THE BANCROFT NEWS

AS OF JULY, 2011:

 

OK FOLKS. HERE IT IS!

THIS REUNION HAS TO RANK UP THERE WITH THE BEST ONES, IF IT WASN'T

"THE BEST ONE YET"

WE HAD ABOUT 70 FORMER BANCROFT SAILORS SHOWED UP FOR THIS GATHERING

 

 

 

 

 

 ALL THOSE REGISTERED WERE NOT PRESENT FOR THE PHOTO

SO SOME OF THE GUYS ARE NOT IN THE PICTURE. WE HAD AROUND 78 GUYS REGISTERED AND WITH THEIR WIVES & SIGNIFICANT OTHERS THERE WERE ABOUT 145 PEOPLE AT THE REUNION.

 

 

 

 

Photo by Jody Gagnon /Price Perfect Photos/W.Wareham, Mass.

 

 

PLANKOWNERS!

 

 

 

 

WE ALSO HAD A PRETTY GOOD TURNOUT FROM THE BOAT'S

PLANKOWNERS.

WE HAD 24 PLANKOWNER ATTENDEES AT THIS REUNION WHICH IS BETTER THAN WHAT SHOWED UP AT THE LAST ONE OR TWO REUNIONS

 

 

 

 

Photo by Jody Gagnon/Price Perfect Photos.W Wareham, Mass.

WHAT MADE IT SPECIAL IS THAT WE HAD A GREAT NUMBER OF BANCROFT SAILORS WHO CAME TO A REUNION FOR THE FIRST TIME.

 

 

 

 

 

36 BLUE CREW SAILORS CAME

 

 

 

 

Photo by Jody Gagnon/Price Perfect Photos/ W. Wareham, Mass

 

 

 

 

 

AND 33 FROM THE GOLD CREW CAME AS WELL

 

 

 

 

Photo by Jody Gagnon/Price Perfect Photos/ W. Wareham, Mass.

 

 

 

 

 

ANOTHER GREAT FEATURE THIS TIME:

WE HAD SOUVENIER WINE BOTTLES MADE UP WITH OUR SHIP'S PICTURE ON THE FRONT LABEL AND THE SHIP'S PATCH ON THE BACK LABEL

 

THE "BANCROFT WINE"

THE WINE WAS IN FOUR FLAVOURS, TWO WHITE AND TWO RED. WE ORDERED 36 BOTTLES AND THE WINE MERCHANT THREW IN 3 MAGNUM BOTTLES WITH THE SAME LABELS. WE HAD EVERY ATTENDEE SIGN THE BOTTLES AND THEY WERE ALL RAFFLED OFF AT DIFFERENT TIMES DURING THE WEEKEND. THE REST OF THE NORMAL SIZE BOTTLES WERE RAFFLED OFF OR GIVEN AWAY AS PRIZES OR GIFTS TO SPECIAL GUESTS.

OUR GUEST SPEAKER, CAPTAIN MARC DENNO, CO OF THE SUB BASE IN GROTON, AND ALSO A FORMER BANCROFT SAILOR BACK IN THE 90'S, ALSO RECEIVED A COMMERATIVE BOTTLE TO TAKE HOME.

BOB EDGE, OUR OUTGOING ASSOCIATION COMMANDER, ALSO TOOK HOME A BOTTLE AS A GIFT.

EACH TABLE AT THE BANQUET HAD A BOTTLE OF THE "BANCROFT WINE" AND THOSE FOLKS AT THE TABLES HELD THEIR OWN LITTLE AUCTION. THE TABLE THAT RAISED THE MOST MONEY, RECEIVED A GIFT BOTTLE FOR EACH PERSON AT THAT TABLE .

WE FEEL THE WINE WAS A BIG HIT THIS TIME AND WE WILL PROBABLY DO IT AGAIN.

 

Photo by Jody Gagnon/Price Perfect Photos/W Wareham, Mass.

 

THE SUB SCHOOL GRADUATION CLASS AND BASE TOUR TOUR

WAS ALSO A BIG HIT THIS TIME.

 

 

A NUMBER OF 643 SAILORS GOT TO ATTEND THE GRADUATION CEREMONY AT THE BASE.

