Mar - North Jersey Council

SPRING
2010
VOLUME 19,
NUMBER 2
THE HIGHLINE
NAVY
LEAGUE OF
THE
UNITED
STATES
NORTH
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Welcome aboard to Kathy Liptak, our new
membership chairperson! Kathy has volunteered to
"modernize" our letters to members who need renewal
as well as our questionnaire. Kathy will update our
records and distribute membership applications. My
sincere thanks to Kathy.
Kathy discovered that National will help local
councils design a website for free! The North Jersey
Council is the process of designing a website thanks to
Bud Liptak and his willingness to give us an assist.
Bud is working with National and will forward all
information and pictures to the North Jersey Council
site. Bud will have it available really soon. Check it
out.
Thank you to Joseph Torre, Jr., Michael Nowack
and William Bucher for using the Contribution
Coupon. We appreciate your generous donation. The
coupon is in this issue. You may mail your donation to
PO Box 4894, Wayne, NJ 07470
Our March speaker, Lieutenant Commander Jason
Aleksak, Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Station
New York, was fabulous! We were fascinated with the
his very informative talk. Unfortunately, we only had
20 members/guests in attendance. I was really
embarrassed at the low number.
PLEASE come and meet Captain Lawrence
Brennan, JAGC, USN (Ret) at the meeting on APRIL
5, 2010 and hear about his experience on the USS
Nimitz and with the Iranian hostage mission.
PLEASE attend the meeting on May 3 at the
Bonfire. James Scott, author of "The Attack on the
Liberty," will be our speaker. Member Bill Schmidt
(continued on page 2)
NEXT NORTH JERSEY COUNCIL MEETING
Monday, April 5, 2010
Bonfire Restaurant, 999 Market Street, Paterson
Phone 973-278-2400
Cash Bar 6 PM, Dinner 7 PM ($25)
Directions to the Bonfire: Heading West on Route 80,
get off at Exit 59. Bonfire is on the right at bottom of
the exit ramp. Heading East on Route 80, get off at
Exit 61. At the bottom of the ramp (traffic light) turn
left. Go 100 feet. Turn left into Route 80 West
entrance ramp. Go to Exit 59. Local: Go North on
Lakeview Ave through Clifton and Paterson. Bear
right as Lakeview ends at Market St. Cross Market and
turn right into Bonfire lot.)
NAVY
MARINES
JERSEY
COUNCIL
Our April Speaker
Capt. Lawrence B. Brennan, JAGC, USN (Ret)
Captain Brennan currently heads the Maritime Practice
Group at Wilson, Elser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker LLP, an
international law group headquartered in New York. He earned
his Juris Doctorate degree from Fordham in 1997. Upon
admittance to the N.Y. Bar, he began active duty in the Navy.
Among his Naval assignments, he spent 2 years as a Legal
Officer on the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) and was part of its recordsetting 144 consecutive days at sea. During his naval career
Captain Brennan was involved in many prominent events in
naval history. He was involved in the events surrounding the
Iranian Hostage Mission which occurred 30 years ago in April
and he will speak to us about that mission at our April meeting.
Captain Brennan has received numerous military and civilian
awards, including the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy
Achievement Medal, Navy Unit Citation, Navy Expeditionary
Medal, awards from the U.S. Attorney General for superior
professional performance, and a lifetime professional service
award from the Judge Advocate’s Association.
Captain
Brennan has lectured extensively and has had many articles
published on federal civil litigation, admiralty and maritime law,
naval history and the law of naval operations. Captain Brennan
is also a fellow Navy Leaguer, a member of the NYC Council.
Pete Partridge
Our May Speaker - James M. Scott
Author of “The Attack on the Liberty”
James M. Scott will be our speaker on May 3. His book,
“The Attack on the Liberty,” examines the attack on the U.S.S.
Liberty by the Israelis during the 1967 Arab - Israeli ‘Six Day
War’ Mr. Scott is the son of the Liberty’s chief engineering
officer who received the Silver Star medal for his efforts in
saving the Liberty following the attack. Mr. Scott’s talk will
include a slide presentation. Copies of his book will be
available for purchase and autograph.
