We were honored to have Capt Terry
Bragg USN (Ret) as the guest speaker at our May meeting. Captain Bragg
is the new director of the USS North Carolina BB55 memorial. He
introduced himself to our group and told us of his 30 year naval career
as part of the surface warfare branch of the Navy. He also said that he
was=2 0a graduate of Appalachian State University in Boone, a university
all Ohio Staters know very well. Captain Bragg discussed the short term
and long term plans for the North Carolina and mentioned the concert
scheduled on the grounds of the battleship scheduled for the 22nd
of May as well as their plans for Memorial Day. We thank Captain Bragg
for speaking and we welcome him to the community. We shall miss Captain
Schue as the director, but the battleship is in good hands.
I mentioned
earlier about the transit on the
Diligence on 4 June. This will be our last
chance to make the transit with Cdr. Fears since he will have a change
of command on the 26th of June. Doug sent us a note that the
transit is scheduled for 4 June and they plan to be at the mouth of the
river at 1400. So, if you want to make the transit, you will have to
depart Oak Island at 1400. The transportation requirements are the same
as before, you will have to arrange your own transport to Oak Island and
from the Diligence mooring in town. The physical requirements are also
the same – you must be able to climb the Jacobs ladder around 5 feet
from the deck of the Oak Island boat to the Diligence. Doug has also
mentioned that there may be a change in the date a day or so on either
side of the 4th and we will keep you advised of any change.
The Diligence can accommodate up to 6 passengers, and if you wish to
make the transit, please advise me as soon as you can.
Treasurers Report
Our treasurer advises that our balance is $4118.51. We have
had 77 of our members pay the local dues with 31 still outstanding.
Chaplains Corner
Usually I shy away from Bible verses, etc., because
the Bible has become too much of a relative entity even to many who
profess to be religious, e.g., "just a guide; can't be taken too
seriously, etc." I was just asked recently, "Do you really believe in
the Bible?" I answered, "Yes", Sensing skepticism, I continued saying
I believed in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit and
yes I believed that the Judeo/Christian Bible was God's word. My
skeptic friend said, "Written by God?" I answered, "Inspired and under
the influence of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
but inscribed by man." Next came the inevitable, "Then why are there so
many versions of it?". "Well", I said, "certainly wasn't written at one
sitting, it was over thousands of years including Old and New Testaments
and it's never simply been a nice, neat interpretation from the original
texts, many of which have never been found and therefore translations
from copies of originals, and even from the originals when available,
never were going to be uniform." All that does not eliminate that it
still is inspired. Like so much of such discussions, faith must enter
into the fray at some juncture.
Lastly, in the book of 1 Peter and there is a heading
titled, The Christian in a Hostile World, authored by the apostle
Peter in 60 AD, although some conjecture exists on that point.
Nevertheless, 1 Peter 2-5 and 2 Peter discuss Christian citizenry,
conduct, suffering, restraint, charity, the=2 0persecuted, officially
appointed leaders, God's promises, apostolic witnesses, false teachers
and the delay of the second coming. It's only about 6 full pages of
reading and has plenty of application today as it did when it was
written. Worth your time, if so inclined.
God Bless
Upcoming Events
Our next meeting will be at the Cape Fear Club on the 12th of
June. If you wish
to attend the meeting, please advise John Hicks. Our speaker will
be Captain
Karl Reuter who is the Provost Marshal of the Military Ocean Terminal
Sunny Point (MOTSU).&n
bsp; Sunny point is the largest ammunition handling facilities in the
nation. Be sure to attend to learn about this facility.
Put May 20th on your calendar for Maritime Day.
The Maritime day celebration
will be held on the steps of the Federal Building on Water Street at
1200. It is our opportunity to recognize the efforts and sacrifices of
the Merchant Marine in our country's history. Plan to attend the event
so we do not forget these times in our history.
Our next affair will celebrate
Independence Day. The date and venue have not been selected as yet and
we will advise when these are finalized.
Final
Comments
If anyone needs a nametag or Navy League
membership certificate contact Tom Durant. Nametags are $5.00 and
certificates are free. Tom's telephone number is 762-8557.
The cost of postage continues to rise, so if you are getting
this note via USPS and have an e-mail address, please let me know so I
can update our listings.
