THE SCUTTLEBUTT

Apr. 2010 U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Scuttlebutt Flotilla 12-8, 7th District Charleston, South Carolina Vol. Vol.35, 36,No. No.3-March 4-April 2010 2009
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Flotilla Web Site: http://www.uscgauxcharleston.org

Commanders Corner
Alan J.P. Miles, FC
As we enter the Boating Season, The requests for the services of Flotilla 12-8 have increased dramatically. With all these demands we must remember that one of the most important cornerstones of the Auxiliary is fellowship. Just as there are four cornerstones to any strong foundation, our fellowship is equally important to give us strength. Please join me in rallying support for our fellow members. Remember to take the time to express a kind word or lend support for our members during illness or family sadness. We certainly have plenty of external customers such as the local boaters, event organizers, and the Coast Guard, but how about our internal customers, the fellow members of Flotilla 12-8? As we plan our missions, classes, and meetings, please consider what you can do to support us, the other members. We are always looking for someone willing to bring in a pot of stew, or snacks at a monthly meeting. We also have a need for members to help plan and coordinate fellowship events. We have two important committees that have been commissioned to document our flotilla history and add a little excitement. Wont you step up and lend a hand? Alan J.P. Miles, FC

Vice Commander
Richard Daniel, VFC
April is blossoming into an action packed month for our Flotilla while we have put our dreaded winter behind us. The staff officers winter plans are now bursting with activities for the boating public, our members and the Gold Side. We have seen some of the early season developments with Joe Fleming (OPS) underway with an entire patrol plan for the year. Every coxswain and crew has Joes plan so all anyone has to do is check his schedule and sign on for several patrols. John Sikes (CS) has jumped headlong into our new formatted web site. John has made huge pro(Continued on page 5)

Inside FC ............ 1 VFC .......... 1 CM ........... 3 CS............. 3 FN ............ 6 HR ............ 5 IS .............. 6 MA ........... 6 MS ............ 2 NS............. 9 MT ........... 2 OP ............ 6 PA ............ 7 PB............. 2 PE............. 4 PV ........... 4 SR............. 7 VE ............ 3 Detach ...... 4 Calendar .. 7 Trivia. 8

In Memory of

Sophie Lehner Lovinger

Confidentiality Notice: Telephone numbers and addresses of members are protected by the Privacy Act of 1974. As a matter of policy, rosters of names, addresses and telephone numbers shall not be made available to the general public or any outside organization. Privacy of all rosters shall be safeguarded and the page clearly labeled. The publication of these rosters, addresses, and telephone numbers on any computer on-line service including the Internet is prohibited by the Privacy Act of 1974. The Auxiliary is guided by the current equal opportunities policies of the Commandant of the Coast Guard. No Person shall be subject to

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Member Training
Bob Mathewes, SO-MT
n the fourth Wednesday of March we held an Operations Workshop and TCT Refresher attended by eighteen members. For the benefit of any crew or coxswain qualified members who missed it, flotilla 12-12 will have the same presentations on 12 April at 1900 at the Presbyterian Church on Edisto at 1900. The TCT refresher is mandatory. This month the VE/RBSPV Workshop will be held on the 22nd. at 1900. It seems that most of the training taking currently taking place in flotilla in in the realm of Marine Safety. A second Assistant Pollution Investigator is being conducted and the graduates of the first class are working toward the Assistant Harbor Safety Specialist qualification. Bob Mathewes, SO-MT

Marine Safety
Bob Orenstein, FSO-MS

Publications
Bob Mathewes, FSO-PB

ongratulations to the officers. You have, once again, come through with 100% participation in the Scuttlebutt. I know it isnt easy to come up with something every month and I appreciate your effort and dedication. Your articles are the heart of this publication. Bob Mathewes, FSO-PB

Division Meeting When: 10 April at 1000 Where: Mt. Pleasant Waterworks Come and see what is happening in your Division.

