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UNITED STATES LST ASSOCIATION
February 22, 2006 The Scuttlebutt has been mailed as of Monday. The post office forgot to pick it up at the publisher on Friday so of course it is late getting to you. Sorry for the problem. The information for the reunion is in this issue. Please get your reservations in as soon as possible. I would like to direct this message to all state chapters. If you have any thoughts of using the national membership list to mail any requests for money or anything except things pertaining to your state do not do it. Our membership list is copyrighted and belongs to the National Association. Anyone that uses it without permission can be charged for using it. Again do not try to mail out from that list if you have it. This falls under the Privacy Act. We have protected your privacy on this issue for years. A letter will be forth coming from the board to all state Chapters concerning this matter. Thanks
February 5, 2006
I have the sad duty to inform our members that one of our board members has passed away. Everyone that came to the reunions knew our elder statesman by Joe. Mr. Joseph E. Sardo III passed away Saturday Feb 4, at 6:30 am. He has been sick for about 4 weeks. He was 92 years young had a great time at the reunions selling his books and talking to the people. He will be sadly missed. If anyone wishes to send a card to his family please send it to Mr. and Mrs. James Sardo 7606 Redwood Ct. Brandywine, Md. 20613. I'm sure it would be appreciated. They have planned a short service with a memorial mass to follow at a later date. Thanks for your thoughts in advance for Joe. Next thing on the list of things to do is as follows. We have chosen NASHVILLE TN. for the 21st Annual National LST Association reunion. It will be held August 31, 2006-September 5, 2006. The information will be in the Jan-Feb issue of the paper. Please send in your reservations as soon as possible so we can plan the activities and the tour company can reserve the buses for the trips. This is very important. I'm sorry this is later than usual but we had a few things that had to be considered before we could make the choice. One thing was to make sure we had enough things to keep you busy and the hotel was close to all the things that you might want to do. I think everyone will be pleased. If you have never been to Nashville then please give us a try and enjoy the good southern hospitality they are promising to have. If some of you want to know why we did not go to Evansville I will tell you that I felt there wasn't enough to do for the group and one of the hotels was 10 blocks away from the ship and we would need buses to transport you back and forth. With planning the reunions for as many years as I have I have to look out for all of the people and what they like to do and see. I think that Nashville is a better place at this time. If some of you wish to go see the ship that is your decision. We are not planning a reunion just for the LST-325 I've tried that 3 years in a row and we couldn't seem to connect. If any of you have questions please don't hesitate to call. Dues notices have gone out and if you did not renew your dues as of August 2005 this will be your last Scuttlebutt. The rules state 3 months grace and that is long over due. If you receive a notice and think it was in error please let me know. Thanks and hope to hear from you in the near future. Please keep me informed if your address changes so I can correct it. Also another thing in the progress report on the LST-325 web site, Capt. Jornlin stated that we have refused to put any stories in about the LST-325 that is a LIE and we do not take kindly to it. Mr. Robert Busch is the editor and states that he has not had any stories to put in the paper in quite a while. In the last issue a story was put in by others. Don't believe everything you read and hear, there is always two-sides to every story. We have told people to write their stories but don't write a book. Also it was stated that putting advertisements would be published in two papers but not everything they sell. Also requests for donations will not be placed in the Scuttlebutt, that was a Board of Director decision some time ago. The board has sent a letter to Mr. Frank Earley concerning a meeting with the LST-325 and it was decided by the board that they did not wish to have a joint meeting with the LST-325. They stated they do not have any differences with the ship and wish them well in their venture We will continue to verbally support the ship and tell people about it if they ask. Put stories in the paper or what is necessary to keep our members informed. Hope this will stop this so called problem some of the people think we have. Thanks Linda Gunjak
November 25, 2005 The new dues notices for December 2005 will be going out on Monday for the people that are due in December. The by-laws were changed with the necessary two written readings. With the increase it will help to continue the same quality that we have had in the past in the paper. If you have any comments please don't hesitate to write or call. Also we have had some people state that the state chapters, which we as the National do not have any jurisdiction over have some questions about how to solve any problems that the national has with the LST-325. Again I want to state we do not have any questions about the LST-325. They do their own business and we were told to keep our nose out of it so that is what we have always done. The National Association does not tell them how to spend their money or make decisions concerning other things. State chapters are run the same way. We have never told the various state chapters how to run their group or ask for money from them. Again if you wish to ask any questions please don't talk behind the National's back and get something started that doesn't exist. The President of the Mass Chapter Mr. Frank Earley called the other day asking questions and he was referred to the Board Chairman. He stated he would call Mr. Jornlin and request the National be put back on the Web Site so it could see what current items could be told to people that call about the ship. After a few hours Linda was able to see the web site but received a note from Mr. Jornlin with provisions that we must do something for him. If we don't we will be removed again. The things that he wants were discussed at 2 board meetings over a year ago and were answered then. I guess we have a cat and mouse game again. I have the e-mail if anyone wants to see it. Please understand we have not refused to place items about the ship in the paper only one time and that was because we had not heard from them in a month or so and the paper was ready to go to press. We have not received any stories except the ones that were in the last issue of the Scuttlebutt. Thanks for your interest in this matter. Mike Gunjak, President
