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Reunion '05
Atlanta, GA - 19-23 October 2005
USS PICKING
(DD-685) 22nd
REUNION
19-23 OCT 2005
Souvenir Medallion for 22nd Reunion 2005
Marilyn and Phil Finkle, hosts of the
Reunion
The Old Salts
Front Row: Ed Palmer, Dick Fust, Bob Nolan, Frank Campbell, Phil Broadbridge, Chuck Kemmerling, Ben Leazenby, Tom Slabowski, Don Gilmartin, Jerry Kendrick
Middle Row: Neal Grant, Gene Irvine, Bob Lilly, Larry Walker, Bob Hill, Paul Whitfield, Phil Finkle, Tony Cellucci, Ken Kile, Jim Parks,
Don Lehmkuhl, Jim Moorehead
Top Row: Gary Dusky, Ken Varns, Luther Gilliam, Stan Cox, Jim Horn, Bob Daniels,
John Hogberg, Dan Johnson, John Lilly, George Owens, Roger Wigton
Missing: Joe Killoran
Our Ladies
Front row: Brenda Palmer, Dorothy Leazenby, Sheri Lilly, JoAnn Dusky, Sylvia Broadbridge, Esther
Lehmkuhl, Freida Campbell, Mary Lou Kemmerling, Claire Owens, Christie Grant
Middle Row: Carole Walker, Donna Horn, Diane Nolan, Karen Lilly, Jacqueline Hogberg, Louise Whitfield, Marilyn Finkle, Maureen Johnson, Betty Wigton, Joan Gilmartin, Phyllis Kendrick, Flo Cellucci
Back Row: Mary Ann Parks, Judy Varns, Nancy Fust, Jere Gilliam, Roberta Cox, Becky Kile, Gail Hill, Mary Moorehead, Cynthia Daniels, Fran Slabowski
WORLD WAR II
Paul Whitfield
1950s
Front Row: Phil Finkle, Don Lehmkuhl, Dick Fust, Phil Broadbridge, Jim Parks, Bob Lilly, Frank Campbell
Top Row: Roger Wigton, Jim Moorehead, George Owens, Joe Killoran, Don Gilmartin, Neal Grant, Ben Leazenby
Early 1960s
Front Row: Phil Finkle, Chuck Kemmerling, Bill Hill, Gene Irvine, Gary Dusky
Top Row: Jerry Kendrick, Stan Cox, John Hogberg, Bob Daniels, Luther Gilliam
Late 1960s
Front Row: Tony Cellucci, Ed Palmer, Larry Walker, Bob Nolan
Top Row: Luther Gilliam, Jim Horn, Ken Varns, Dan Johnson
The 22nd reunion of the USS Picking (DD-685) was
held in
Atlanta
,
GA
, from 19 through 23 October 2005. The host hotel was the Doubletree Galleria
Suites in
Cobb
County
.
There were 69 attendees representing the life of the ship from 1943
through 1970. We came from 20 States.
There were two one day trips, one to
Atlanta
and the other to west central
Georgia
. On Thursday 19 October, 48 comrades and spouses visited the Governor’s
Mansion, the World of Coke, and Inside CNN. A group luncheon was held at the
Swan Coach House at the
Atlanta
History
Center
. The second trip on Friday with 54 sailors and spouses went to FDR’s Little
White House in
Warm Springs
,
GA
, where he died in April 1945. After that we visited the Therapeutic
Pools and Springs Complex that FDR sponsored for polio sufferers. Miss Suzanne
Pike, who was the first non-polio victim FDR let use the pool, delighted the
group with her reminisces of her personal experiences with FDR. We then went to
the Bulloch House for a real southern country style lunch. After lunch, we
traveled to
Callaway
Gardens
in
Pine Mountain
,
GA.
At Callaway, we visited the
Butterfly
Center
and the
Horticulture
Center
Saturday was a free day.
Several of the ladies went to the
Marietta Square
, an attractive area with the Gone With the Wind Museum, the
Marietta
History
Museum
, and many shops and restaurants. Several others took a tour of the
Kennesaw
National
Battleground
Park
and the city’s
Confederate
Cemetery
. At 1400 on Saturday, the men held their business meeting where they selected
the site and date of the 23rd
Reunion
. It will be hosted by Bob and Cynthia Daniels in
San Francisco
probably during the third week of October 2007. The tentative date could vary
by plus or minus two weeks in the event of conflicting local events.
The banquet was held at the
hotel at 1800. The event opened with the invocation by Frank Campbell of
Lexington
,
KY.
After dinner, Tony Cellucci, our Sunset Committee man from
Broomall
,
PA
, paid tribute to our shipmates who passed away during the interval since lour
last reunion. During dinner, we viewed a video made from a tape that was sent to
us from a sailor from the USS Oriskany (CVA-34) that he took while the Picking
was refueling from them in 1964. It reminded all of us who handled lines during
this exercise of the “joys” of underway replenishment.
We had an excellent and dynamic
speaker, LT Wayne Liebold, who is currently on assignment at Georgia Tech’s
NROTC program. LT Liebold has a distinguished professional and educational
background. He attended the U.S. Maritime Academy as well as a number of
military training schools. He gave a very interesting presentation on the
current and future destroyer Navy. The newest one, soon to be to be developed,
is the DD(X). This vessel with cruise up to 50 knots and each will have the
firepower equivalent the 1/10th of the entire fleet of Fletcher Class
destroyers. One weapon is a single 155mm gun which will have an unmanned
magazine. Lt. Liebold reviewed other weapons such as a new 16” gun that fires
a round 65 miles, reaching an altitude of 15,000 feet! After the presentation,
LT Liebold took questions from our group.
Next, we were entertained by
Out of the Blue, a local bluegrass group with five members one of whom, Dallas
Burrell, is a 78 year old time fiddler. This is probably the first time that the
group singing of Anchors Aweigh was accompanied by a bluegrass band.
After the music, we paid
tribute to the only World War II vet to make the reunion, Paul Whitfield.
Paul’s wife, Louise, thanked the group for their special recognition of Paul.
Paul was awarded a basket of southern goodies including such items as country
ham and a mason jar of (legal) corn whiskey. By the way, Paul was more energetic
than many of us (somewhat) younger sailors as he helped shut down the
Hospitality Suite each evening (from 2330 to 0030 daily!)
A second basket was awarded to
the shipmate who traveled the farthest. This turned out to be the next reunion
hosts, Bob and Cynthia Daniels (for the record, the distance is 2,176.18 miles).
This was followed by drawings for a number of prizes, many of which were
provided by the Tin Can Sailors.
We took up a special collection
for Tin Can Sailors and a check for $125 has been mailed to this destroyer
group.
Sunday morning was spent bidding goodbyes to our shipmates and friends. Don
Lehmkuhl and Ken Kile showed slides from their Navy days which entertained those
of us who stayed around until the final closing at 1200.
Special thanks to :
-
LT Wayne and Mrs. Marian Liebold who gave up their
Saturday evening to join us
-
Navy Speakers' Bureau, Millington, TN, who arranged for
LT Liebold to speak
-
NAS-Atlanta for the Color Guard
-
Ken Hood, Jean Durham, David Merck, Dallas Burrell, and
Kenneth Johnson who make up the OUT OF THE BLUE bluegrass band who provided
some real southern-country entertainment
-
the Cobb County Convention and Visitors' Bureau
(especially Mrs. Rita Lowery who helped us organize accommodations and
events over the two years since the last reunion
-
Tin Can Sailors donated several gifts and provided
copies of TIN CAN SAILOR
-
the staff of the Doubletree hotel
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