FEBRUARY 13, 2014|VOL. 40| ISSUE 5
USS MASON A CHANCE FOR HONOR
HELPING HANDS
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Information the
Commanding Officer Capt. Jeff Ruth Executive Officer Capt. J.J. Cummings Command Master Chief CMDCM Teri M. McIntyre Public Affairs Officer Lt. Cmdr. Karin Burzynski Media DIVO Ensign John Mike Media LCPO MCC Mike Jones Media Production Chief MCC Gregory Roberts Media LPO MC1 Michael Cole Editor MC2 Phillip Ladouceur Lead Designer MCSN Andrew Price
C
Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Jonathan Greenert released a video blog message Sunday reinforcing the Navy’s commitment to ethics, particularly integrity. hief of
“
I
don’t think we have an ethics problem across
the
Navy. But I
think we need to reinforce our
core values and our core commitment to that. - Greenert
”
“When we raised our right hand we said, ‘I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same’ that means the institution,” said Greenert. “We need to and we will remain vigilant. We will continue to drive home to our people the importance of integrity: the fact that it is the foundation of all that we do in the U.S. Navy.”
Media Department
MC2 Jacquelyn Childs MC2 Devin Wray MC2 Ryan Mayes MC2 Jacob Milner MC2 Jess Lewis MC3 George J. Penney III MC3 Shayne Johnson MC3 Linda S. Swearingen MC3 Vanessa David MC3 W. J. Cousins MC3 Derek Volland MC3 Sam Souvannason MC3 Nathan McDonald MC3 Joshua Haiar MC3 Kaitlyn Haskett MC3 Eric Butler MC3 Kole E. Carpenter MC3 Siobhana McEwen MCSN Aiyana Paschal MCSN Kelly Agee MCSN Victoria Ochoa MCSN Eli Buguey MCSN Lauren Jennings Nimitz News accepts submissions in writing. All submissions must be in by Friday, COB. Submissions are subject to review and screening. “Nimitz News” is an authorized publication for the members of the military services and their families. Its content does not necessarily reflect the official views of the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy, or the Marine Corps and does not imply endorsement thereby.
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Greenert’s video blog can be viewed at cno.navylive.dodlive.mil
MM2 Tyler Ellis performs maintenance. Photo by MC3 (SW) Derek Volland
ON THE COVER: BMSN Sarah Cothran stows gear after painting. Photo by MC3 (SW) Kole E. Carpenter
USS MASON PART ONE
FEBRUARY IS
AFRICAN AMERICAN
A CHANCE FOR HONOR
HISTORY MONTH
STORY BY MC3 ERIC BUTLER
Military service has historically been a major avenue for recognition and citizenship in the U.S. since the colonies rebelled from Great Britain. There are many African-American heroes who emerged during America’s wars, but only in the last few decades have their stories been told. Many more are relatively unknown. This story is about the destroyer escort USS Mason (DE 529) and her predominantly black crew who
served with distinction during World War II. It is necessary to understand a little about the fabric of American society in the 1940s and what led to the story of Mason and her crew. While African-Americans have served in every war America has been in, World War II was the first that resulted in any long lasting impact for the black community and, ultimately, American society. CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
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HOMEPORT
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3
HERITAGE
Typically, there was always resistance to African-Americans serving in the military until the need for recruits was great. Even when individual African-Americans or black units served with honor, recognition was seldom officially given for their contributions. When conflicts ceased, many black veterans retained some of the rights military service granted them, but their families usually did not benefit. Most of the world had ingrained ideas about racial superiority, and many Americans were not willing to see black men rise to a position of authority over whites in the military. If African-Americans were to be used in the military, they were relegated to menial labor without much chance of advancement, or they were segregated, where African-American advancement did not affect white authority. When Japan attacked the Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor, there was a great flood of patriotic young men, and women, who desired to protect their country. Many African-Americans wanted to join as well, but found themselves on a waiting list. Most branches of the service had a policy that they would only accept African-American enlistees in proportion to the population, around 10 percent at the time. Integrating African-Americans into the military was foremost on the mind of many leaders as civil rights groups put pressure on the government and the need for recruits also rose. However, not all leaders were focused on integration because of manpower requirements. There were others, including the president’s outspoken wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, who spoke strongly for equality. Even President Roosevelt towed the civil rights line only to a point. While Roosevelt supported integration, he agreed with many military leaders that mixed units and crews could suffer a lack of efficiency due to racial tensions in close quarters. The Navy had plenty of leaders who were comfortable with maintaining a status quo of mostly white Sailors with blacks serving as stewards. Stewards had little chance to advance, were paid very little and did not even have an actual rating badge. Never-
