NHP back-to-school sports physical rodeo ... Need a school or sports physical?
Naval Hospital Pensacola’s (NHP) annual School/Sports Physical Rodeo is back and the first one will be on July 9 from 8 a.m.-noon in the NHP Family Medicine Clinic. The other dates scheduled are July 16, July 23, July 30 and Aug. 6. Appointments are needed and can be made by calling NHP Family Medicine at 505-7120. The rodeo is available to anyone enrolled to NHP’s Family Medicine Clinic and is an easy and convenient way to complete school and sports physicals. Physical exams are available for children age 4 and older and any school-age children including students new to the area. For more information, call 505-7120.
Vol. 80, No. 23
VISIT GOSPORT ONLINE: www.gosportpensacola.com
June 10, 2016
NASP marks 74th anniversary of Midway battle By Janet Thomas Gosport Staff Writer
NAS Pensacola community support for Blue Angels ... A U.S. Navy F/A-18 flown by Marine Capt. Jeff Kuss of the Navy’s Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, crashed June 2 during the beginning stages of an afternoon practice at an airport in Smyrna, Tenn. Kuss, the Blues’ No. 6 opposing solo pilot, was killed in the accident. (Above) A public tribute for Kuss at NAS Penacola’s west gate features flowers, momentos and childrens’ artwork. (Right) Kuss serves as narrator (No. 7) at the Blue Angels 2015 Homecoming Air Show last November. See page A2 for June 7 Pensacola flyover Photos by Mike O’Connor
Film honors children who lost dads in Vietnam Free screening 9 a.m. tomorrow (June 11) at the National Naval Aviation Museum Story, photo from WSRE
Some 20,000 American boys and girls lost their fathers during the Vietnam War. In a new documentary film produced by WSRE, “They Were Our Fathers,” several of these Gold Star children – now adult men and women – share their stories, which serve as powerful testimonies about the true cost of war. There will be a free screening of the film at 9 a.m. tomorrow, June 11, at the National Naval Aviation Museum. Guests are asked to enter NAS Pen-
sacola through the west gate via Blue Angel Parkway. WSRE will air “They Were Our Fathers” with a Father’s Day broadcast at 7 p.m. June 19. The Gold Star designation is given to family members who have lost loved ones in United States military service during
wartime. Every five years on Father’s Day, members of Sons and Daughters in Touch – a group formed in 1990 to locate, unite and support Gold Star children who lost their fathers serving in the Vietnam War – gather at the nation’s capital to honor their parents, reflect on their common grief and support one an-
Navy VolEd support call center hours extended By Ed Barker Naval Education and Training Professional Development Center (NETPDC) Public Affairs
The Navy’s Virtual Education Center’s (VEC) support hours have been extended an additional hour-and-a-half as of June 1. The new Call Center hours are from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. EST Monday – Friday, and the VEC may be reached by calling (877) 838-1659 or DSN 492-4684. “This is great news for our West
Coast customers, as it extends their access until 6 p.m. Pacific time,” said Naval Education and Training Professional Development and Center Voluntary Education (VolEd) Program Director Ernest D’Antonio. “We promised to extend the hours as soon as we had the staff to support it, and we are making good on that promise.” D’Antonio added that his staff is constantly monitoring call traffic volumes and hours may be readjusted in the See VEC on page 2
other. Under the direction of executive producer Jill Hubbs, a WSRE production crew traveled to Washington, D.C., last June to document the gathering and record personal accounts. For more information about “They Were Our Fathers,” go to wsre.org/fathers. To celebrate the opening of the recently-upgraded giant screen theater and new refreshment counter, the National Naval Aviation Museum is offering free movie screenings on June 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Throughout the day the museum will feature free screenings of “National Parks Adventure,” which celebrates the Centennial Anniversary of the U.S. National Parks, and “Magic of Flight,” the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation’s flagship film. Free refreshments and special giveaways will also be distributed. Each guest must redeem one ticket per showing from the ticket counter and seating is limited to the first 325 people per showing.
Future naval aviators got to meet veterans who fought in the Battle of Midway June 6 at the National Naval Aviation Museum aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola (NASP). Students from Naval Aviation Schools Command (NASC) were among the more than 500 active-duty service members, veterans and guests who turned out to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the pivotal naval battle that took place June 3-7, 1942. In his keynote speech, Rear Adm. Michael S. White, commander, Naval Education and Training Command (NETC), stressed that honoring the greatest generation and making a connection to the past is important as the Navy moves forward. He urged the NASC students to take the time to “understand their history and what brought them into naval aviation and what is expected of them.” “As I look in the faces of the new Soliders, Sailors, Marines, Airmen and Coast Guardsmen here today, I see the same light that must have been in the eyes of those men at Midway,” he said. “It is the light of freedom and I am here to tell you it shines very bright in our military today. So we celebrate with our Midway veterans for keeping that
light lit 74 years ago. I thank them and I thank these young men and women who have volunteered to keep the flag flying today.” Museum Historian Hill Goodspeed offered an overview of the battle and emphasized its unique relevance to NAS Pensacola. During the battle, U.S. Navy aircraft carrier strike forces surprised and defeated a Japanese carrier strike force, preventing the capture of Midway Island. It is considered by many military historians to be the turning point of World War II in the Pacific theater. Goodspeed said it was fitting that the Naval Aviation Schools Command was responsible for this year’s annual commemoration. “In early 1941, exactly 75 years ago, Bldg. 633 opened its doors to its first flight students,” he said. “Those passing through the portals of that building today – you – represent the future of naval aviation. The same was true for those of 1941 – that year’s future of naval aviation – whose paths took them to Midway and the enduring legacy that awaited them.” Goodspeed said museum collections represent links to momentous events of the past. He pointed out his personal connection to one of the museum’s artifacts, an See Midway on page 2
Battle of Midway survivors (left-right) James Stofer, Gordon Pierce and Wiley Bartlett greeted and shook hands with service members at the conclusion of NAS Pensacola’s Battle of Midway commemoration. Photo courtesy of CNATT
Published by Ballinger Publishing, a private firm in no way connected with the Department of the Navy. Opinions contained herein are not official expressions of the Department of the Navy nor do the advertisements constitute Department of the Navy, NAS Pensacola or Ballinger Publishing’s endorsement of products or services advertised.