ABMA NEWSLETTER
Date 19 December 2012 Volume 42 Issue 2
President Page 1
Treasurer/Membership Page 2
Chaplain Page 2
PAO/Scholarship Page 3
Tidewater/Pensacola Chap. Page 4
Northwest Page 5
Living Legend Page 6
Post Humous Legend Page 6
ABOY East/West Page 6
Obituaries Page 7
Deadlines Page 8
Season’s Greetings, Past Presidents, Living Legends, Active and Retired AB’s around the world.
The ABMA working group/Symposium has been vital to Naval Aviation and we have proven over and over that we have a voice. Our Flags, Air Bosses and Senior Aviation Leadership listened! They took our guidance and input then applied the suggestions to Naval Aviation resulting in our aircraft carriers, amphibian vessels, and shore bases operating safely and effectively. This could not have been done without the important feedback from E-1 to O6, active and retired. Therefore start making preparations to attend the 2013 ABMA Symposium to be held in beautiful. The dates are 05-09 August, 2013. The Chesapeake Marriot is currently taking reservations; make sure you let them know you will be with the ABMA.
As you all know from last year’s unfortunate cancellation we can no longer do business as in the past. We continuously look at possible ways to cut cost due to current budgetary restraints. I encourage all Tidewater AB’s to submit No Cost TAD Orders for the symposium. A strong showing from you will guarantee the success of the 2013 Working Group/Symposium. AB’s outside the local area are encouraged to begin saving a few dollars each month to fund your trip just in case similar guidance comes down from the President and CNO. The cost of air transportation can be greatly reduced if you go online and use one of the sites such as Expedia, Priceline or Cheaptickets.com. Planning and research are the keys to affordable tickets. If you are within driving distance, consider carpooling!
I want to personally thank the ABMA BOD and local chapter Presidents for all the hard work you do in the background. Much goes into keeping this awesome organization running and without you all it could not be done. I also want to thank the past ABMA Presidents for their guidance, encouragement, and support over the past year and a half. Lastly, Stoney you are not relieved of duty until after Aug 9, 2013.
In just over one month we will embark on a new year. The trend is to make a list of things to start, do better or not do at all. I encourage you as you consider your goals for 2013 that you include time to laugh more, listen more and give more. You are an incredible group of great Americans and I am proud to be your President.
On behalf of my family and all of the AB community…Merry Christmas and have a Happy and Prosperous New Year!!
V/R
Rodney H. Moss, LCDR, USN
President, Aviation Boatswains Mate Association
From your Treasurer
Greetings all,
I hope everyone had a Great Thanksgiving, now let’s prepare for the upcoming holidays including Christmas and the New Year. A reminder, this year will mark my departure as your TREASURER AND MEMBERSHIP CHAIR, PLUS NUMEROUS OTHER THINGS……………….Effective on or before June 30, 2013, the end of the ABMA’s fiscal year, I am gone, Relief in place or not…………..Been doing this stuff since 1993, and it’s time for me to move on. The ABMA is still looking for a replacement (interested?? Call/e-mail me or any other ABMA Officer.) Mark the date; June 30th, 2013……Stoney WILL depart.
Memberships have been slow coming in and one of the big things folks seem to not think about is payment for memberships. I get most website originated memberships and we use PayPal for payment for memberships. Once you have sent in your membership, you must go to PayPal to effect payment……did not go to PayPal, was wondering where your membership was?? Well it’s still in my possession pending payment. You do not have to join PayPal, but you must use it to pay for membership, or make other arrangements with me.
Hurricane Sandy and the Nor’easter dealt New York and New Jersey and other places a devastating blow……….keep these folks in your prayers, as they have a long road of rebuilding ahead of them
I have enjoyed my tenure as an officer of this Great organization……..but it’s time to move on and get some new blood in here. I have done my time, now it’s your turn……………………
The Happiest and safest of Holidays for you and yours………….if your travels bring you to the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, stop on by and we will tell sea stories…………………
Stoney
Fellow AB’s and Shipmates,
I greet you in the name of the Most High! It is awesome to have the opportunity to address you all once again. There is not a day that goes by in which I am not thankful to be an AB and part of one of the greatest organizations in the entire world! You are true professionals and I am honored to be considered a part of something much greater than myself!!
I wanted to take this time to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas! The advancement exam results were recently released and we had a lot of Shipmates advance. If you took the exam and didn’t advance, please use your resources throughout the entire Navy. Keep up the great work and always remember the Shipmates that got you there!
It seems as though some of us are not doing everything possible to support all areas of our lives. Maybe it’s a word of encouragement that you need to “catapult” you into greatness. Here is your word: I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14). There is a great prize, so continue to push forward! And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). Remember that these things are working for YOUR good, although some things may not feel good or seem like it’s good…but it is working for your good!
As we defend freedom and democracy around the world, I challenge you all to continue to lift one another up in prayer and commit a special prayer for our brothers and sisters in harm’s way and currently on watch. Do the right thing and make the right decisions and you will get the right results!!!! Feed the faith and starve the doubt!!! "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever." (Jude 1:24-25)
LT Erick C. Stroud
ABMA Chaplain
Greetings Fellow AB’s;
I hope this Newsletter is finding you and your family in the very best of health and doing quite well!
It sure was heartbreaking having the 42nd/2012 ABMA Symposium/Working Group Conference cancelled. However, in light of the Navy's posture on conferences and symposiums the leadership of the ABMA felt the most prudent and responsible course of action was to defer to next year.