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theless, blacks enlisted and found themselves serving on shore duty, patrolling the shore along with the Coast Guard, loading supply ships, handling aircraft and even working as Seabees, a very respectable job in the Navy. However, most blacks felt just as strongly as whites, among others, that they wanted to face the enemy in combat. “I was hearing in the news about what was happening over in Germany with the repression that was going on, the terrible action against the Jews,” said Lorenzo A. DuFau, future signalman for the Mason. “I heard about that through the newspapers, and I said, ‘I can kill two birds with one stone. I could take part in trying to stop this action and also open doors here at home.’ It was a twofold thing. But I guess some people would look at me as being kind of stupid at the time thinking I was young and foolish to get all patriotic, knowing what ordeals I was living under. But it was my home being violated, threatened, and I felt it was only right to defend it. A man will go forth and defend his home. You defend your family - you defend your country - because there’s no other place that’s home but here in America.” Another future signalman for the Mason, Gordon “Skinny” Buchanan, was eager to join the Navy because of his love of ships growing up. “When the war began, in December 1941, I had over two hundred models of ships,” said Buchanan. ”I just loved the ships. By March 1942 I was working downtown as a delivery boy, and I would see the ships in New York harbor, because the war had just begun. I first tried to enlist in March. I just had to get in the navy, with all these ships. Oh, that’s all I wanted to do, go to sea. I had no idea that if I’d have gone in at that time, I would have been a steward,” said Buchanan. “I don’t think I could have handled that. It would have been too much for me… I didn’t understand what blacks were doing in the Navy. I was just going to join up to fight for the country. That was in
my
head. I was a patriot.” After prodding from civil rights and national leaders, the Navy came up with an experimental solution. Except for their officers and chiefs, a small destroyer escort would be manned by African-Americans. Officially, Mason would be treated like any other ship as far as judging military bearing and readiness, but the crew would find themselves under special scrutiny during their service. Fortunately, the officers assigned to the ship accepted their assignment without hesitation despite knowing what their ship was to become. Lt. Cmdr. William M. Blackford, was the captain of the new ship. The skipper’s great-grandmother, Mary Berkeley Minor Blackford was an outspoken civil rights leader and abolitionist in Virginia before, during and after the Civil War. She taught her children to see all races as equal in the sight of God and her legacy continued even after her death. In a letter to his family in 1943, Blackford expressed excitement about his assignment and the crew he was receiving. “Am delighted with the colored men who are here now-they know what they are doing and can really
Sailors assigned to USS Mason (DE 529) look on their new ship.
put out the work,” wrote Blackford. Black Sailors were finally getting a chance to prove themselves in combat. Each man was handpicked to be part of the crew. James W. Graham was training to be a radioman when he learned he would be a crew member on a new ship that would see combat. “I had never heard of a DE before,” said Graham. “I thought they were looking for men to go on a destroyer. I was ready… they didn’t say it was an experimental ship or anything. They said it was a DD, which means a destroyer. So I jumped for joy. At least I was going on board a ship.” The special function of the destroyer escorts was anti-submarine. The majority of DEs served in the Atlantic where Germany’s U-boats operated with near impunity for
years, even boldly attacking merchant ships within sight of New Jersey. Winston Churchill, Britain’s prime minister during the war, was once heard saying that his one biggest fear in the war was the U-boat. The challenges facing Mason’s crew were multiple. They had to weather terrible storms in the Atlantic, storms so fierce that the ship’s inclinometer reported 70 degree lists at times. They had to operate in waters filled with experienced U-boat crews. They were saddled with the responsibility of learning and stewarding new sonar technology all under the scrutinizing eyes of visiting inspectors who did not always want to see an African-American crew succeed in their mission or recognize their accomplishments. Most of the crew often met with indifference and intolerance when
on liberty in the very country they fought for when on liberty, even while in uniform. In the book “Proudly We Served,” by Mary Pat Kelly, the crew’s maiden voyage was well described. “They were taking the Mason out beyond the limitations imposed by segregation and racism into this expanse of sea and sky. This was what the Mason was to them, a ship at sea, and they were her crew…They were 160 young men who knew they were good at what they did (page 76).” The book is available in the ship’s library and tells the whole story. In the next article, we’ll find out what became of the ship and crew and what legacy they left for us.
