There is a port of no return,
where ships may ride at anchor for a little space.
And then, some starless night, the cable slips,
leaving an eddy at the mooring place...
Gulls, veer no longer. Sailor, rest your oar.
No tangled wreckage will be washed ashore.
--Leslie Nelson Jennings
Billy was a plank owner, a great guy, and he loved Elvis! He was killed in an auto accident.
-----Joaquin G. "Jack" Montoya YN3
Clair, William "Bill" QM1
DD945 Plankowner
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"He served while W. B. Provost (also departed) was the skipper. He was Exec during my HULL tour (60-61). His rank was CDR, USN at the time. He was promoted to Captain in 1966. During his final retirement years, he lived in LaJolla, California. I did not know that he had passed away and gave his name to John McKechnie who called his LaJolla home in 2004 prior to the reunion and talked with his widow. I do not have any other details except that he was a great XO".
----- Tom Christensen
Ehrmantrout Sr, William - GMGM
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This appeared in the July
2, 2008 Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Nolan Bud Joseph Garrison, 85, of Las Vegas, passed away Tuesday, June 24,
2008. He was born Jan. 4, 1923, in Port Arthur, Texas, and was a 46 year
resident of Las Vegas. He joined the U.S. Navy just after his 16th birthday.
Serving aboard the USS Hull, he survived the attacks on Pearl Harbor. In
1962, a veteran of the Navy, Bud moved, with his wife and son, to Las Vegas
and became an electrician. He joined and faithfully served the International
Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) for over 25 years. To Bud, family
came first. The words "dedicated" and "loyal" best describe Bud throughout
his 85 years. Luckily for Bud, his first priority, family, did not conflict
with his lifelong passion for baseball. As a player, a coach, or a fan, Bud
proudly and openly displayed his love of the game. He coached well into his
seventies and was a fixture on the field and in the stands for both his son,
Gary's and his grandson, Gregory's games and practices. He is survived by
Cora Elizabeth, a woman who, for the past 61 years, he happily called his
wife; his son, Gary Wayne; his sister, Audrey; his grandson, Gregory Joseph;
and his daughter-in-law, Sheila Anne. Bud is also survived by his extended
family of Las Vegas; and his many friends. Services will be at 2 p.m.
Thursday, July 3, at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in
Boulder City. Donations may be made to the Salvation Army of America.
Regards,
W. Ross Yates
"Ralph was on board the HULL from around '64-'67. He volunteered and was accepted to PBR's and was transferred in '67. The Cruise of '68 I met him in Subic where he declared that he was not coming back. He was killed in mid to late '68 in Vietnam and was buried in Coldwater, MI. (He was my first funeral detail when I reported to Great Lakes IL in late '68.)"
---- Bryce Wellnitz QMCS (Ret)
Recipient of the Navy Achievement Medal with Gold Star
Jon Hall (1970-1974) passed away in the McClellan Veterans Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas on January 30, 2009. I don't know if you note this kind of information for those who might search for previous crew mates, but just in case. I was married to Jon for 32 years, and our son, Jason, and I were with him when he passed.
His son and I are very proud of his Navy service, especially during the Viet Nam era, as we are of all of our military family members that served during that time. I've provided you with a scanned copy of the Citation letter from J. L. Holloway, Vice Admiral at the time the award was given, and a scanned copy of the certificate as well. The Citation letter mentions the USS Hull specifically, and the time from the award. Although we were no longer married, we remained very close. I was his power of attorney at the VA. I want very much for him to be remembered by his shipmates if at all possible. He loved that part of his life, as much as I did. He always said, "Like they say, War is Hell – and the Navy held the worst and the best memories of my life." Jason and I thank you very much for posting Jon's information.
Jon's wife, Marie (Hall) Wright
phone: 479.968.0663
email: awright@atu.edu
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"He was reported missing at "Muster on Station" approximately 0740, 29 October 1961. After returning to port (Kaosiung, Formosa) from a night of steaming, under Condition III for most of the night, General Quarters was sounded and a thorough search of the ship ensued. When neither of these events resulted in turning up the missing shipmate, we headed out to sea to back track the course of the previous night with hopes of a successful Search and Rescue. The results of this operation were negative, seaman Isenhour was not found. Conducting inquires of the crew revealed that Isenhour had last been seen approximately 1815 the night of 28 October 1961. His Condition III watch station was on one of the hedgehog mounts. It was a very dark night and the lookouts did not see anything."* "After returning to port a memorial service was conducted on the fantail."
