you started in Vessel Safety Checks. Joe Fleming, FSO-VE

Allen James, FSO-OP

ATONS
Allen James, FSO-AN
This year will be a more active year for AN patrols than 2008.Our main area of PATONS is the upper Cooper River. Richard Daniel has done an outstanding job of documenting these PATONs so that they are easily recognizable in daylight. The many bridges in the area are another source of PATONs that we will observe. Starting at the southern end of our AOR and going up the Ashley and the Cooper we will cover all aids. I have a list of all qualified verifiers and will contact you as we set up patrols. Hap James, FSO-AN

e will start a new crew class in 2009. If you are interested in becoming certified as a crewmember contact me at 559-9762. I will order materials and set up a schedule after reviewing the requirements with each candidate. Anyone considering training for crew should be aware of the time required for the training. During JanFeb-Mar we will complete the classroom portion, which includes first aid, aids to navigation, chart reading and plotting, marlinspike training (tying knots) and other skills. Meetings will be weekly lasting several hours at a location to be determined. You must complete the ABC course prior to completing the crew course. You may do this by reading the book and successfully passing the exam or take the formal class work and pass the exam. See Bob Lovinger for information on how to take the ABC course. If you are crew qualified and want to become a Coxswain contact me. We can conduct Crew and Coxswain classes together and later all do the on-the-water portion. Hap James, SO-OP

Happy Birthday
This Month To:

Citadel Detachment
The cadets are on Christmas Leave. This column will return in February.

James MorrisonJan. 10 Shirley Wolf.Jan. 13 Rick Miller...Jan. 20 John SchmidtJan. 21 Diane Schmidt..Jan. 22

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

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Marine Safety
Bob Orenstein, FSO-MS

his is my first article as Flotilla Safety Officer. Last November 19th, Bob Lovinger, Terence Simmons and I attended the "Open House" at Moran Environmental in Goose Creek. While there we were shown all of the equipment used in spills and to contain environmental accidents. Moran Environmental is a subsidiary of the Moran Tug company which you see in the harbor and up and down the eastern seaboard. It is a NYC organization. We met a number of their executives and were really treated like honored guests at the cookout. I was introduced to Scott Crisp who is one of the organizations' people who does presentations on their company mission. He agreed to do a slide show at a future Flotilla meeting that should prove to be interesting. On another note, Frank Leister and Bob Lovinger attended the ICS 210/300 class at the CG C-Hawk installation at the Old Navy Yard last month. As you come to the point and need to take theses courses, let me know and I will set it up with Lt. Litizinger who will be teaching them throughout the year. He would like to see several Auxiliarists become really involved with the Marine Environmental Response program. There are several areas to look at; USCG Auxiliar y Marine Environmental Education Specialist (instructor) and USCG Auxiliary Assistant Pollution Response Specialist. At a future meeting I will have obtained the

courses necessary for these specialties. If you have any questions, please call me at 843-821-0233 or bandjorenstein@bellsouth.net. I look forward to working with the membership on all marine safety concerns. Bob Orenstein, FSO-MS

Personnel Services
Alan Miles, FSO-PS

appy New Year! With the arrival of 2009 I am excited about the way our flotilla continues to grow. This year, in addition to continued growth, I would like to also concentrate more on retention of existing personnel and getting the necessary help to Staff Officers. I would like to align new personnel with current Staff Officers as their Assistants. This will add continuity to our ranks in the event a Staff Officer has to miss a meeting or two as well as provide suitable replacements as Staff Officers continue to advance in the organization. The overall goal is to better provide support to the US Coast Guard in the accomplishment of its mission. I am asking all hands to give me their ideas of things they would like to see added to our program. Anything is possible from donuts and coffee to special promotions. All your ideas are welcomed. Please dont let this opportunity pass you with out your input. So let these words get your creative juices flowing and Please call or e-mail me your ideas. Fair Winds and Following Seas, Alan J.P. Miles, FSO-PS

Flotilla Staff Meeting 10 January at 1400 at the Cuttermans Club, Pier Poppa.