The Sept-Oct 2005 Scuttlebutt has only one section this issue. We need stories from new members and others. Remember it is your paper and we do print what you would like to see if it is available. Looking for the new site for the reunion. We will be making a choice very soon. Thanks A new by-law will be going into affect as of December 1, 2005. Dues will be going to $19.00 per year this is the first increase in 10 years and it is because of a projected postal increase this year of 2 cents and again next year 2007 of 2 cents. We hope this will not hurt to many people's budget. It averages out to about ten cents a month. Thanks
October 14,2005 We are looking for a site for the 2006 reunion. I will select on by December. Please leave a time open next summer to attend the reunion. We did have a good time in Norfolk even if we didn't have a large turnout. Everyone that I have spoke to had a good time. As most of you know the LST-325 is no longer in Mobile Al. It has been transferred to its new home port in Evansville, In. We hope they do well in the new location. Questions can be sent to their web page at www.lstmemorial.org. The association does not have a rift with them. They told us to stay out of their business but we still will tell anyone that wants information about the ship what we know. Thanks Jackie Busch is home from the hospital if any one wants to send her a card. Our former National membership chairman Mr. Robert Garner LST-461 passed away in September. He was a great person and worked his heart out for both the Texas Chapter and the National Association.
May 27, 2005 We would like to wish everyone a good holiday and have a safe one. The association was informed that our former Board Chairman, Mr. Richard Willstatter passed away yesterday. He lived in Rye NY. Richard was always a person we could go to for advice and if he didn't have the answer he would get it for us. We would like to express our sympathy to Trudy and the family. If anyone would like to send a card please send to Trudy Willstatter 200 Mamaroneck Ave. Suite 403 White Plains New York 10601. The services will be at Gallagher's Funeral Home 31 Arch Street Greenwich CT. On a lighter note the LST-325 has docked in Alexandria Va. for a 4 day stay. It will continue on to the Boston area on May 31 to the Maritime Museum in Boston. If you have not sent in your reservations for the convention as of yet please do so. I am going to cut the block of rooms at the overflow hotel this week. Don't hesitate making your plans. Thanks Linda
Jan 7, 2005 The new year is starting off with a bang and we hope everyone had a great time welcoming it in. We are getting many reservations for the upcoming reunion in Norfolk, Va., we already have over 150 this early in the year. Please get yours in so you will be in the headquarter hotel. A special board meeting is being called for the end of the month to get some very important issues settled once and for all. Some things need to be clarified and correct answers given out to the membership. Some of you have probably noticed that a message has been placed on the our quick link to the 325 at the top of this page. We have been requested not to publish or copy anything from their web site. We did not realize they didn't want our people to know what they are doing. I was told to remove any information about the LST-325 that was copied from their web page from the time they returned to the states and on. Up until that time all the information was mine and I will not remove that part. I have complied with what they wanted. I am sorry if this has caused any inconvenience. All updates that were given to the Scuttlebutt except for information for the Jan-Feb 2004 issue has always been put in. More information on the LST-325 has been published in the Scuttlebutt than any other vessel. The updates for the Nov-Dec 2004 issue did not get to the editor in time for the deadline of the paper. If you have questions please call Mr. Robert Busch. Thanks Linda
Nov 8, 2004 We have already started to get reservations in for the 20th Annual Reunion. We will number and date them so everyone that wants to come has a fair chance at the headquarter hotel. Don't wait to long because when the 350 rooms are gone the overflow hotel will be used. We will have a more information later but for now that is all I have. If you did not receive your Sept-Oct paper let me know. Thanks Linda October 26, 2004
The Scuttlebutt was mailed from Toledo, Oh. on October 20th. we think. We have no idea why it has taken this long to get to you. I have called the Post Office but have not gotten any answers. It was ready to be picked up on the 15th but they forgot it until the 19tth. Here in Toledo we finally received our copy on Oct 25th. Sorry for any problems this has caused. Remember to send in your reservations as soon as possible. This will help to insure you staying in the headquarter hotel. Every thing is in place for the reunion the tours and etc. I think everyone will have a great time. Linda
NEW INFORMATION ON WHERE THE 2005 REUNION WILL BE HELD. WE HOPE YOU WILL BE PLEASED. MESSAGE FROM LINDA GUNJAK Hope every one had a nice summer and are getting ready
to rake leaves close the pools and get ready for winter except those of you that
go to your winter homes. I want to
express our sincere concern for those that lost things in the various storms
that struck our great state of Florida and up and down the East Coast.