he second Assistant Pollution Investigator Class started on 12 March with seven members of 12 -8 and one from 12-6 in attendance. The second session took place on the 20th and will continue to completion over the next few months. To give a proper perspective to this effort, Gary Barnum has chosen to teach the course in addition to his normal 5 day work week. It behooves us to support him by completing his course(s), so let's keep moving with the flow. On 17 March, Bob Mathewes and I attended the HAZWOPER Refresher Training/ VOSS Overview. On the 18th, we reported to Pier Mike on the old Naval Base and witnessed exactly how and what VOSS meant. It is an acronym for "Vessel of Opportunity Oil Skimming System". There were MER Coasties participating from Sector Charleston, Sector Jacksonville, and the Gulf Strike Team. All together it comprised about fifty people. Equipment arrived in the form of a flatbed tractor trailer with other two containers holding the equipment. The unloading and set up took the entire morning. We saw how the boom and skimmer machinery was assembled which took approximately four hours. Then, through the use of a mobile crane all the gear was loaded on a 130 foot Moran tug which had arrived late morning. The tug got underway about 1300 hours and the Guard proceeded to deploy the outrigger, the pump and boom, The skimmer was started up and everyone on board had a chance to use the controls. We were back at the dock by 1700.
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I think and Bob Mathewes will agree, that the high degree of professionalism that we witnessed together with the very hard work demonstrated by the Coasties illustrated the need for us to "step up to the plate" and learn how to run this equipment too. If there ever is another huge spill, and I'm sure there will be, this is the kind of equipment and techniques that will be applied. Bob Orenstein, FSO-MS

Hastings, SO-CS 12, we have recently been able to utilize these templates to totally redesign our flotilla's website. Although there is still much to do to incorporate some of the pages that we had developed, the site is fully functional and offers links to our division, our district, and national organizations. We encourage everyone to take some time to visit and bookmark the 12-8 website at http:// www.uscgauxcharleston.org. As always, please let us know of any problems and suggestions. John Sikes, FSO-CS

Communications
Dean Creed, FSO-CM
nterested in learning or refreshing and updating your knowledge about radio communications? Interested in helping advance our communications mission? Simply want to find out more about what Auxiliary Communications is all about? Please contact me, as I'd appreciate the chance to answer your questions and help you get involved. You can find out more immediately at www.cgaux.org/ response/Telecom . Dean Creed, FSO-CM

Vessel Examinations
Chris Heironimus, FSO-VE

Communication Services John Sikes, FSO-CS

rom 15 March through 18 March we conducted a VE course at the Citadel for the 12-8 Detachment. We had eight Cadets complete the class and one has already passed the on-line VE test. We anticipate the remainder will be completing the exam soon. We had great participation from the Cadets. We also had one of our very own join the class. Kim Rees was on deck and will be completing her exam at a later date as well. As soon as we can schedule, we will be conducting the qualifying VSCs on the Citadels fleet. Congratulations to Cadet Cody Westall (belated) for completing all requirements to become a VE. We look forward to working more with the Cadets in the future. As a reminder, any VEs conducting VSCs please let me know by the 18th of each month what you have done so that I may prepare a report for District. Chris Heironimus, FSO-VE

Have you done your7029 for Feb.? If not, why not?

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Public Education
Chuck Chirila, FSO-PE
he first ABS course has ended and all fourteen attendees have passed and earned their certificates and DNR education cards. Of these fourteen, eight have expressed an eagerness for the Boating Skills & Seamanship course. There are also four other individuals who have requested this course. So it appears that there will be a class in the very near future. More BS&S manuals have been ordered. Their delivery will determine the course dates. Since past advertisement of the boating class has worked well, the same venues will be utilized again with the PAs assistance. Meanwhile, I would like to thank those Instructors for their expertise and support, and look towards all Instructors support for the BS&S Course. Just a reminder - that there will be an Instructors Workshop on May 26th at 7:00pm at the Brass Buckle. Chuck Chirila, FSO-PE

Citadel Detachment

Partner Visitor
Paul Berka, FSO-PV

he old state regulations have been removed from the displays and replaced with the latest regulations (dated 2009). The section on reporting accidents is the major change in the regs .
Paul Berka, FSO-PV

arm weather, blue skies and Daylight Saving Time has helped excite many cadets that a much needed Spring Break is right around the corner. The seasonal change has awakened us from hibernation and we have been busy catching up with academic classes and Auxiliary training. Cadets Branch, Graham, Sourlis and Knob Crawford were just recently sworn into the Auxiliary and presented their membership certificates by Division Commander Bob Weskerna and Flotilla Commander Alan Miles. Bravo Zulu to knobs Crawford and Battenfield for passing the ABS Class on February 27th and becoming Basically Qualified. The VE workshop hosted by FSO-VE Chris Heironimus March 15th-17th was a huge success. A sincere Thanks goes out to Chris for taking his time and mentoring us on the finer points of VSCs. So far, Cadet Sourlis and Knob Trentowski have passed the on-line exam and just need to complete their practical, Great Job guys! Cadet Master Sergeant Harry C. Westall
Bob Weskerna swears in cadets as Alan Miles stands by. Guess which one is the Knob.