"I knew him ... a nice young man" ----- Ens. Robert Modell
"The USS HULL Association is saddened to announce that Betty John, wife of shipmate Gary John, passed away 3 May. Those who attended last year’s first USS HULL Association Reunion in Las Vegas no doubt remember Gary and Betty at various functions. In fact, Betty remarked how much she liked everybody with whom she met. Gary, who served aboard HULL in 1958-59 as a BM3, and Betty were married 42 years. They lived in the central California community of Hemet. A sympathy card has been sent on behalf of the USS HULL Association."
----- /s/ George Tomek, CAPT, VP Communications & Newsletter Editor
"We put Bill on a plane home to Nebraska from Hong Kong when his father passed. He was granted a hardship discharge as the surviving heir to the family farm. His many friends were both glad for him and also sad that we wouldn't share the rest of the cruise. He worked and played hard, and always added to any situation with an easy laugh and honest friendship. Tragically Bill Johnson died in an automobile accident near his farm in Nebraska only a short time later."
----- Doug Hise
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George Allen Kitchen, 70, of West Columbia passed away on Tuesday, April 27, 2010. He was born on October 29, 1939 in Houston, Texas to Ernest and Edda Kitchen. George graduated from Texas A & M University, and served his country by joining the United States Navy, from which he retired. He also served in the Texas Army National Guard. He served in Vietnam and Central America. George was also a member of Stephen F. Austin Old 300. His kind and gentle spirit will be missed by all who knew and loved him. Funeral Service has been scheduled for Saturday, May 1, 2010 at 10:00 am at Baker Funeral Home~ West Columbia with Ivy Lightener officiating. Pallbearers will be Jarrad and David Norris, Larry and Allen Lattie, Allen George Kitchen, and Tom Miller. Burial will follow at Brown Beard Family Cemetery in Damon. Visitation will be on Friday, April 30, 2010 from 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm also at Baker Funeral Home~ West Columbia. George was preceded in death by his parents, and brother-in-law. Left to cherish his memories are his wife, Diane Elaine Kitchen of West Columbia; son, Allen George Kitchen and wife Laura of Webster; daughter, Christine Frances Gatton of Austin; granddaughters, Sandra Denise and Lisa Nicole Kitchen of Webster; brother, Edward Jackson Kitchen of Euless; sisters, Mary Catherine Miller of West Columbia, and Carolyn Coffin and husband Steve of Pensacola, Fl. Final arrangements under the direction of Baker Funeral Home, 634 S. Columbia Drive, West Columbia, Texas 77486 (979) 345-3232 Online condolences may be left by signing the guestbook at www.bakerfuneralhome.net
"Regretfully, I was never a sailor. My service was in the U.S.Army Field Artillery. However, my childhood friend named Danny Lipscomb served on the HULL in or around 1980-1981. I remember the wonderful photos and stories he would bring home following a Wes-Pac tour. For that, I always envied him. Sadly, I recently found out that my old friend was killed in an automobile accident in Arkansas in October 2004. Some of you may remember him."
----- W.S. Blevins
"I'm sorry that I don't have too much info on McNeil. I'll share what I do have: As I remember, Jeff worked as a gunners mate in 2nd Division. I think he was either a GMSN or a SN. Their berthing compartment was right below that of first Divisions (underneath fwd gun mount) so a lot of times Jeff would hang out in our compartment bull s--tting, playing cards etc.. while underway. About the day that Jeff was lost at sea, I couldn't believe what a nice calm, picture perfect day it was (except for what happened). Unfortunately Jeff had a cast on his leg from a previous injury. What happened exactly I didn't see. I know that Jeff was walking on the main deck port side (amid, think) and went over the side. As I recall, the life lines were down on the section of deck where Jeff went over the side (deckapes working there). Sorry, I do not have a time and date of when this happened. Recently I've been in contact with a few guys from the crew who knew McNeil better than I who would have more to add. You might have already talked to other guys who knew him. Maybe I could let you talk to someone else. Anyway I think Jeff should be honored in some way."