Mike and I watched the weather station and prayed that none of you were
involved or injured during these terrible storms. I want to tell you we have chosen the city for the 20th
Anniversary of the United States LST reunion.
It will be
Norfolk Va. We
plan to have the best and grandest party we have ever had. It
is very special to our association. Send
them in ASAP. The reservations forms will be in the SET-Oct issue of the
paper. We are putting them out 2 months early this year. I tried to
get the dates close to the time the LST-325 will be touring the East Coast next
year but they did not have anything in the month of June.
At this time I think they want to be back in Mobile by July 1st
so it was impossible to match up the dates.
Maybe it will happen some other time. The dates will be AUGUST 19---25, 2005.
I hope this will be a good time for you.
Remember you can come and stay as long as you want.
Lots to do and see. I will
have plenty of ideas for you to see. The
tour company will have them available soon.
May 26, 2004 I want to report to our membership on a very important matter. The LST-325 will not go up the East Coast this year. Due to the repairs that were needed to make a safe voyage the Captain has decided to postpone it for one year. I will post the letter on the information page of the LST-325 that we have on our web site. If anyone would like to attend the reunion in Philadelphia and was planning on going to one of the ports of call that the ship was making and would like to come to the reunion in July I have rooms available and if we need more I'm sure we can do that also. The Association is sorry they can't make their trip. I'm sure that many people are very disappointed at this time. I was in Mobile last Friday to meet with a couple of people and went down to see the ship and it looked great. I wasn't able to get on board because it was at a bad time of the day. I had made the trip to go to my grandson's graduation in Gulfport, MS. Thought I could see her before it left for the cruise. Please try to come to Philly if it is at all possible. We still have time to make reservations with the hotel. Call me if you need any forms. Remember everything is in the last issue of the Scuttlebutt. Thanks Linda Gunjak
March 22, 2004
Sorry it has been so long since the last update. We are getting a good response to the reservations for the reunion. It looks as if we will have a good turn out. As the group gets older they seem to take their time deciding when they will do things. I guess that goes with the territory. One update that I am sorry to report is that the LST-325 won't be in Philadelphia as was stated by the ship when they were in Dallas. We have not had any updates from them except what I pull off of their web site. I haven't the slightest idea why the communications have broken off. I understand the ship has not gone into dry dock as of this date. They say April 5, 2004. For further information please contact them directly. 1-251-452-3255 or go to the web page www.lstmemorial.org. Thanks Linda January 15, 2004
I have been receiving quite a lot of reservations for the reunion in July. That is really a good thing. We have doubled the amount received at this time last year. I did find a mistake on the reservation form. The Banquet was stated as being held on Sunday. That is not the case. The date was correct. July 21, 2004 but the day of the week is Wednesday. Most everyone caught my error. It will be corrected in the next issue of the Scuttlebutt. If you are planning on going on either the New York City Tour or going to Washington DC please don't wait until the last minute to make your mind up. This would be a good time for those of you that are coming as a group to go and see the new Washington World War Memorial together. This was what it was planned for and I hope some of you take advantage of it. If you have any questions concerning these two trips please don't hesitate to call the tour company. All money and forms for the trips go to them directly. Don't send the form to me I just have to send it to Showcase it delays your reservations. I think this will be a great reunion and we will have a good time as usual. Talk to you later Linda
November 23, 2003 I would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. We have been having some problems with the computer and it needed to be repaired. This happened just after the last message I placed on the web page. Since then a few other things have happened that I did not expect. After we returned from Philadelphia everything just caught up with me and I ended up in the hospital with very high blood pressure problems. I thought I was going in for a appointment and 2 hours later I was in the ER. I have never had something come on me so fast. I am getting better and the doctor has assured me that everything will be ok. Enough of that. We are getting the registration materials together for the Scuttlebutt. Please send you reservations in ASAP when you receive them. We have enough rooms but I have a 2nd hotel just in case. We will have tours set up for you to go on. At this time I have requested a tour to Washington, DC and a one day trip to New York City. This will be a all day affair so plan accordingly. This is very important for those of you that want to see the WW II Memorial while you are in Philadelphia. I think all of you will like the hotel we have chosen. The dates are JULY 16--22, 2004. They are earlier so don't hesitate making your reservations as soon as you receive the paper. Also remember anyone can come but they must do it through me to get the rate at the hotel. All I need is their names and addresses so I can mail them the information. I am sorry some of your requests for lists, patches and information were put on hold but nothing could be done. I hope this doesn't happen again. Have nice Holiday.