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GIVING
HELPING HANDS STORY AND PHOTO BY MCSN (SW) AIYANA PASCHAL
W
hen Chief Religious Programs Specialist Stanley D. Ponder checked on board USS Nimitz Dec. 17, 2013, he didn’t wait to start making changes. Instead he dove in headfirst to create opportunities for Sailors to make a difference in their community. “I’ve been passionate about [volunteering] from the beginning,” said Ponder, a native of Atlanta, Ga., “Yes, we are a strong war-fighting force, but as the CNO [Chief of Naval Operations] put out, even the Navy’s slogan ‘a global force for good’ has to be more than just how well we can infiltrate the enemy and execute a threat; our mission also has to be in the hearts and minds of people.” There are a multitude of volunteer opportunities available to Sailors on Nimitz. Ponder is calling this program SAFE (Special Accommodations for Everyone). The goal of SAFE is to make the community better for everyone. “Our country is safe because of our fighting force,” said Ponder. “And now we need to make all aspects of our community safe. We’re out there, we’re there to make the community a better place to live, and we’re there to make it safe.” Sailors can sign up for community relations projects (COMREL) in the ship’s library. Folders are stacked on the front desk in the library with the names of COMRELs. Inside each folder there is a sign up sheet and information about the project. Transportation is often provided and bag lunches will be provided if a COMREL runs through lunchtime. Though you can sign up for these COMRELs through the religious ministries department, they are Nimitz’ command COMRELs. That’s why Navy uniforms are often worn when attending these COMRELs. Some COMRELs available to sign up for right now are state park cleanups, volunteering at a hospital (either working through hospice or in the children’s ward), a freeway cleanup on Broadway, Meals on Wheels, and many different schools in the area. Hillcrest Elementary is one of those schools. Sailors go every Tuesday from 9:30 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. Chief Ponder would like more Sailors to volunteer there so there is at least six Sailors there every Tuesday. Right now there are about four Sailors attending the COMREL. Sailors first attended the school on Feb. 4. They provided a variety of services including one-on-one tutoring with students on a variety of subjects, clerical work and taking photos of the new associated student body representatives. “The kids are excited to not only have individual people involved in volunteering to help them, but it’s great
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to see that you’re in uniform too,” said Marilee Fronsman, the secretary at Hillcrest Elementary. Nimitz’ Sailors were initially introduced in one of the schools monthly assemblies while in their service uniforms. Students clapped and cheered, especially when they found out one of the Sailors built bombs. “We’re excited you’re here and we hope we have more that come,” said Fronsman. “We absolutely can keep busy as many [Sailors] as you want to send us. The kids will benefit from it greatly because they’ll have individual people working with them.” For Information Systems Technician 1st Class Ryan Yeatts, volunteering at schools has become a way he can give back to
IT1 Ryan Yeatts tutors a student in math.
his community. “I volunteered at a school once a week at my last command so I’m glad I get a chance to do it here too,” said Yeatts. “It’s a good way to give back to the community.” “They can see us from afar or hear about us on the news, but when they see us taking on the war on trash or the war on poverty or the war on hunger, that lets them know that we’re more than just what they’ve read in the newspaper; that we can do something positive for the community,” said Ponder. “Every Sailor should do something positive in his or her community.” If you want to make a positive difference in your community and the lives of others, go to the Nimitz library or contact Chief Ponder through email or J-6451.
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Celebrating The Legacy of
CHESTER NIMITZ 24 Feb. 1885 - 20 Feb. 1966
1908 Entering Batangas Harbor in the Philippines, Ensign Nimitz relied on an estimated position and failed to check the tides, and consequently ran the USS Decatur aground on a mudbank. He recalled the words of his grandfather: “Don’t worry about things over which you have no control.” He asked for a cot and went to sleep until he was able to get the ship unstuck. He reported the incident and was brought to court-martial. His superiors, taking into account his previously flawless record, found him guilty. His punishment was a public reprimand. Other than embarrassment, his career never suffered because of the incident, one that could have ended his career just as it was beginning. Nimitz’ calm bearing in the face of trouble would help him throughout his career, especially when leading the fight from the disaster of Pearl Harbor to ultimate victory in the Pacific. Nimitz Media Department will be celebrating the legacy of FLTADM Chester Nimitz throughout the month of February.
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