Congratulations to Gary Barnum on his promotion to MSTS2! Bravo Zulu, Gary!

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gress in the last few months but he really needs your review and ideas to make this an outstanding web site for all of us. Chuck Chirila (PE) has completed a Boating Safely Course with lots of active and enthusiastic students. Chuck is now putting together more courses so if you know someone who might be a good student let Chuck know. Boat shows and presentations are popping up everywhere so here is the chance to man a booth and promote Boating Safety. Tom Rigsby (PA) has many, many opportunities for you to stand a booth watch. Contact Tom and get involved. This is a wonderful chance for any of you members not normally seen at our monthly meeting to get involved without committing long periods of time. Come on down and join the PA excitement. Learning and training is at the very heart of our flotilla. Without the training we would never have knowledge and experience to offer the boating public and the Coast Guard. Bob Mathewes (MT) has put together valuable workshops over the next several months. The OPS and TCT were completed in March while RBS and VE workshops are scheduled this month. You gain tremendously as an individual when you take part and complete Bobs training. Check the flotilla calendar and sign on with Bob. The boats are hitting the water with everyone springing out for a Spring and Summer full of water sports. Chris Heironimus (VE) has the 28 April workshop to teach us how to inspect the publics boat. This is a great chance to save lives by making sure our public is properly equipped for their water fun. Being pro-active is far better than being rescued. Come to Chriss workshop and work with the VE team dockside.

Marine Environment Response is mushrooming into a very significant program with the Gold Side. Our own Bob Orenstein (MS) has many of us involved with this aggressive program. Bob has us in the classroom as well as on the water actively involved directly with the Coast Guard. This is your chance to jump in and make a difference in our environmentally sensitive world. Give Bob a call so you can work directly with the Gold Side. You can see for the above highlights we have a huge plate of offerings for you to choose. Everyone wants you for themselves, come on and get involved. Dont let these workshops, activities and flotilla meetings go by. When you do you will meet and really get to know our fellow members personally. The very best experience Flotilla 12-8 has to offer is each other. Through each other we enjoy outstanding fellowship while we promote Boating Safety as we support the Coast Guard. Richard Daniel, VFC

Human Resources
Paul Thomas, FSO-PS

s of March 22, 2010 the flotilla has fifteen new membership applications outstanding, of these, three have tested and, thanks to Bill Riley, two have completed their fingerprint cards. I am still trying to contact three other individuals that have expressed an interest in joining our flotilla. Bills job now brings him to Charleston on Wednesdays and he is willing to do our fingerprints for us on Wednesday night. Please continue to send any contacts to my e-mail address and thank you for your recruiting efforts. Paul Thomas, FSO-HR

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Information Services
Frank Leister, FSO-IS
he email versions of our reports have yet to be published. The solutions for easing the submissions remain the same. Fill out the paper version and mail it to FSO-MT Mathewes. Or, use the free download from Foxit instead of Adobe Reader. Once the report is complete, save it for your records and email it to me at 128fsois@gmail.com . You can also complete and print the report, scan it and mail it as an attachment to me at the above email address. District 7 posted an email form that can be completed and emailed to me. You can get that form from the District 7 Members website. It is clear all of these are less satisfactory than the email forms. Let us hope the "official" email forms soon appear. Please do not send them to both Bob and me. This causes confusion. In any case, it is important that your forms be submitted in spite of this inconvenience. Your qualifications depend on it and the Coast Guard depends on using our activities as posted to justify their operations and budget Frank Leister, FSO-IS

Materials
Tom Beauchemin, FSO-MA

he nice weather has finally broken and as usual it keeps MA busy. At the last meeting we discussed ways to teach children boating and water safety. I have done some research and have others looking as well, but can't find any material for classes designed for young children. If there is any old or new material out and you have or can direct me in the right location please e-mail me. I did learn that the Power Squadron did, at one time, teach children courses. Have a good day and keep your sheets tight. Tom Beauchemin FSO-MA

Operations
Joe Fleming, FSO-OP

Finance
Frank Leister, FSO-FN

o news, when it is financial news is usually good and this time is no exception. The Flotilla is within the budget passed in January given our very "seasonal" spending history. Frank Leister, FSO-FN

n-water Operations are in full swing. We have a full schedule for April. The Blue Angels Air Show will require as many boats on the water as we can provide. Coxswains please let me know what days you can cover on our schedule. All members have a copy of our schedule. The Operations Workshop was our first refresher course along with TCT. If you are operation qualified you must complete a TCT refresher to be qualified for on water operations. Coxswains need to check in with coms. every thirty minutes and you must give Lat./Lon. each time also. No more marker locations will work. This is to help coms keep up with our location. Joe Fleming, FSO-OP