OCTOBER 11, 2003 Mike and I have just returned from Philadelphia, Pa from the site inspection we told those of you that were in Dallas. We are happy to say we have signed a contract with the Adam's Mark Hotel in Philadelphia for the 19th annual reunion of the United States LST Association. As most of you know we have tried to meet the dates the ship might be up the east coast. We had to get the best dates that were available. You can't walk into a hotel and tell them when you want them at such a late date. The dates we have chosen are sooner than we normally have so we hope you will not be upset with this. The dates are as follows July 17 -22 2004. The banquet will be on JULY 21, 2004. Let's have a big turnout. This is a different date pattern than usual but we did the best we could. We hope the LST-325 will try to be there, if not I guess we will have to go on with the program. We would like you to plan to come to Philly and enjoy the city and everything else we have always tried to do. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to call or write. Remember you can bring your friends they don't have to be members of the association to attend. I just need to know their names and addresses to send them the information. Reservations can only be done through me here at the office. The hotel will not take reservations over the phone so make sure you get the official forms out of the Scuttlebutt or by calling me for them. We are also pleased to announce that we were relieved of the attrition clause that was in the contract from the Adams Mark in Dallas. We did not meet our room block so they could have held us to a great deal of money. We are very happy about that. We thank the people from the Adams Mark Hotels for this consideration. We are very grateful. Thanks The final information will be in the Nov-Dec issue of the Scuttlebutt with the reservation forms and I hope any tours that will be planned for you to take if you wish. There is a lot to see and do. I hope you will come this year and make the reunion a big success. I will put more out as soon as it will be available. Talk to you soon Mike and Linda September 29, 2003 I would like to thank all of the people that came to the reunion in Dallas. We had a good time and it was a very good reunion. The one's that did attend had a great time the food and entertainment was very good. We hope to have next year's city and dates in the next issue of the paper. At this time we are looking at Philadelphia, Pa. The dates will be earlier than we usually have the reunion. We hope you will attend and enjoy the good time. To those of you that would like to know I did have my eye surgery and it is getting better at this time. It takes a while to get all of the nerve endings in the right spot as many of you that have had eye problems know. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers. I will try to update you on the reunion as soon as we return from Philly. Also we do have 2 new board members Mr. Walter Witthotz of Auburndale, Fl. LST-560 and Mr. Floyd Stewart, LST-828 a incumbent. Thanks again Linda The LST 325 has not updated their web page for a while but I'm sure it is coming. Jim Anderson has been very busy and he will do it as soon as possible. Aug 5, 2003 Jim Anderson is back and will update the LST-325 web site again. Please check out the paper that will be coming out next week. Those of you that have signed up for the reunion I will be sending out the pamphlet for all the necessary information. Also I will be sending out last notices for April and May for people that have not paid your dues. This issue of the Scuttlebutt will be your last one until the dues are paid. Sorry but that is how it has to be. You have a 3 month grace period and that will be ending soon. Please send in your money ASAP. Thanks Linda Aug 1, 2003 I have posted a new sit report from Bill Kaupas on the link at the tope of the page for Jim. He is taking a few days vacation and I told him I would put the information on ours. The reunion is coming up soon. The hotel has told me that they will not cut me off from taking room reservations. Please don't hesitate coming to the reunion. The brochure will be mailed out next week to all of those that have registered for the reunion. It will have the necessary information about the hotel and etc. Questions please call. Thanks Linda
July 19, 2003 The reunion in Dallas is just around the corner and I'm sure everyone will have a good time. One thing I would like to stress is, if you are planning to attend I need your reservations now. We are not having the turnout as usual because of the many things going on. The LST-325 cruise has taken some of the people there so they aren't coming to the National Reunion. That is great but we need to meet our obligations with the hotels and is a necessity to ask you to make your plans now. This could be very costly if we don't come close to the room block. Please consider coming to reunion. When you were sent your confirmations from the hotel some of them were entered into their computers in error. All problems have been taken care of. If you are not sure of your accommodations please don't hesitate to call me and I will check it out. Also please remember if your have to cancel your plans you must do it with me not the hotel. If I don't know about it we will assume you will be there and your money may not be able to be refunded. The cruise up the Mississippi River for the LST-325 has been very successful for them and has brought many of you a lot of memories. They have worked very long hours and have had a wonderful time doing it. I will be sending out a brochure for the attendees at the reunion. Please bring it with you so you will be able to follow the act ivies. Again please be patient and everything will work out. Thanks Linda