CLASS HONORMAN, SN STEWARD CALLAWAY, RECEIVED A SHIP'S PLAQUE, A SHIP' PATCH AND A BANCROFT CAP AS A GIFT FROM OUR ASSOCIATION

                                                                          

WE ALSO TOURED THE NEW ESCAPE TANK TRAINER AND SOME CONTROL ROOM SIMULATORS

                

 

 

 

"STAN MANS THE OUTBOARD STATION"

 

BANCROFT SAILOR STAN CARDINAL MANS THE CONTROLS ON THE NEWSEST DIVING TRAINER AT THE BASE. NO MORE BALLAST CONTROL PANEL AND DIVING OFFICER'S CHAIR. IT' S ALL DONE FROM STAN'S SEAT WITH A TOUCH SCREEN MONITOR AND AN AIRCRAFT STYLE "JOY" STICK.

STAN WAS ABLE TO TOUCH THE SCREEN AND BRING UP THE TRIM & DRAIN SYSTEM or THE BALLAST TANKS AND VENT VALVES and 18 OTHER SCREENS. HE ALSO RAN THROUGH AN EMERGENCY BLOW AND BROUGHT THE BOAT UP TO THE SURFACE IN A BIG HURRY

 

 

 

 

 

DURING THE DAY THE CO OF THE USS NEW HAMPSHIRE OPENED HIS BOAT FOR TOURS AND A LOT OF OUR GROUP GOT TO GO ABOARD THE NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

 

 

THE USS NEW HAMPSHIRE IS A SMALL FAST ATTACK BOAT THAT DEPLOYS THE TOMAHAWK WEAPON SYSTEM AS WELL AS SOME OTHER MISSION CAPABILITIES. SHE HAD JUST RETURNED FROM AFGHANISTAN WHERE SHE DEPLOYED HER FAIR SHARE OF TOMAHAWKS

 

 

         

 

 

EX TORPEDOMAN PETER WILCOX GETS THE LODOWN ON THE TOMAHAWK HATCHES ON THE FORWARD DECK

 

 

 

PART OF THE WEEKEND WAS THE FRIDAY EVENING BARBECUE WHICH WAS HELD RIGHT IN THE MAIN DINING ROOM

 

 

WE HAD ALL THE USUALL GOODIES YOU FIND AT A BARBECUE BUT IT WAS INDOORS AND THAT IS NOT THE SAME AS HAVING IT OUTSIDE AND COOKING ON A GRILL.

WE WILL WORK ON THAT NEXT TIME

 

 

 

 

 

 Photos by Jody Gagnon/Price Perfect Photos/W Wareham, Mass               

SATURDAY NIGHT WE HAD THE FORMAL BANQUET AND THE SUB BASE SEA CADETS PROVIDED A NAVAL COLOR GUARD AND THEY CAME JUST BEFORE THE DINNER AND

PARADED THE COLORS THROUGH THE DINING HALL.   A VERY NICE TOUCH

 

 

 

 

 

THESE YOUNG SEA CADETS PERFORM THIS FUNCTION SEVERAL DOZEN TIMES A YEAR FOR A LOT OF EVENTS SUCH AS OUR REUNION ALL AROUND THE CONNECTICUT AREA.

 

 

 

Photo by Jody Gagnon/Preice Perfect Photos/ W. Wareham, Mass.

 

 

 

OUR GUEST SPEAKER FOR THE BANQUET WAS CAPTAIN MARC DENNO WHO JUST HAPPENS TO BE THE COMMANDING OFFICER

OF THE SUBMARINE BASE, NEW LONDON AT PRESENT.

 

 

CAPTAIN DENNO GAVE US AN EXCELLENT PRESENTATION ABOUT THE STATUS OF THE SUBMARINE FORCE AND THE SUB BASE ITSELF. HE COVERED QUITE A FEW SUBJECTS & ABOUT THE NEAR "SHUT DOWN" OF THE BASE A FEW YEARS AGO.

FOR YOUR INFO; CAPTAIN DENNO WAS A DAMAGE CONTROL ASSISTANT ABOARD THE BANCROFT FROM 1987-1990 AS A LEUTENANT

 

THAT MAKES 3 BANCROFT SAILORS WHO EVENTUALLY BECAME COMMANDING OFFICER OF THE SUB BASE IN NEW LONDON.

Photo by Jody Gagnon/Price Perfect Photos/W. Wareham, Mass.

 

 

 

 

 

 

OUR NEW STOREKEEPER. NATALE LEO, WAS BUSY COUNTING AND COLLECTING RAFFLE TICKETS DURING CAPTAIN DENNO'S PRESENTATION. THE RAFFLE BUSINESS THIS REUNION WENT VERY WELL AND RESULTED IN THE SEED MONEY FOR OUR CONTINUED OPERATION AND TO GET STARTED ON THE NEXT REUNION IN KINGS BAY IN THE SPRING OR SUMMER OF 2013

 

 

 

AS PER NORMAL AT ALL OUR REUNIONS, EVERYONE SAT AROUND AFTER DINNER AND SHOT THE BREEZE ABOUT OLD TIMES ON THE BOAT OR WHAT WE ARE ALL UP TO THESE DAYS IN OUR LIVES

 

                                   

 

Vice Cmdr Bob Williams & wife Joy and Barry Doe   

 

Jeff Traylor with his wife with their grandson Jordon

Jordon is stationed at the Sub Base attending sub school.