For further information please visit Mr. Scott’s website at
http://www.jamesmscott.com/Site/Home.html.
Bill Schmidt
Our June Speaker
Captain Rick Schoenlank
Captain Schoenlank of the Sandy Hook Pilots Association
will be our June 7 speaker. He will tell us about his experiences
as a New York Harbor Pilot, about what it takes to become a
pilot, and what the profession is like. For more information
please visit the website http://www.sandyhookpilots.com.
Pete Partridge
COAST
GUARD
MERCHANT
MARINE
THE
HIGHLINE
SPRING
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* North Jersey Council *
````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
PRESIDENT
Dianne Greff
VICE PRESIDENT
Hank Warnke
SECRETARY
John Hernandez
TREASURER
Starks Lewis
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BOARD MEMBERS
Hank Warnke
Legislative Affairs
Kathy Liptak
Membership and Retention
William H. Schmidt Judge Advocate
Pete Partridge
Programs
LIAISONS
Vacant
Art Koch
Carl Jablonski
Edward McCabe
Carl Jablonski
Ed Narish
William H. Schmidt
George Goldman
John Hernandez
Vacant
Vacant
Pete Partridge
USS The Sullivans
USCG New York
USCG Bayonne
USCG Ships Hawser,
Line & Wire
USCGC Katherine Walker
Naval Reserve
Service Academy
Merchant Marine
Marine Corps
Navy Recruiting
Youth/NJROTC-MJROTC
Sea Cadets
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CHAPLAIN
HIGHLINE Editor
WEBMASTER
HISTORIAN
FRIENDSHIP
COORDINATOR
Rev. Thomas Marsden
Rita Eaton
Bud Liptak
Hank Warnke
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Spring 2010
VOLUME 19, NUMBER 2
Editor: Rita Eaton
Circulation: Dianne Greff
The HIGHLINE is published by the North
Jersey Council of the Navy League of the
United States. In 2010 the Highline will be
published seasonally. Contributions are
welcome. Expect the next / summer issue
in August.
Dianne Greff
Phone: 973-835-1890
PO Box 4894
Wayne, NJ 07470
NAVY
President’s Message (continued from page 1)
invited Mr. Scott. Autographed copies of his book will be available for
purchase.
The recent survey showed that members wanted to continue meeting on
the first Monday of the month and continue to meet at the Bonfire
Restaurant. So answer me this....WHY IS THE ATTENDANCE BELOW
25??? Our speakers are great, the food is delicious. Come and meet the
new owners and check out the new decor.
North Jersey Council member Bill Schmidt, president of the Naval
Order, reported that Admiral Gary Roughhead, Chief of Naval Operations
and member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff will be the speaker at a luncheon
11:30 to 1:30 on April 8 at the New York Athletic Club. Attendance is
limited. Due to complications caused by the March storms creating a state
of emergency in N.J. this newsletter may not reach most members in time
for taking action on this. But we have reached out by email and several
members will be attending. VP Hank Warnke, 201-315-8249 handled
ticket arrangements. The cost is $50.00 for Navy League and Naval Order
members and $60.00 for non-members.
We have had a number of members of the Coast Guard as our guests
for dinner. We thank everyone who has contributed to the "Take a
Guardian to Dinner" program. We need to replenish the "account". If you
would like to take a Coast Guard member to dinner please mail your
check for $25.00. payable to the North Jersey Council and send it to P.O.
Box 4894, Wayne, NJ 07470
I look forward to seeing everyone at the Bonfire at our upcoming
meetings. Keep the flags flying.
Dianne Greff
Dianne Greff
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ADVISORS
William Eaton
Past President
Lee Juchniewicz
Robert E. Schmand National Director Emeritus
Past President, NJ President
LEAGUE
OF
THE
2010
State of the Navy
(as of March 11, 2010)
Active Duty: 329,733
Officers: 51,566
Enlisted: 273,704
Ready Reserve: 104,131 (as of Jan 10)
Selected Reserves: 66,205
Individual Ready Reserves: 37,926
Reservists Mobilized: 6,461
(as of March 2)
Personnel Deployed: 52,759
Ships: 286
Ships Deployed: 122
Attack Subs Deployed: 22
Aircraft: 3,700+
Total Individual Augmentees either in training or on the ground:
Active: 5,142 Reserve: 5,811 (as of March 5)
from The Navy Times March 22, 2010 issue
************************ **********************
North Jersey Council Contribution Coupon
We need your help! Please make your 2010 tax deductible contribution.