June 21, 2003 Check the link to the LST-325 at the top of the page. We try to update it as we get the messages. The Scuttlebutt has been mailed for May-June. Remember to get your reservations in for the reunion time is getting short. June 17, 2003 I have tried to update the page on a regular basis and continue to update the LST-325 page. It has been a very important job. We have been getting the reunion together and the paper and sending out the membership dues to keep everything up to date. The Scuttlebutt will be going out this week. Those of you that have received 2nd notices of dues will be receiving your final notice this week also. This means if you have not paid you dues for March or April this will be your last Scuttlebutt until your dues are paid. If you wish to continue please return the envelope I have enclosed. The JULY dues have been sent out. Please return them to avoid any additional mailings. If you do not wish to continue your membership please have the courtesy to let us know. We appreciate your membership. The reunion is coming but not as many as before. To many things have stopped reservation from coming in. Please don't think we are backing off because of the things that have been happening. That is exactly what the trouble makers want us to do. Please get your reservations in now if you are going to come. Time is getting short and I hope to see all of you soon. Those of you that have already made your reservations and would like to fly into Dallas, those of you using SOUTHWEST AIRLINES WILL LAND AT LOVE FIELD. Anything else flies into DALLAS-FT. WORTH AIRPORT. Shuttle service will be available to purchase at the both airports. I will have the necessary information in the brochure you will be receiving in August. Mike and Linda
April 27, 2003 All the dues cards for March have been sent out and if you received a final notice you will not receive and more papers. If you wish to reup your membership you have really not missed any papers because you were sent the Mar-Apr issue but this one is your last. Hope I haven't confused anyone. I received a e-mail from a gentleman asking if the LST-325 was going to charge admission to the ship when it cruises up the river this summer. To me this isn't even a question. How else is the ship to move without fuel or pilots. If you go on board any other Memorial ship you have to pay a admission price. This is only a normal thing. Our United States LST Members helped bring the LST-325 back from Greece and crewed it besides if it was not from you with your donations and the crew's determination it would have never made it. Let's support that ship. The Blue Crew have worked very hard to get the vessel in shape for this display. Let's not dicker over a few dollars to see our Work Horse back in action. Sorry if I sound disturbed but I am. Let's not forget your buddies. Go see the ship this summer if you can. Thanks Linda
April 8, 2003 It has been a long winter and it seems to be still here for our area of the country. We had snow on Monday and it is still cold. The reunion is still on and we hope more people will send in there reservations as soon as they can. We know it is a unsure time but we have to continue on with our lives and keep the plans for the future on the same route that we did when 9-11 happened. We didn't give up then and will not do it now. The Scuttlebutt has the tours posted for the Dallas reunion. Please contact them with your reservations. If any one wants to attend and are not members please contact me and I will send you a information form. The LST-325 is planning a cruise up the Mississippi this year. We are trying to get the final destinations and will post them when they are available. Please be patient. I will try to update the web site as information becomes available. Thanks Linda
December 31, 2002
We have sent out all of the November dues cards and most of December's. Late notices have also been mailed. If you receive a notice stating you have received your last newsletter and you still want to continue with your Scuttlebutt please fill out your check and mail it back in the envelope you received. The paper is very slow in delivery for some reason. As of today we live right across town and have not gotten ours. It was mailed out on December 20th. Please be patient we can't figure out what is taking the post office so long. They deliver when they want to. To bad we spend so much on postage. The reunion registrations have started coming in so get yours in to me also. Have a great New Year and we will update you with any other information as it comes available. Linda
December 10, 2002 We are getting the reunion information ready for the Nov-Dec issue of the Scuttlebutt. It will probably be mailed around the 17th of December. It is being held up do to people moving from the north to the south during that time. Sorry for the delay. Remember to change your addresses if you are moving for the winter. I have started sending out last notices to people that are behind in their dues. Please let me know if you are staying or leaving the organization. It is very expensive to continue mailing out the paper and reminder notices. Thanks for your cooperation. Any questions please contact me and I will try to answer them. Happy Holidays Mike and Linda
November 29, 2002 I would like to apologize for not updating this before but have been busy and the information about the ship has been placed by others. We will have a update by the LST 393 this month also. The registration information for the convention in Dallas will be placed in the Scuttlebutt Nov-Dec issue. If someone that does not receive the paper would like the necessary information please contact me and I will send you every thing you need to know. We are getting the tours together and those will be offered also. The dates for the reunion will be August 26, to September 1, 2003. You can stay as long of as wish. It is not a requirement to stay the entire I time. I have sent out final dues notices to the June and July people if you have not renewed you will be dropped from the membership. Please let me know if the member is still alive or have passed away. It is very expensive to continue to send the paper and all the people do is throw it away if they do not want it anymore. Please help us out with this problem. I will update you with other information as soon as it is available. Thanks again for your support and lets keep the association going as before.