HAPPY EASTER

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Public Affairs
Tom Rigsby, FSO-PA

Secretary Records
Rick Miller, FSO-SR
Flotilla 12-8 Membership Meeting Minutes 10 March 2010 The meeting was called to order at 19:00 by FC Alan Miles and commenced with the Pledge of Allegiance. Members present: Chuck Chirila, Bob Orenstein, Eric Kilpatrick, Richard Daniel, Alan Miles, Rick Miller, Tom Beauchemin, Tom Jerussi, Marguerite Bishop, Kim Rees, Chris Heironimus, Joe Fleming, Bob Mathewes, Bill Riley, Paul Berka, and Tom Rigsby. Visitors and Guests: Steve Jacobs, Robert Woltz, Steve little, Charles Geer and MST3 Gary Barnum. Motion made, seconded and carried to accept the minutes as published in the Scuttlebutt. Program: FC Alan Miles gave instructions on the preparation and submission of forms 7029 and 7030. Members should report all their hours in the beginning of each month for the previous month. VFC Daniel called for Staff Officer Reports: FSO-AV Eric Kilpatrick had nothing to report FSO-PB/MT Bob Mathewes stated that nothing was going on in member training. He has not received any responses for member training topics. He will send a
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n March 27, 12-8 participated in the YMCA Flowertown Festival in Summerville. Specific details about our exhibit are not included in this report because the event took place after the deadline for articles. The YMCA Flowertown Festival ranks as one of the top twenty events in the Southeast according to the Southeast Tourism Society. With an attendance estimated to reach 250,000, this event provides an excellent opportunity to promote boating safety and encourage participation in Auxiliary boating courses and vessel examinations. The Charleston Air Expo scheduled for April 17 has been canceled due to air operations at Joint Base Charleston. On April 17, 12-8 will, however, exhibit at two events. One being the Folly Beach 20th Annual Sea & Sand Festival. The other being the East Coast Canoe & Kayak Festival In its 20th year, the Folly Beach Sea & Sand Festival is expected to attract approximately 20,000 people with an array of artisans, musicians, and food vendors. This family event includes activities for all ages from pony rides, climbing walls, to dancing on the beach. The East Coast Canoe & Kayak Festival, also celebrating its 20th anniversary, will conduct lectures, on-water classes, and demonstrations directed to novice and experienced paddlers. Although attendance is traditionally much lower than the other two events, the festivals participants represent an important and highly active segment of the Charleston area boating community. As always, volunteers will be needed to stand watches at the two events. Tom Rigsby, FSO-PA

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Flash for the refresher training on the 4th Wednesday beginning this month. Everyone got their articles in on time. The deadline for articles is the 25th of the month but Bob would appreciate earlier responses. He has received comments that our Scuttlebutt articles are very good. FSO-PV Paul Berka had nothing to report. FSO-PE Chuck Chirila stated that the ABS class is winding down; we have 14 students for the next BS&S class, 4 for GPS and 4 students for the next navigation class. We need to order books for the BS&S class as we have just 8 on hand. FSO-PA Tom Rigsby stated that our next event on March 27th is the Flowertown Festival and we currently have two watches staffed. We will be in a tent but we dont know the exact location yet. We have three separate events scheduled for April 17th, The Sea and Sand Festival, the Air Expo and the Canoe and Kayak fest on April 16 thru April 18th. Many members have signed up for watches at the Air Expo but currently we have only one member for the Canoe and Kayak festival and no one signed up for the Sea and Sand Festival. Please sign up to help at one of these two festivals. FSO-MS Bob Orenstein stated that there are 7 members signed up for this Saturdays class and students should bring their copy of the PQS to class. FSO-OP/NS Joe Fleming said that we will have our first patrol of 2010 this weekend with Frank Leister as Coxswain. A copy of the calendar with the patrol schedule was sent to all coxswain and crew. The patrol times will change to correspond to the time