 

 

 

 

 

Louis Langford and his wife seem to be having a good time. Langford was on the Gold Crew from 1973 to 79

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paul Leone and Alice Holmes came up from the Ft. Lauderdale, Florida area. They will be helping us set up for next year's

OFF YEAR PICNIC which will be in the spring of 2012. They have agreed to go and physically chck out some prospective areas

for us to hold that event on Florida's east coast somewhere.                                                                                           

Keep your eyes on the "BANCROFT NEWS" and your e-mail for information about that gathering

 

 

 

ONE OF OUR FAVORITE RAFFLES AT EACH REUNION IS FOR THE "SPIRIT OF THE 643" HULL PIECE. THIS IS A 2" CUBE PIECE OF HY-80 STEEL CUT FROM THE PRESSURE HULL OF THE BOAT WHEN IT WAS SCRAPPED IN 1995 AT THE CHARLESTON NAVAL SHIPYARD. IT IS FROM THE AREA OF THE MISSILE COMPARTMENT AND WAS DONATED BY JOHN BENDER, AN MM1 FROM THE 1978-83 TIME FRAME, AT THE KINGS BAY REUNION IN 2003.

 

 

 

 

 

BACK IN 2009, AT THE SAN DIEGO REUNION, TIM SHUGART WON THE RAFFLE FOR THE HULL PIECE AND TOOK IT HOME FOR 2 YEARS. WHILE HE HAD IT, HE DID SOME REPAIRS TO THE PLASTIC DOME ON THE DISPLAY.

 

THIS YEAR, GUESS WHAT HAPPENED!!   TIM SHUGART WON IT AGAIN AT THIS YEARS RAFFLE. WHAT ARE THE ODDS OF THAT?? HE GETS TO TAKE IT HOME AGAIN UNTILL THE 2013 REUNION IN KINGS BAY, GA.

 

ALSO COMPLETED AT THIS REUNION WAS OUR ASSOCIATION'S BI-ANNUAL MEETING AND ELECTIONS. COMMANDER BOB EDGE STEPPED DOWN AND TURNED COMMAND OVER TO MIKE FLAMMIA WHO HAS BEEN THE VICE COMMANDER FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS. A NEW VICE COMMANDER, BOB WILLIAMS, WAS VOTED IN AND HE WILL SERVE THAT POSITION FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS. AT OUR NEXT REUNION, HE WILL STEP UP AND TAKE OVER AS ASSOCIATION COMMANDER. BILL BADALUCCA AND JIM ANGELICA WERE RESTORED AS SECRETARY AND TREASURER AGAIN FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS. YOU CAN MEET ALL THE OFFICERS ON THE "MEET THE OFFICERS" PAGE HERE ON OUR WEBSITE. THE LOCATION FOR OUR NEXT REUNION WAS SELECTED AND THAT SELECTION IS KINGS BAY, GEORGIA WHERE THE BANCROFT'S SAIL MEMORIAL IS LOCATED. YOU NEED TO GET THERE AND WALK ABOARD ONE MORE TIME IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT YET.

                                                                     

                          

 

 

 

THE EXACT DATES ARE NOT KNOWN YET BUT WE WILL MAKE SURE EVERYONE GETS THE WORD

PLAN ON BEING THERE!

 

 

 

PAST REUNIONS:

1st REUNION-    APRIL 2000-    KINGS BAY, GEORGIA ( THE SAIL MEMORIAL DEDICATION)

2nd REUNION-    OCT   2001--  GROTON, CONNECTICUT

3rd REUNION-     MAY 2003 --  KINGSLAND, GEORGIA

4th REUNION-     APRIL 2005 -  CHARLESTON, SC

5th REUNION -    APRIL 2007 -  COCOA BEACH, FLORIDA

6th REUNION -     APRIL 2009 -  SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

7th REUNION-     JUNE 2011-    NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT

                                                         "JOIN US FOR THE 8TH REUNION" IT WILL BE IN THE SPRING/SUMMER OF 2013

IN KINGS BAY, GEORGIA

WHERE THE BANCROFT SAIL MEMORIAL IS