I know the AB’s of the Tidewater Chapter have been very busy getting things ready for next year’s Symposium/ Professional Working Group Conference in Norfolk, Virginia. The FORTY-SECOND AVIATION BOATSWAIN’S MATES ASSOCIATION (ABMA) SPONSORED SYMPOSIUM/ PROFESSIONAL WORKING GROUP CONFERENCE will be held at the Norfolk Marriott in Chesapeake, Virginia. The address for the Norfolk Marriott Chesapeake is 725 Woodlake Drive, Chesapeake Virginia 23320. Once the date of the Symposium/Professional Working Group Conference is confirmed and in stone we will get the word out. Hotel reservations can then be made by calling the Norfolk Marriott Chesapeake Hotel at (800) 228-9290 and asking for “Group Reservation”. The reservations are under the group/convention code ABMABMA.
I have two tickets for the 2013 “Nationwide Series Drive 4 COPD 300” NASCAR Nationwide Series Race on 23 February 2013, and two tickets for the 2013 “Daytona 500” NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on 24 February 2013 in Daytona, Florida. These tickets were donated by NASCAR Corporation for raffles for the 2012 ABMA Symposium/Professional Working Group Conference. The seats for the Nationwide Series race are Grandstand Keech Tower Section C, Row 33, Seats 11 & 12. The seats for the Daytona 500 are front stretch Depalma Tower Section F, Row 40, Seats 20 & 21. The proceeds will go to the ABMA general fund. The cost of the raffle tickets will be $5.00 each. If you are interested in getting a raffle ticket please contact me at . or by phone at (619) 578-1523. I will need name, address, and phone number to enter you into the raffle. I will send you the raffle tickets once I receive your payment. Upon contact via phone or e-mail I will give you the address to mail your payment. Payment can be made by check or money order. Please do not send cash.
Hopefully NASCAR will donate some more tickets for next year’s ABMA Symposium/Professional Working Group Conference in Chesapeake, Virginia.
In closing I’d like to wish you and your family a very happy holidays and a prosperous New Year.
Let’s continue to bring in the junior AB’s and get them involved.
Keep your head on a swivel and stay safe! God bless each and every one of you and may God bless America. Looking forward to seeing you in Chesapeake, Virginia next year!
A Fellow AB;
Doug Thornton
Public Affairs Officer
Greeting Shipmates,
Well it’s getting to be that time of year again to start thinking about the 2013 Scholarship. Please don’t wait until the last minute. For the last two years we have had to extend the deadline by months so we could have some applicants who quality for the award. We are working on making the application more user friendly, a PDF file you can fill out on line and save in your computer. Make sure you read the instruction’ and sign the application. If you have applied and received an award and are still attending a University, you are eligible to apply again.
Thanks shipmates I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sincerely
Terry L New
Scholarship Chairman
Tidewater Chapter
President: LT Erick Stroud
Vice President: ABECS (AW/SW) Frank Bartanowitz
Treasurer: CWO4 (Ret) Terry New
Secretary: LT Craig Byrd
Greetings from the Tidewater Chapter ABMA! A warm welcome is extended to the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN as they enter into the Tidewater area to embark on Shipyard availability in Newport News and another warm welcome is extended to the USS ENTERPRISE as they return from a deployment. Thanks for all you do Shipmates…we applaud you!
We are ramping up for the 2013 symposium that will be held from 5-9 August 2013 and we look forward to seeing you all here in the Tidewater area. The reservation information is posted on the ABMA website so start booking your rooms. Please submit your TAD requests now to ensure that your command has ample enough time to handle all administrative details. You do not want to miss the All Hands Social that will be held on 05 August 2013, immediately following registration. We are excited about all of the information and new concepts we have available for you all during the Working Group Symposium. The Tidewater Chapter is also on Facebook, so look us up when you get a chance.
We have had several outstanding meetings throughout the Tidewater area as well as an overwhelming attendance rate! The monthly meetings have been great; our recent meetings have been onboard the great aircraft carrier USS G. H. W. BUSH in April, a large meeting at CNATTU Norfolk in October and a successful Jam at Fentress in November. I would like to thank the Tidewater Chapter Warriors and other Shipmates in making us so successful! Please continue to bring your ideas and plans to the Tidewater Chapter as we embark upon a lifelong journey of learning coupled with teamwork and communication! Thanks for everything and always remember, ONE TEAM…ONE FIGHT!!! Thanks.
LT Erick Stroud
Tidewater ABMA President
The Pensacola Chapter would like to wish all our AB brothers and sisters active and retired a very Happy Holidays and Seasons Greetings. As we approach the end of another year, we pray that each of you will be bless in all you do.
I want to congratulate our most recent Petty Officers for promoting to the next pay-grade. You were selected on the basis of your rate, rating knowledge and performance. You continue that trend and remember to take care of your any junior Sailor under your leadership. For those that were not selected, don’t give up on moving forward, review your profile sheet get with your leadership and visit the NKO Website under advancement center.
I would like to than the ABMA members and the Naval Air Technical Training center for working to together on providing the opportunity for all Sailors to attend meetings by adjusting the times and locations for some of our meetings. It’s been a pleasure to have you all in attendance. Additionally I want to thank the school house for hosting a thanks giving dinner for our AB’s family and friends day. The event was an excellent opportunity to gather, socialize and promote what we are really thankful for.
However I must make mention of all surrounding AB school houses that supported this year’s annual fundraiser in efforts of making this happen. I want to thank NAS Pensacola, NAS Whiting and Naval Training Center Air Training Department for their dedication and commitment for providing “One Team One Fight” motivation to the front of our event.
Now as I prepare to depart NATTC Pensacola and pass the torch for the ABMA Gulf Coast Chapter I want to thank all members of the ABMA for supporting our efforts and staying committed to being that AB. I truly thank you and wish you all great blessing and prosperity. I’m headed to the USS RONALD REAGAN in San-Diego California.