the public is on the water. Currently hours are 10am to 4pm but will change to 11am to 5pm or 6pm in the summer. FSO-MA Tom Beauchemin said that he had nothing new to report. FSO-IS/FV Frank Leister was absent but submitted the treasurers report to the FC. Citadel Department Cadet Harry Westall was absent. FSO-PS Paul Thomas submitted a written report read by the VFC stating that he has 15 applications out, tested 3 and is chasing 3 potential members. FSO-CS John Sikes report was given by VFC stating that the Flotilla web page is in progress. FSO-VE Chris Heironimus said that the VE stickers have arrived. He will hold a class for potential VEs next week, on the evenings of March 16-19 at Bond Hall at the Citadel. The class targeted the Citadel knobs but all interested members are welcome. Advise Chris in advance if you are going to perform any VEs on your own as this will insure that you are covered for liability or personal injury. FC Alan Miles reported that at the Division meeting he was advised that the Flotilla fuel budget this year will be half of last years budget. We are picking up more AOR. We will double up on patrols with other flotillas at special events and we will combine training with other flotillas. There will be a change of Command Ceremony at the Base.
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FC Miles read thank you notes from MST3 Jeanette Bouch and MST3 Gary Barnum for the flotillas cash gift to them in recognition of their selection as Sailor of the Quarter and Sailor of the Year respectively. Bill Riley, Chuck Chirila and Joe Fleming will be able to fingerprint potential members after they get their quals back. Barbara Burchfield has taken over as the Division PIO. Old Business: None New Business: Marguerite Bishop reported that the Flotilla History Committee has started their work. The Fellowship portion of tonights meeting is a Chili cook off between Charleston Chili (Marguerite) and Texas Chili (FC Alan Miles). Awards and Presentations: None Motion to adjourn seconded and approved. Meeting adjourned at 20:40. Next meeting is April 10, 2010 at 14:00 in the Recreation Center at Short Stay. Rick Miller FSO-SR

Nautical Trivia
Last months question was to explain how the term three sheets in the wind relates to nautical terminology? Seven people got the correct answer. They explained that a sheet is a line attached to the sail to set the sails position in relation to the wind. If three sheets are loose and flapping in the wind the ship will stagger around like a drunken sailor. The seven correct answers came from Tom Beauchemin, Chuck Chirila, Reggie Hollar, Charlie McCarty, Dick McLaren, John Sikes and Agnes Wright. This was Toms first venture into our Nautical Trivia world. Congratulations to all of them. This months question was suggested by Tom Beauchemin when he played Try to stump the editor. Tom found an item while doing his spring cleaning. He described it as an old painter. In nautical terms, what is a painter? It isn't the sailor hanging over the side with a brush and a can of paint. E-mail Etiquette In the course of our Auxiliary activity we receive numerous mass e-mails. In the majority of cases everyone on the distribution list doesnt need or want to know what your individual reply is Carefully look at who was sent the email before replying. If there are other folks in the CC: field and your response will be necessary for them ALL to know, then hit REPLY ALL. Reply to All should be used with discretion and sparingly as most time your message will not be necessary for all to know. If you need clarification or if your comments are not for ALL, then only email the sender with your questions or comments.

Navigational Services
Joe Fleming, FSO-NS
ith all we currently have on our plate Navigational Services patrols will have to remain on our to do list for a while. Stay tuned for further developments. Joe Fleming, FSO-NS

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April 2010
SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1 4
Easter

2
Good Friday

3 10
Division Meeting

5 12 19 26

6 13 20 27

7 14
New Moon

8 15 22 29
VE & RBS Workshops

9 16 23 30

11 18 25

17 24

21 28
Full Moon

Flotilla Officers
Flotilla Commander Alan Miles bigcid@comcast.net Finance Frank Leister fso128-FN@yahoo.com Flotilla Vice Commander Richard Daniel rbdaniel1829@aol.com Human Resources Paul Thomas paul.thomas@sba.gov Communications Dean Creed dbcreed@comcast.net Information Services Frank Leister 128FSOIS@gmail.com Navigational Services Joe Fleming joeflemingjr@comcast.net Public Education Chuck Chirila cchirila@sc.rr.com Communication Systems John Sikes jsikes@netrockets.com Materials Tom Beauchemin tbeauchemin001@sc.rr.com Operations Joe Fleming joeflemingjr@comcast.net RBS Visitor Paul Berka phberka@comcast.net IPFC Joe Fleming joeflemingjr@comcast.net

Marine Safety Member Training Bob Orenstein Bob Mathewes bandjorenstein@bellsouth.net rhmathewes@comcast.net Public Affairs Tom Rigsby rigsby0039@aol.com Publications Bob Mathewes rhmathewes@comcast.net

Secretary Records Rick Miller rick.mllr@gmail.com

Vessel Examination Chris Heironimus telecomman@aol.com