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National Headquarters
PO Box 186
Ferndale, CA 95536
Phone: (800) 545-4173
Fax: (707) 786-4557
National Officers
President: A.J. Wichita
Vice President: Don Trimbath
Secretary: Nelson Cauble
Treasurer: Calvin G. Berry
Vice President: Don Trimbath
Secretary: Nelson Cauble
Treasurer: Calvin G. Berry
Regional Vice Presidents
Central Region
J.B. "Burt" Young
Mo Valley Chapter
Dixie Region
Jules Burg
Mississippi Gulf Coast Chapter
Great Lakes Region
Vacant
Tri-State Region
C.E. "Bert" Hinds
Ohio Valley Chapter
Gulf Region
Jack Grothe
S.S. Samual Parker Chapter
Mid Atlantic Region
George Goldman
Dennis A. Roland Chapter
Northeast Region
Henry "Hank" Cap
North Atlantic Chapter
Northwest Region
Bill Marker
Oregon Chapter
Southeast Region
Morris Harvey
Ocala Chapter
Southwest Region
Rex Farley
Desert Mariners Chapter
Valley Forge Region
George Bathie
Keystone Mariners Chapter
West Region
William "Bill" Cantua
Jeremiah O'Brien Chapter
2009-2010 Appointed Officers and Committee Chairpersons
Judge Advocate
Henry "Hank" Kaminski
Dennis A. Roland Chapter
Government Affairs
Herman "Gerry" Starnes
Member-at-Large
National Public Relations
Toni Horodysky
Emerald Sea Chapter
Constitution & By Laws
Henry "Hank" Kaminski
Dennis A. Roland Chapter
Veterans Affairs Officer
J.O. Nelson
Sacramento Valley Chapter
Membership
Perry Adams
Silicon Valley Mariners Chapter
Webmaster & Communications
Carole Gutierrez
Oregon Chapter
Historian
Richard Mallett
Kings Point Chapter
Nominating
John McSpadden
SS Stephen Hopkins Chapter
Credentials
J.B. "Burt" Young
Missouri Valley Chapter
Director of Public Relations
Gloria Nicolich
Kings Point Chapter
Magazine Editor &
Office Administration
Saaren "Sindy" Raymond
Humboldt Bay Chapter
Now affiliated with …
Do your senators deliver?
If not, let them know we expect their support!
This page is appearing in the NAUS newsletter.
It is from our National President, A.J. Wichita.
To print your own copy or
to use in your chapter newsletter, please click here.
Seeking your opinion:
What would you like to see on your AMMV website?
- Personal stories of service in the Merchant Marine?
- Autobiographical stories?
- Obituaries and memorials of those who have crossed the bar?
- How about a chat room?
Submit your ideas to ammv.info@gmail.com or leave them in our Guest Book.
Established August 23, 1984
The voice of the American Merchant Marine Veteran
Congratulations Senator Nelson!
(November 2, 2009) Senator Ben Nelson, Nebraska's senator sponsoring S. 663, The Belated Thank You to Merchant Marine Veterans, as been named chairman of the Senate Armed Forces Subcommittee on Strategic Forces.
The Subcommittee provides oversight of STRATCOM (the nation's nuclear and strategic forces), ballistic missile defense, intelligence programs, space programs, information warfare in cyberspace, Department of Energy defense-related nuclear and environmental programs and a number of related budgets. 
Members speak up on S-663...
Isn't it strange?
November 11, 2009
George Femmer is a Merchant Marine Veteran and a member of the Central Indiana WWII Merchant Marine Veterans chapter. He is old, and like so many of us, is suffering from cancer.He will probably be dead before our Congressmen like Senator Lugar ever gets around to finish "studying" our Just Compensation Bill S.663 which will compensate the estimated 8500 surviving Merchant Marine Veterans for their service to our country in WWII.It's strange that we MM Veterans had to go to the Federal Court overseen by an official of the AIR FORCE to sue our government before we can be called "veterans."Isn't it strange that never before in our Nation's history were the men of the Merchant Marine of WWII ever awarded the title of being a veteran, and none since. Merchant ships & their seamen are still delivering cargo to our troops overseas, but nothing is published about that.WHY?Don Ellwood
Chapter President
Central Indiana AMMV Chapter
Contributed to the American Merchant Marine Veterans website by AMMV member Walt Steinsiek.
LOOK WHAT'S NEW
We've added a guest book. Your comments and suggestions are welcome. Please click here to go to the book and add your two cents.
Past articles appearing in the NAUS newsletter are now available in PDF format.
Click here to go to the archive page.
The Convention is just around the corner - and we've going to LAS VEGAS. We've added a new page to keep you up-to-date on the plans.
From "downunder"
We've received a news article from a Merchant Navy Veteran of World War II. His is from Australia by way of England and has written a book detailing heroic acts of Merchant Mariners during the war. He wrote the book so the "forgotten hero's" legacy will live on. He also has included a link to messages on You Tube that contain interviews and footage from the war. Please click here to go to the "we're making news" page.
New Chapter added in North Carolina
(November 30, 2009) American Merchant Marine Veteran National President, A.J. Wichita, today announced formation of a new chapter in North Carolina. The Otto J.Ernst Chapter was founded by Joe Ernst in honor of his father, who was a member of the Midwest Chapter in Chicago.In making the announcement, Wichita said, "What makes this so memorable is this is the first chapter founded because a son of a WWII Merchant Mariner was interested in what his Dad experienced in his chosen service." He continued, "He had the desire to learn about the heroic history of this country's Merchant Marine, then asked: 'Why can't we start a chapter?'"The new chapter has 13 charter members. Its officers are:President: John Nowak
Vice President: Elmer Morse
Secretary: Joe Ernst
Treasurer: Victor DiVittorio
'Tis a rousing ballad about the Merchant Marine in
World War II.The group is Canadian and well worth the listen.
Click the arrow and Enjoy!
Merchant Mariners part of Haitian relief effort
Some 65 merchant mariners are serving aboard the Naval Hospital Ship USNS Comfort which left Baltimore, MD, 1/16/2010 for Haiti. In addition to the Civil Servant Mariners, the Comfort is staffed with up to 1,215 medical staff dispatched to provide aide to the January 12th earthquake victims.The Comfort and her sister ship USNS Mercy, have 12 fully-equipped operating rooms and 1,000 hospital beds. These floating medical facilities are also equipped with the latest high-tech diagnostics. Both can board patients from the air via helicopters or from the water through side ports. Although no helicopters are permanently assigned to them, they do have helicopter platforms and hangers. The helicopters are assigned for specific missions.The Comfort's past missions have included Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. It also provided humanitarian relief for hurricanes Katrina and Rita victims and became a floating aid station for 9-11 ground zero workers. When not activated, the Comfort is in Baltimore, MD and the Mercy is in San Diego, CA. Either can be fully operational within five days. Information and photo provided by the United States Navy
The USNS Comfort is one of two that were built and converted by National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. of San Diego. Originally a San Clemente-class super tankers, the ships are 894 feet (272.6 metric meters) long and 105.6 (32.2 metric meters) at the beam. Fully loaded, they displaces 69,360 tons (70,473.10 metric tons) and can travel 17.5 knots.
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