----- Jack Mueller
"My name is Randy Andrew and I was a GMG1 on the HULL from June '82 until she decommissioned. I was reading those names listed in the Fallen section of our web page when I saw Jeff McNeil's name. Mac (as he was called by the Gun Gang) was a GM striker that worked with me in MT. 53, I was the one that talked him into striking for GM out of Deck after he had stood a couple of QD watches with me as MOOW. Since MT. 53 was right by the QD (or should I say that the QD was right by MT. 53) he would ask me questions about the 5" guns. On the day that we lost Mac, him and I had been prepping the bulkheads in 53's Carrier Room in preps for painting them white. I had sent him up to the paint locker to get the paint and he had only been gone for about 5 minutes when they passed the word "Man Overboard". I never dreamed that it would be him that had fallen over board. He went over board on the Port side main deck directly under where MT. 52 was located. The lower lifelines were indeed down as the BM's were chipping and painting the stanchions. There was water on deck flowing towards the scuppers, from farther forward. One of my GM's was doing PMS on 52 and had been talking to him at the time. He told me later that Mac had looked up at him with 1 hand over his eyes (shielding the sunlight) and as he went to put the other on the top lifeline, he stepped into the flowing water with the foot that had the cast on it and slipped under the lifelines and into the water. Mac didn't have a chance as not only did he have that cast to contend with, he was also wearing the older green overalls that were heavy in themselves, plus the fact that Mac couldn't swim. Before we could get the ship turned around, he had already slipped beneath the waves. We searched for him in the vicinity well into the night but to no avail. Mac was an easy going kid and was as bad as me for joking with the guys on the ship. His loss greatly affected the Gun Gang as well as the rest of the crew. When I returned to the Carrier Room later that night to lock up, I stepped into the Carrier Room and saw Mac's "Mickey Mouse" ears that he had his name engraved into the ear pieces. I still have those "Mickey Mouse" ears and each time that I see them reminds me of him. Right before decommissioning, I had painted the Gun Gang's name onto the bulkhead next to the EP2 panels in each 51, 52 and in 53, I placed Mac's name above mine and GMG2 Houk's. Mac, rest in peace, you are not forgotten."
----- V/R, Randy C. Andrew, GMC(SW) USN-Retired USS Hull (DD-945) '82-'83
Served Aboard 1960 - 62; Single; Died in 1965 in the line of duty as a New Mexico State Police Officer.
-----Joaquin G. "Jack" Montoya YN3 (Brother); Served aboard 1959 - 61.
1st Division 1967 - 1969
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Former Commanding Officer
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My name is John W. Gissendanner and I live in South
Carolina. Back in 1963, I was a YN3 on the staff of Commander Cruiser-Destroyer
Flotilla SEVEN. In the summer of ‘63, we were stationed at the Naval Base,
Subic Bay, PI. Then-Commander Provost was one of the officers on staff.
Commander Provost had been passed over a couple of times for Captain and he was
going to have to retire, much to his regret. One Saturday afternoon, the
Commander came by the office to check on radio traffic for promotion info.
When the duty radioman pulled a message showing that Commander Provost had been
selected for Captain, you would have thought that we all had been promoted. The
memory of that celebration, even after almost fifty years, still brings a smile.
CCDF-7 had a small reunion in January 2009 in San Diego and a lot of the guys
remember how happy we were for Bill Provost.
As well as I remember, Commander Provost was next assigned to a radar or radio
station in Guam. Do any of you guys remember if this is correct? If this gets
to any of Captain Provost’s family, I would like to communicate with them. He
was one of our favorite officers-a good man and a good friend to all of us
whitehats.
John W. Gissendanner, USN (1960-64)
gissendannerj@bellsouth.net
Susan Reinhardt Boyd
It is my sad duty to inform you of the passing of Thomas (Tom) A. Stealey, Jr. of Magalia, CA 95954. Tom was on the USS Hull DD 350, when it was lost in “Halsey’s Typhoon” in 1944. He was rescued by the crew of the USS Cogswell DD 651 after about three days in the water. Tom passed away from cancer at the age of 89½ years. He is buried in the Veterans area of the Glen Oaks Memorial cemetery in Chico, CA. Tom was a Master Mason, Shriner and a member of Paradise, CA Elks Lodge #2026 and the Paradise, CA Moose lodge to name just a few. Tom leaves his wife of 66 years, Ida May Stealey of Magalia, CA. He was a good friend of many years and will be greatly missed.
Thank You,
Tom Weimer
PO Box 413
Magalia, CA 95954 tomweimer@sbcglobal.net
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Ray went aboard the 350 in 1938 and served on the Hull 'till
we lost her in the typhoon. He was one of the few survivors. He
started out as seaman and was being promoted to a CPO when we
lost the ship. Ray was a great storyteller and had many good
stories of his Navy life during peace time as well as war time.
Being on board all of that time he was a Pearl Harbor survivor,
as mentioned before, and was a typhoon survivor. Him living in
Santa Cruz, and me in Fresno, had the opportunity to visit him
many times during the last few years, times I will always
treasure.
Pat Douhan.
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Served aboard 1980-1983
Died Sept 2008
Goodbye dear friend and
shipmate.
May you rest in peace...
Sailor rest your oar...
* From journal of R. Modell and my personal remembrance.