I was in for 14 years...

Now that's a real Seabee! I only wish I could have met and spoken to him. WWII CB's are our heroes!
Would you know what his civilian occupation was? The original CB's were chosen because they had construction skills. The Navy didn't train them like they do today. What ever your civilian skills were became the rate you were assigned. IE: Brick layers, masons, carpenters= Builder Utility (BU). Plumbers, boiler techs= Utilityman (UT). Automotive mechanic (myself)= Construction Mechanic (CM).
Many of the first BU's were of Italian descent with masonry skills mastered in Italy.

 

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Not to hijack the thread, but does anybody else have their ship’s challenge coin? Here is mine,in its velvet box.

 

I considered getting one, but didn't (yet?). Maybe 1oz if offered.
On AD-15 (USS Prairie Destroyer Tender) oldest active duty ship at the time I was on it. Had wooden decks.

 

Out of stock as of right now.

 

When he left the service he was a wildcat oil man. He drilled wells on every corner of the globe.

 

It’s sold out

 

I bought one and got the info that it is one its way. I bought the Air Force 2.5 silver last year, but not the Coast Guard. I plan on getting the U.S.M.C. if available. My father was a corpsman on a sub in the South Pacific during WWII. He was out at sea when I was born in on the Naval Hospital in Hawaii. He was assigned with the Marines during the Korean Conflict. He switched to the Army after Korea and went to school at Fort Bliss, Texas to learn avionics for radar and missiles then to Fort Gordon, Georgia to teach behind a crypto cage for security. He went to Vietnam to keep the helicopters and fixed wind aircraft flying. Got hit by a mortar walking across a helo pad and was medevac'd to Fitzsimmons Army Hospital in Colorado. He was never OK after that. My brother was in the Navy for about 6 years. He was on a ship in some bay on the coast of Vietnam. His ship got hit and he got a piece of it and was also medevac'd home. It's odd that they got hit about a week apart. I was lucky. I did my basic training at Fort Bragg, NC, then AIT at Fort Dix, NJ, then jump school at Fort Benning, GA and then the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg again. Due to the Sullivan Act, I was exempt from combat duty because my father and brother were already over there. They found out that I could type so I was attached to the Army JAG office typing records of trial and latter a court reporter.

 

I got 2 from the pcola (I wanted to show front and back on the shelf lol)

 

A very attractive coin. Navy flyboy Vietnan era. "Here to stay there by choice."

 

I got a U.S Halsey silver coin bought while I was working on her as a contractor.

 

I bought one, too! I think the medal looks great and was surprised that it shipped right away. Retired from the Navy in 1995, served on 5 ships. Any other shellbacks out there?!

 

Congrats on serving 20! Thanks!

 

Army. In 1969 was flown out to the USS Boston 69 to prepare for a fire mission as the aerial observer/spotter. Unique and sorta scary time. It was her last mission and the skipper emptied his meat lockers for us and I gave him an AK-47. Mission went well.
Also spotted rounds from USS Turner Joy up in I Corps 1971
Both missions provided accurate and massive explosions on target. Needless to say I was impressed.
Just received a challenge coin from the Commanding Officer of the USS Idaho.
Thanks again for your service.

 

Yeah yeah, Shellback, order of the rock, Bluenose, Frozen stiff and even a Mossback... (going round the horn is scary poop) I been around almost forgot Order of the Ditch lol

 

Well, I did my burst of 3 in the army and got out, found a better job. Merchant Marine, 35 years, all of it working on ships. Round the world, to all the continents except South Pole. I always kinda wished I had worked on a real US navy ship with all those big guns. That's really the way to go, heavily armed and loaded for bear.

 

Kinda different though when the bears have missiles of their own, or torpedoes, or suicide bombers in rafts...

 

Yeah, it's hell when the deer (or bears) start packing guns too..........

 

Merchant Marine, another one of my woulda, shoulda, coulda's... All the best to ya!