ALBANY, NEW YORK.
ALBANY QUALITY INN HOTEL
John & Barbara Bye
Hank & Elizabeth Davis Jack & Barbara Hansen Robert & Mary Kline Charles Vonderau
Eddie Capraun
Pat & Harriette Curtis
Carl & Dot Francis
Daniel Fuchs
Norm & Jean Hatt
Larry & Marion Kovacik
Bob & Barbara Johnson
John & Barbara Roulet
Martin Wallace
Michael Preseren & Doris Atkison
Ray Minchak & Jeannie Roulet Minchak
Additional crew members not attending the reunion. Taken by Elizabeth Davis, July 2000.
Ruth Ann & Bill Early
Betty & Jim McNabb
Noreen & Donald Pond
Dorothy & Bob McKnight
Marion & Jack Maloney
Gailey & Bill Fairlee
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The highlight of our trip to Albany was, of course, the visit to the USS Slater DE 766... Fortunately the Slater is the same class Destroyer Escort as the Bangust ... An lot of things were familiar and a number of things were not that familiar....
The torpedo tubes had been removed and several guns had been placed on the fantail in that open area used for showing movies...Some of the crews quarters and head areas were configured differently. A number of features were different but that could be due to the fact that the Slater was not built at the Western Pipe and Steel yard in San Pedro,California as was the Bangust......
In spite of a number of structural differences, it was still a wonderful experience to go aboard and feel rather at home....The Slater people have done a really incredible job of restoration and there is still a lot to be done...
In the years to come, I believe the move of the USS Slater to it's berth in Albany will prove to be quite advantageous. There is a lot of local support for the project and the ship's presence has certainly generated visitor interest and revenue for the city of Albany..
The USS Slater is now the headquarters of the Destoryer-Escort Historical Foundation which hopefully will insure the continuing support and publicity needed to complete the restoration of the Slater to her WWII Configuration and to insure her future as an historical property.
The foundation would welcome any financial support you may wish to give to continue this very worthwhile project and to insure that the invaluable service of Destroyer-Escorts and their crews may not be forgotten...
Our tours of the city of Albany,the State Capitol, and the information center were most enjoyable... The luncheon cruise on Lake George was a nice change. It's always great fun to get old sailors out on the water even if it isn't the Pacific Ocean.
The banquet on the final day not only provided delicious food but gave everyone a chance to get feedback on topics of interest to us all.. . The need for the continuation of the Bangust web page and it's financing were discussed but no definite conclusions were reached... More details will be available on the Internet in the future as options are explored. Your suggestions are most welcome by Webmaster Don Pond .
A certificate of thanks and appreciation, signed by those crew members present, was given to Charles Vonderau for his initial, untiring efforts in making these reunions possible over the past twenty years...
John and Barbara Bye are planning to host the next reunion in St Petersburg Beach, Florida and I urge you to think seriously about making plans to attend... More information will be available as John and Barbara finalize their plans for 2001.
On a more personal note, Barbara and I wish to sincerely thank all of you who made the effort to attend the reunion in Albany... It was a wonderful opportunity to meet friends again and to go aboard the USS Slater. I trust that those of you attending found it worthwhile.
We are looking forward to seeing many of you next year in Florida and send our best wishes for good health and happiness in the coming year...Best Regards ..John