September 13, 2002 Well the reunion is over and the next one is on the way. We had a great time in St. Louis, and we are looking forward to Dallas. I think it will be a great place. Maybe a little warm but we will survive. The dates are August 26-September 1, 2003. All information will be in the Nov-Dec. issue of the Scuttlebutt. Please keep those dates open and plan to attend. Linda will have a message in the paper and the winners of the door prizes. We have new board members ready to serve and continue to do their best. The meeting was very well attended and it was done by the book. No interruptions or loud talking it was very professional. The Officers remained the same as no one from the board wanted to run for any of the offices. The Board of Directors did get one new member. Mr. Bernard Case will join the board on January 1, 2003. The official results are as follows. Mr. Robert Bridgeman received 178 votes 3 year Jan
1,2003-Dec 31,2005 I would like to thank all of the men that run for offices. Next year we will be voting again so think about running for the office I would like to thank Mr. Melvin Barger who did not run again for all of his help. He wrote the books LARGE SLOW TARGET Vol 1,2,3,4. He was one of the founding members of the United States LST Association. Thanks for all of your help. Our banquet was very good and the speaker for the first time was a woman named Anna Koepp. Her Dad was a former LST Sailor from the LST-352. She had a great story to tell and the people enjoyed it very much. Linda surprised us with entertainment that we have never had before and it was very well received. We had a group of Irish Dancers from St. Louis and they were great. The kids were from 7 years and up. The kids needed a new sound system and I am proud to say our group gave over 1700 Dollars toward their goal. I would like to thank each and every one of you for your generosity. They will have a story and pictures in the next issue of the Scuttlebutt. Our reunion was smaller but we had a great time. We still had 900 people and they did have a good time. I hope more will come to Dallas. The Hotel will be the Adams Mark. The rate will be posted with the information. It isn't higher than St. Louis. I want to tell you, I will make the association proud when I attend the decommissioning of the LST 1184, USS Frederick. I am very honored to represent each and every one of you at this historic event. Sometimes it is hard for a regular sailor to rub elbows with officers but I hope you have faith in me to do the job correctly. Please say a prayer for our last LST in active service. Our previous LST ships did a job and our men did their best to serve their country. Remember this is the last active duty LST in the Navy. I will try to get a flag flown over the ship to return with Linda and myself. It will be placed in a museum for future generations. Remember the date is OCT 5,2003 at 10:00 am. in Pearl Harbor, Hi. We have contacted a few members that live and Hawaii and will see them there. If anyone else would like a invitation please let me know. Thank again. I will have a report in the next issue. Mike Gunjak, President
August 7,2002 The itinerary for the reunion is posted on the reunion page. Please click above and read what you will be missing at the reunion. I will update again soon. Thanks Linda July 25,2002 We are getting the Scuttlebutt ready for the July Aug issue. We hope to have it ready and mailed before the reunion. More information to follow. The time is getting close for the reunion. We have about 1,000 people coming this year. We are smaller this year because more of the shipmates are having their reunion in either Mobile or Muskegon. That is great. They need to see the ships and we were hoping the LST-325 was going to be in St. Louis but the timing was not right. We didn't have a ship for 16 years so we will go on as before and have a great time. You will be receiving a brochure about the middle of August. It will be going to all attendees. It should help you with directions and itinerary of the events that will happen. All tour tickets will be at the Adams Mark and will be picked up at there tour desk. All registration tickets will also be in the Adams Mark. I will continue to update you as things come up. Remember if you have to cancel you must contact me in writing to get your money back less a cancellation fee of 25.00 back. If you wait until after August 7, 2002 your refund will take longer. I will no longer have control of refunds. This will be a problem so please make your decision soon. The Memorial service will be in the Adams Mark. It will be more
comfortable for you and more will be able to attend. It will be on Sunday
morning at 9:30am. July 6, 2002
I have received a few more requests from members to attend the decommissioning of the LST-1184. If you want to attend please let me know as soon as possible. They made the last trip back to the mainland in June. We have received a story that will be printed in the next issue. They went to Portland, Or. If any people from Portland have pictures of maybe a newspaper story please let us know. We will be publishing the by-laws in the paper again. I hope those of you that didn't get them will be able to save them. Any members that would like to run for the board please send in your bio's for the next issue of the Scuttlebutt. We can't believe that out of 9800 members we can't get a few more candidates. Consider running please. May 1, 2002 We have gotten a few names requesting an invitation to the decommissioning of the LST-1184. If you want to attend or a invitation to keep as a remembrance please send your name and address to United States LST Association and we will pass them on to the proper person. This invitation will get you on the base to witness the decommissioning on October 5, 2002. If you have other questions please write to us at the following address. United States LST Association PO Box 167438 Oregon, Oh. 43616-7438. The reunion is progressing as expected and you will get your confirmation in the next few weeks. If you received your canceled check back or a credit card charge I have received your reservations and you are in the Adams Mark in St Louis. Sorry for any problems this might have caused. Linda