Cut this coupon along the line and mail with your check.
Name ______________________________________________________
Address ____________________________________________________
Make check payable to: USNL North Jersey Council
Mail to: North Jersey Council, PO Box 4894, Wayne, New Jersey 07470
UNITED
STATES
NORTH JERSEY
COUNCIL
2
THE
HIGHLINE
SPRING
2010
Our February Speaker
Bill VanEyk, Vietnam Veteran
North Jersey Council member and Vietnam
veteran Bill VanEyk shared a slide show of his
military experience with us. We saw training at Ft.
Sill and lots of slides showing day to day military
life in Vietnam – not the missions as the policy
was not take photos during missions but to focus
on the job.
We saw their open air shower. We saw
Thanksgiving dinner – tin plates with what Bill
called ‘bug juice’ turkey, cranberry sauce and
potatoes. We saw lots of big guns including the
175 and the M113 armored personnel carrier.
Bill’s unit was the first to fire the 175 in Vietnam.
Bill had interesting stories to go with the slides.
We saw planes including a crashed plane, troop
transports. We saw the soldiers at work, for
instance, manning phones, using hydraulic lifts
and a ram to load the guns, and getting guns
The photo shows Council President Greff presenting Bill
loaded on pallets to take to the next position. And VanEyk with a Nate Ostrow painting as a thank you gift
we saw the men at play – a beer party. The from our Council.
audience really appreciated Bill sharing his stories
Rita Eaton, photo by Pete Partridge
and slides with them.
Our March Speaker
Lieutenant Commander Jason Aleksak, USCG
LCDR Jason Aleksak, USCG spoke at out
March meeting. He is Commanding Officer of
Coast Guard Station New York, the largest and
busiest Coast Guard Station in the United States.
Station New York provides protection from
Breezy Point to Great Kills and up to the Troy
Lock near Albany. Their area of responsibility
includes such potentially dangerous places as the
Elizabeth refineries and Indian Point. Because of
the size of Station New York, LCDR Aleksak is
the highest ranking officer in the USCG who is
commanding a Coast Guard Station.
Prior to assignment to Station New York,
LCDR Aleksak was assigned to the White House
Military Office. He also served a tour teaching at
his alma mater, the United States Coast Guard
Academy.
LCDR Aleksak gave our members a very well
received presentation on the Homeland Security
Mission of Station New York complete with
NAVY
LEAGUE
OF
THE
UNITED
carefully chosen music, as well as an overview of the
organization and equipment assets of Station New York.
The photo shows President Greff presenting a Nate
Ostrow painting to LCDR Aleksak with Programs Chair Pete
Partridge on the left.
Pete Partridge, photo by Kathy Liptak
STATES
NORTH JERSEY
COUNCIL
3
Non Profit Org
US Postage Paid
Wayne NJ
07470
Permit #242
Navy League of the United States
North Jersey Council
PO Box 4894
Wayne, NJ 07470
Return Service Requested
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THE
HIGHLINE
SPRING
2010
2010 Dinner Meetings
Remaining Dinner Meeting Schedule for 2010: April 5, May 3, June 7,
September 13 (second Monday due to Labor Day), October 4, November 1, and
December 6.
Please mark you calendars with our remaining dinner meeting dates for 2010.
Remember there will be no meetings in July and August.
Upcoming Speakers
Our April 5 speaker will be Captain Lawrence B. Brennan, JAGC, USN (Retired).
Our May 3 speaker will be James M. Scott author of “The Attack on the Liberty”.
Our June 7 speaker will be Captain Rick Schoenlank of the Sandy Hook Pilots Association.
CONTACT THE FRIENDSHIP COORDINATOR
Contact Dianne Greff, at 973-835-1890, if you know a member who has suffered a loss, has
received an honor, is ill, or has performed an extraordinary deed.
NAVY
LEAGUE
OF
THE
UNITED
STATES
NORTH
JERSEY
COUNCIL