All Hands Reunion

James Treadway

In March 2000, Bob Gerity e-mailed me after he found my name on the Locater page of Ken Ely’s outstanding Biddle website. Soon thereafter I had e-mailed Captain Scott, Wes Boer, and several other Biddle plankowners who I had not seen in more than 30 years. In Captain Scott’s reply to my e-mail, he wondered why there had been no attempt to organize an “All Hands Reunion.” I realized that someone had to step forward and organize a reunion; otherwise it might not get done. It was time – Biddle had been decommissioned for more than seven years. I had no experience organizing a ship’s reunion but I had organized three annual banquets for the Austin, Texas, Experimental Aircraft Association chapter. In my next e-mail to Captain Scott, I agreed to organize Biddle’s first “All Hands Reunion” and the project was underway.

Several decisions were made early in the project that contributed to the success of the reunion. To promote the reunion to the widest possible audience, an informative web page was created that demonstrated that I was dedicated to making Biddle’s first “All Hands Reunion” a success. Volunteers were solicited to help with the behind-the-scenes organizational details. Stepping forward were plankowners Captain Scott, David Johnson, Bob Gerity, Wes Boer, Ray Treadway, Ted Williams, my wife Holly, my cousin Karen Newsom, her husband Mike and others. Having an outstanding array of speakers and emcee at the banquet was a top priority and a significant attraction. With no public speaking skills myself, I was pleased (and relieved) when David Johnson agreed to be master of ceremonies. Finally, I chose the theme, “Biddle is a Proud Ship,” which reflected my feelings towards the ship. I was confident it reflected the feelings of other Hard Chargers as well.

Within a few months the following speakers were on board: Captain Scott; Lieutenant Muse, and Rear Admiral Tom Marfiak, past Biddle Engineering Officer and CEO and publisher of the U.S. Naval Institute.
The sixteen months between the reunion’s inception and culmination passed quickly. During that time I had secured an excellent banquet facility at the Pinecrest Country Club in Longview; organized bus tours to the famous East Texas Oil Museum in Kilgore and the riverboat casinos in Shreveport, Louisiana; obtained block motel room reservations at several motels; ordered 200 Biddle caps and tote bags as souvenirs; obtained the services of a group panoramic photo photographer and a reunion book photographer; ordered George Bieda prints for sale and tokens of appreciation for the emcee and speakers; organized a golf tournament, buffet breakfast at a local restaurant, photo contest; and memorabilia display.

As the pre-banquet events unfolded on 14 July 2001, it was clear that the 16 months of planning and preparation were paying off. On several occasions I had opportunities to observe the unmistakable camaraderie that exists across multiple generations of Biddle crews. Plankowners traded sea stories with their counterparts in the decommissioning crew, senior officers and junior enlisted men recalled similar experiences from different times, and old buddies who had not seen each other for more than 30 years remembered what it was like way back then.

A few minutes before the banquet began with my opening remarks, I realized that the stricken Biddle was in the last phases of being dismantled. In a real sense then, the reunion had become a gathering of family and friends to pay our respects to a fine ship that would soon be no more. A short time later, as I looked out across the audience and saw 116 Hard Chargers and family, I realized that the effort put forth to organize the reunion was miniscule compared to the rewards.

Soon, master of ceremonies David Johnson relieved my watch. It was obvious that my old friend had prepared for the task in typical David Johnson fashion – his presentation was flawless. There was a toast, and then we remembered some Hard Chargers who had passed away. During the awards segment, Captain Henry’s daughter Susan picked the winning lottery ticket for a handsome George Bieda Biddle print. Unbelievably, but appropriately, Biddle Webmaster Ken Ely’s ticket was drawn. Then, it was my pleasure to present emcee Dave Johnson and each speaker with George Bieda Biddle prints. Also, awards were presented to winners of the photo and memorabilia contests and trophies were presented to the winning team in the golf tournament. Appropriately, Captain Scott’s team had the best score. Captain Scott had a surprise of his own when he presented me a brass medallion of Biddle’s crest from his personal collection. The “Sea Stories/Open Mike” segment followed with several hilarious stories that weren’t too embarrassing to tell.

David Johnson introduced the first speaker, Biddle’s first commanding officer, Captain Maylon T. Scott. In spite of his claim of not being a good speaker, Captain Scott skillfully “spoke from the heart” about a ship that was his finest command and about a crew for which he will always have enormous respect. Next, the room became respectfully, almost deathly quiet, as Ralph Muse recalled the dramatic events in the Gulf of Tonkin of June 1972. To close the evening, Tom Marfiak expertly wove the themes of the two previous speakers together with a summary of Biddle’s marvelous career and how the ship influenced our lives.
Another chapter in Biddle’s life was closed as the reunion ended.