April 16, 2002 Some information was posted on the LST Discussion page that stated that if you wish to attend the decommissioning of the LST-1184 to contact Mike Gunjak for information. If you wish to go to Hawaii in October please write to association headquarters for the information. We will forward your name to the proper people to get the invitation to go. We have been in contact and to get all of the proper information out for the event. We, as the association can not plan your trip,hotels make air line reservations this takes a group that has lots of people to do this type of work. We are not a travel agent but will assist you with the proper information. We hope no problems have been created. The Scuttlebutt for Mar-Apr has been mailed. You should receive it next week. We tried to change all of the Winter-Summer addresses. If you did not send in your change last fall you might not get the paper. Let's hope you did and told us when you would be coming home from the south. The reunion is coming along fine and we are planning the 2004. The next issue will have the city and dates. We hope everyone will be pleased. Of course you can't please everybody. Thanks Linda
March 14, 2002 The new year is already 3 months old. The Jan-Feb Scuttlebutt has
been mailed and a new one is under way. We have had a lower amount of
returns since the updated letters on your Sum-Wnt addresses. Most of the
problems are arising from the people that forget to inform us that they have
just moved across town. The post office will not forward 2nd class mail
unless you have a agreement to pay the forwarding cost. Please let us know
if you move, we want everyone to receive their Scuttlebutt. Our reunion is doing well. Reservation post cards will be sent out within the next 2 weeks. You will receive a confirmation from me and the hotel. Everything is going along great. If you are planning to go on some tours please send them the form directly. The address is in the Scuttlebutt and is to mailed directly to Destination St. Louis. You will receive a brochure near the reunion with all the directions and a list of things that are planned. You will be kept up to date also in the Scuttlebutt. I had a question that needs to answered. It has been answered in the
past so here goes. The United States LST Association was started in 1985
by 5 men. At that time when the Articles of Incorporation were made up it
was to be a LST only membership. Mr. Kinney never imagined that the group
would be so big. This meant Coast Guard and Navy. It was submitted
to State of Ohio and the Government that it would have that type of
vessel. (LST'S) In 1992 at a board meeting it was talked
about to include all Amphibious Vessels and the Board decided to keep it just a
LST Association because other groups had started and had their own
Associations. It was voted to stay just for LST's crew members. It
also was made very clear if any other type of ship asked for an application,
that they were told that our membership was mainly LST people and that if you
understood that you might not find your shipmates they were sent a
application. It was their decision to join if they wished. One
one was refused if they paid the 18.00 dollars per year. The election will be held at the Convention. We need people to run for (4) spots for the Board. Two people to run for a 2 year term and Two people to run for a 3 year term. This is a very important item. The Officers and Board would like to have more input from you as members. Please think about running for the open offices. The form is in the Scuttlebutt and requirements that are needed. It is not a hard job and the only meetings that they have is one in Toledo, Oh. in May and the one that is held at the reunion. Please consider throwing your name in the ring. As most of you know the reason the Men's Business Meeting was not held was
because a quorum was not in attendance for a meeting. The rule is that 30%
of the registered members at the convention must be in attendance at the
meeting. That did not happen, so the by-law rules were followed. It
is going to be brought up at the next board meeting in May to change the
percentage to 20%. If you don't want to attend it is not a requirement but
it sure would be nice if you did. It only takes a few hours out of your
morning. The rest is play time. We hope some of you read Mike's letter in the Scuttlebutt concerning some
of the questions that people have asked. We hope most of them were
answered. It is tough to keep everyone happy. The association
Officers and Board try to keep everyone up to date. If you have anything
that needs attention PLEASE send a letter to the board. All the names and
addresses are printed on page three of the paper. If you e-mail to the
Office that doesn't always work. I think only two people have
computers. This is why you must send your requests by mail. It only
costs 34 cents. Thanks Linda
January 18, 2002
