Fiddler’s Green James Marinus Schoonmaker II (1933–2021)
courtesy alessandro lopes
One of America’s sailing heroes, Ding Schoonmaker, died on 19 January 2021 at home in Naples, Florida. Ding was a Star Class World Champion and served for sixteen years as a vice president of World Sailing, the international governing body of the sport. He was honored by the National Maritime Historical Society in 2018 for his lifetime achievements in the sport of sailing. James Marinus Schoonmaker II was born on 9 July 1933 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His first race was in 1944 at the age of eleven off Watch Hill, Rhode Island. From an early age he spent his summers in Watch Hill, and later in life he spent winters in Florida. He placed second in the Olympic Trials in the Star class when he was nineteen and was named the team’s alternate in Helsinki. He earned that honor again in 1964 at the Games in Tokyo. Over the years, Schoonmaker won World, North American, South American, Western Hemisphere, and European Championships. Ding learned the value of service and how it translated into improving his sport. He served on the board of the International Yacht Racing Union for fourteen years. For his distinguished service and extraordinary dedication, he was awarded the NMHS Overseer Gary Jobson (right) presented Ding SchoonNathanael Greene Herreshoff Award—US Sailing’s highest maker with the NMHS Distinguished Service Award in 2018. honor—in 1988 and the Beppe Croce Award—World Sailing’s highest honor—in 2011. Among his philanthropic work was creating the US Sailing Center in Miami in 1987, establishing the World Youth Sailing Trust to help aspiring sailors in emerging countries, and the US Sailing Foundation in 1990. Ding Schoonmaker has been an important counselor to the leaders of the sport both in the United States and throughout the world for decades. He will be missed, while his lifelong work will serve as an enduring legacy for sailors in the USA and around the world. —Gary Jobson
J. Phillip “Jack” London (1937–2021)
photo by vernon young jr.
J. Phillip London, renowned business executive, dedicated supporter of American naval history, and a recipient of the Naval Historical Foundation’s Distinguished Service Award at the NMHS 2017 National Maritime Awards Dinner in Washington, died on 18 January. He was also recognized with the NMHS Rodney N. Houghton Award in 2013 for the best feature article in Sea History for his article, “Before ‘Old Ironsides’—the Origins of USS Constitution and Her First Captain, Samuel Nicholson.” He was executive chairman and chairman of the board of CACI, which he helped grow into an IT giant. He joined the Arlington, Virginia, company in 1972 and served as its president and CEO from 1984 to 2007. Since then he served as executive and board chairman. CACI paid a tribute to Dr. London on its website, exclaiming that he was an exceptional business leader of great and enduring vision, and an extraordinary individual in every way. He served as a role model, mentor, and friend. A graduate of the US Naval Academy, he served twelve years on active duty during the Cold War, initially as a naval aviator and helicopter pilot on numerous aircraft carrier deployments. He graduated from the Naval Postgraduate School with a Master of Science degree and later obtained a doctorate in business at George Washington University. He subsequently transferred to the Navy Reserve and retired as a captain in 1983. Dr. London was a generous supporter of the Naval Academy and numerous Navy and other defense organizations. He was one of the founders of the Navy Memorial in Washington and recipient of its 2019 Lone Sailor award. Deeply interested in naval J. Phillip London history, Dr. London was a longtime board member of Naval Historical Foundation (NHF). He dedicated himself to many causes in support of the Naval Academy, Wounded Warriors, POWs and organizations centered around naval history. The Naval Historical Foundation has established a Dr. J. Phillip “Jack” London Leadership Fund; information to participate can be found on the NHF’s website www.navyhistory.org. —CAPT Jim Noone, USN (Ret.)
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SEA HISTORY 174, SPRING 2021