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Nautical Trivia
How many of you have ever heard of the Volunteer Port Security Force or VPSF of WWII? This group consisted of Coast Guard Temporary Reserves and Auxiliarists. Temporary Reserves (TR) were, like the Auxiliary unpaid volunteers. They ranged in age from seventeen to seventy. The first VPSF unit was formed in Philadelphia pursuant to an executive order of February 1942 directing the Secretary of the Navy to take necessary steps to prevent sabotage and subversive activities on the nations waterfronts. The task of protecting the hundreds of warehouses, piers and other facilities that kept Americas shipping industry in business fell to the Coast Guard , which in turn delegated it to the Reserve and the Auxiliary. In various port cities, the Captain of the Port was place in charge of a Port Security Force, consisting of TRs, Auxiliarists. And other civilians recruited for the purpose. The Coast Guard set up a Reserve Training School in Philadelphia to train TRs in anti-espionage methods, fire prevention, customs inspections and small arms handling. By 1945 53,214 men and women (most of them Auxiliarists) were serving as temporary members of the Reserve. The Auxiliary and Reserve attracted their share of celebrities. Humphrey Bogart took his yacht, The Santana, on patrols out of Los Angeles. Arthur Fiedler, conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, put in his 12 hours a week on patrol in Boston Harbor. There was a very active VPSF unit in the port of Charleston. These people, most of whom could not meet the physical requirements for active duty. Served a minimum of 12 hours per week in many of

them putting in a full night on the waterfront after a day in their regular civilian jobs. I remember one older gentleman who had immigrated from Germany and was proud to do his part for his adopted country. There was a Scandinavian seafarer who built beautiful ship models who served in this unit. The members came from varied backgrounds but all wanted to do what they could for the war effort. They wore the Coast Guard uniform, carried side arms and held rank They patrolled the docks in all kinds of weather with a tremendous feeling of pride in being able to do their part. Initially they operated out of a building on the West side of East Bay Street that had been a paint company. There was office space and adequate garage space for their jeeps. Later in the war they moved operations to the Navy Fleet landing at then end of a pier on the waterfront South of the US Customs House and North of the present Waterfront Park. This building has recently been refurbished a turned into a restaurant. I have some vivid childhood memories of some of the men who served in the Charleston unit of the VPSF. I remember one very well. He joined as a seaman recruit in 1942 and when they were disbanded in 1945 he was a Lt. JG. This gentleman was my dad. See ID Card below with misspelled name.

Enough of filler, now to trivia. Sullivans Island Light (or Charleston Light) was the last light manned lighthouse built in the US. It was also the first to have and elevator. Boston Light was the first lighthouse in the New World. What is the oldest active lighthouse in the US?

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January 2009
SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1
New Years Day

3
Division Meeting Myrtle Beach

10
New Mood Staff Meeting 1400

11

12

13

14
Flotilla Meeting 1900

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26
Full Mood

27

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Flotilla Officers
Flotilla Commander Joe Fleming joeflemingjr@comcast.net Communication Systems John Sikes jsikes@netrockets.com Flotilla Vice Commander Alan Miles bigcid@comcast.net Finance Frank Leister fso128-FN@yahoo.com Aids To Navigation Communications Allen James Dean Creed jamesan38@bellsouth.net dbcreed@comcast.net Information Services Frank Leister 128FSOIS@gmail.com Materials Tom Beauchemin tbeauchemin001@sc.rr.com

Marine Safety Member Training Bob Orenstein Bob Mathewes bandjorenstein@bellsouth.net rhmathewes@comcast.net Publications Bob Matheaes rhmathewes@comcast.net Public Education Bob Lovinger rlovinger@earthlink.net

Operations Public Affairs Allen James Barbara Thibodeaux jamesan38@bellsouth.net barbara.thibodeaux@gmail.com Personnel Services Alan Miles bigcid@comcast.net RBS Visitor Paul Berka phberka@comcast.net IPFC Allen James jamesan38@bellsouth.net

Secretary Records Miller, Rick rick.mllr@gmail.com

Vessel Examination Joe Fleming joeflemingjr@comcast.net