At 0730 last Friday morning I found myself riding with my brother and his family through the Illinois Street Gate at United States Navy Recruit Training Command. That morning was filled with excitement for all on board. It was homecoming for one old sailor returning to a place where I too had once served. Once … Read more
I got the following in the mail today from Brother David Steindl-Rast, OSB and it arrives at a time of transition for me. Summer is turning to autumn. My daughter has returned to college. I’ve returned from a journey that saw me in Illinois and then southern New York and New Jersey. I visited places … Read more
Division 290 Ship 11 enters Friday Morning at 0900 the Pass in Review ceremony at Great Lakes Recruit Training Command began and after the preliminary review of colors and a short film about life in Boot Camp we got our first look at the graduates. My nephew’s unit, Division 290 Ship 11 was the first … Read more
Thursday of this week will see me traveling to Great Lakes, Illinois. I haven’t been there since February 8, 1973. My nephew is due to Pass in Review. He’s been at Great Lakes Recruit Training Center since late June. Tom signed up on a delayed enlistment plan in January. Since then a young man I … Read more
Today is our daughter’s 21st birthday. Wow! Where did the last twenty-one years go? She came into our lives twenty-one years ago and at least in my case completely revised all of my assumptions about girls and women. She has gone from being cute to beautiful. She has her mother’s charm and beauty and my … Read more
Yesterday was the thirty-fifth anniversary of my father’s death. It’s a day that will always live in my memory. I was serving on active duty in the United States Navy and stationed at the Naval Air Station in Albany, GA. I was working the afternoon shift in the newborn nursery when I was summoned to … Read more
This afternoon I had agreed to drive down to St. Bonaventure University and help a Franciscan friend with a computer I had donated to him. I had configured this Dell Inspiron equipped with Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic with Star Office. Fr. Bob Struzynski, OFM is a very bright man and a wonderful person, but … Read more
301 Hazeltine Today while I was waiting for Diane to finish shopping I used my GPS and found what used to be the United States Naval Reserve Center at 301 Hazeltine Avenue in Jamestown, New York. It was here that I came in June of 1972 to inquire about service in the United States Navy. … Read more
Today I spent part of the afternoon watching my son and several of his friends take part in the Gus Macker Three-on-Three basketball tournament in Jamestown, New York. I’ve been watching Devin play in Macker’s for a number of years. He’s competing in the Top Men’s Division which is the toughest division of the Macker. … Read more
Last week I had the privilege of attending an educational forum in our area. One of the presenters that I heard was the young lady who authors a blog called, Twenty-Five Days. I could not get over the heart and deep presence of the capacity for social justice in a person so young. I felt … Read more
