Held in Atlantic City, NJ
Sheraton Hotel
45
members, including 14 Plankowners, attended the
Cogswell reunion in Atlantic City, July 26 thru 28. It was exciting to
see so many former shipmates and swap sea stories. It was especially nice to
talk to the Plankowners and World War II veterans and to hear their stories.
John Huber was coordinator for the Atlantic City reunion and he did an excellent
job of putting together all of the activities. He did such a nice job, we let
him be Master of Ceremonies for the
banquet!
Atlantic City has an interesting history,
including the Boardwalk and the Miss America pageant. We even used the Miss
America headquarters hotel as the reunion hotel. Most everyone stayed away from
the casinos but there were scattered reports of winnings (no reports of losses
although I suspect there were some).
An interesting sightseeing trip went to
historic Philadelphia where we had toured the cruiser USS Olympia, Dewey’s
flagship during the Battle of Manila Bay. While this was an impressive ship,
everyone agreed that they were glad the Cogswell had bunks and not hammocks.
Tied up to the Olympia was an old diesel submarine. A quick walk thru of it
reminded everyone how small the hatches were on a submarine.
After the ships, we visited Independence Square and the Liberty Bell
(it’s a repair, not a crack, we learned of the split down the front). We ate
authentic Philly sandwiches and had a nice bus tour around the city. All of the
history here really makes you stop and think and reflect on the sacrifices of
our forefathers.
The Cogswell
Association met on Saturday and made the following decisions:
1. The Executive Committee was reelected to serve another term.
2.
Orvil
Williams agreed to assume the duties of Treasurer. (The Association said a
hearty “Thank You” to Jim Touse who served as Treasurer for many years.
Thanks again, Jim)
3. We agreed to make a $200 contribution to the Tin Can Sailors Association. They manage a Web Site with information about all destroyers, including information about upcoming reunions.
4. Seattle was proposed and accepted as the site for the next reunion in October 2002. See Article.
5. Efforts will continue to locate former shipmates. George Overman will manage the list and coordinate.
6.
We
agreed to use Association funds to buy drinks for all Plankowners at the
banquet. We considered other forms of recognition but this seemed the most
expedient.