campushistory TAKING THE MYSTERY OUT OF CAL MARITIME HISTORY
Bodnar Field: What’s in a Name? by Larry Stevens
Hawsepipe 1963 dedication to Herbert Bodnar pictured with his 1953-4 MG-TF. DID YOU EVER WONDER HOW Bodnar Field got its name? For those alumni who were students at the Academy in the early 1960’s, the circumstances leading up to that honor have not faded from their memories. Herbert Bodnar was born in Honolulu on April 2, 1942. He entered in the Class of 1964 (deck) in August 1961. With a passion, Bodnar involved himself with the athletic programs on campus. He was an exceptional athlete and superstar on the school’s flag football team. According to the 1963 Hawsepipe yearbook, Bodnar’s winning personality accounted for his numerous friendships, and he was remembered as being charismatic and enthusiastic. Bodnar was also a car enthusiast and enjoyed doing repairs on his pride and joy — an MGM automobile. Bodnar had just completed his fall trimester finals when in the late evening of December 20, 1962, he was killed after his car was struck broadside in a Vallejo intersection. Quoting Captain Manny Aschemeyer
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‘63, at the time an upperclassman with Bodnar in Division One: “Herbert’s death broke all our hearts. He was a well-loved and popular classmate.” As his fellow shipmates continued on toward their commencement ceremony some 18 months later, the Hawsepipe 1964’s “History of the Class of ‘64” remembered Bodnar with this comment: “Finals came and went, but we were all there at the end of the trimester, everyone, that is, except Herb. A year before he’d turned to 47 kilometers out of Buenaventura; ironically, a year later his short life was to be ended in a no less sudden manner.” With the CMA athletic field having been completed about the same time Herbert passed away, and in light of his team sport involvement, the Class of 1964 fought a hard-won battle with administration to honor his memory by naming the new facility “Bodnar Field.” On July 25, 1964, graduation day, the following item was placed on the CMA Board of Governors’ agenda: Item 5: The Class of 1964 has requested permission to name the Athletic Field after a classmate of theirs — Midshipman Herbert Bodnar — who was killed in an automobile accident in late December 1962. Bodnar had been active in athletics and other student activities. If this request is approved, the class will provide funds for the construction and installation of a suitable sign. It is to be designed of wood with name engraved
similar to signs installed by the State at park and camp sites. Researching the Board of Governors’ minutes of their meetings up to 1968 doesn’t reveal that they took any action on this item, but some alumni recall that there was a dedication ceremony about 1967-68, and it was reported in local papers. One thing the sign does exemplify is the lasting impact Herbert Bodnar had on his fellow shipmates — someone they all cherished and are grateful to have known.
Larry Stevens oversees Cal Maritime’s Campus History Collection. If you have a historical question about the campus or would like to donate a historical item to the Campus History Collection, contact him at lstevens@ csum.edu or (707) 654-1089.