The reunion reservations are coming in every day. Please send yours in as soon as possible. We are getting new members on a daily basis also. We are very pleased that we still are growing instead of losing members. We know that is hard to do at this time in our lives. Our purpose is to get the former sailors together for a great reunion. If we accomplish that, we feel we have done our job that the association was started for. If any one reads the by-laws that was printed in the July-Aug 2000 issue it explains the purpose of the association. It is not a power struggle or a military state. We want everyone to have fun and enjoy the time they have together. Remember the Association needs Board Members. Please throw your hat in the ring. The forms and the qualifications will be in the next issue of the Scuttlebutt. That will be the Jan-Feb 2002 issue. If anyone has a issue that needs to be addressed please send it to Mr. Nicholas Leonoudakis, Board Chairman. His address is on page 3 of the Scuttlebutt. We encourage your suggestions. Members only please Dues cards up to December have been sent out. Also final notices up to September has been sent also. If you have not sent your dues in for the months before please do so. Also when a member passes away please use the form that is in the paper on page 2. Check is you wish to stop the Scuttlebutt or continue to receive it. Thanks for your help. Linda
December 22, 2001 I am happy to say that a special e-mail address has been established for messages to the Officers and Board of Directors. Please contact the following site and they will be forwarded to the people involved. I hope this helps to solve the problem. lstboard@kmbs.com please state the persons name you wish it to be given to. I have gotten the first reservations to the St. Louis Reunion. I was very surprised when I opened the mail on Friday. The paper was mailed out on the 18th and they arrived on Friday the 21st. Please get your reservations in as soon as possible. Happy a happy holiday season. Remember the dates August 27- September 2, 2002. Remember anyone can come, all you need are the forms to register. Thanks again. Mike and Linda
December 20, 2001 We would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. We are sure you all will try to have a great holiday season and get ready for the coming new year. The Scuttlebutt has been mailed on Tuesday December 18th so please be patient it will be sent to you as soon as possible. All the information for the Convention is on page 14-18. Remember anyone can come and they are welcome. If you need reunion paper work please contact me and I will mail you the form. We sure hope we have covered everything that you will need including the tours. Please don't hesitate in sending in the reservations. Questions please send me a e-mail or write and I will answer your questions. Thanks and have a great Holiday season. I have sent out overdue notices to quite a few people. Those of you that have not paid your dues for May,June,July or Aug. will receive your last issue of the Scuttlebutt with the Nov-Dec. issue. Please send your envelope back and you will receive Jan-Feb. We hate to do this but it is not fair to the other dues paying members. Thanks for your help. Linda November 26, 2001 Update about the LST 325 is on the link. Also the checks for refunds will be sent out by Friday. Sorry it took so long but we had to make sure we had the money to return. Thanks Linda November 24, 2001 I am a little late with Happy Thanksgiving but I have been working on another project and it has finally been completed. Those of you that had to cancel the convention should be receiving a refund check by the end of next week. If you have not send in a letter to me requesting the refund and I have the cancellation from the hotel I can't issue one until I have that information. The auditors require that information as proof of a expenditure. The only charge will be the cancellation fee that was mentioned in your registration form of 25.00 +2.00 for a certified bank check. I want to thank everyone that was so patient. It was a time consuming project to match every form up. I was just glad that you were able to get your money back. We caught some of the expenditures just in time. Hope everyone is happy. If you have questions please let me know. If any of you did not send back the form I sent regarding your Summer-Winter address please let me know. This is very important to you. We use those addresses for mailing purposes. You might not get your Scuttlebutt. I will be working on the reservation forms for the Scuttlebutt issue Nov-Dec. 2001. This will have the Convention forms for next year's reunion. If you want to come please start sending them in. We have 700 rooms and it's all in one hotel at this time. If we need more I want to start looking soon enough to get a hotel close by. Remember the Reunion will be held in St. Louis, Mo. August 26-Sept 2, 2002 at the Adam's Mark Hotel. Rates are 84.00 per night. Hope to see you there. Linda
November 18,2001 I was looking on the discussion page and a crew member of the LST-325 had placed a story that had appeared in the Muskegon Chronicle today. It was a very good story about the LST-393. Mr. Nickerson, wished them well and hoped the LST-325 will do as well. It is nice to see people want to work together for the same thing. Thanks Bill for the tip. Click on the Quick Link above "LST 393" it will take you to the story.
The Return of the LST-325" was on the History channel on November 11, 2001 at 7:00 pm. est. Hope everyone enjoyed the program. Please contact History Channel 888-423-1212 "The Return of the LST-325" shown on Nov. 11, 2001 if you wish to order the video over the phone. You can use the order form on the LST 325 link above if you prefer to send a check. Thanks Linda Gunjak November 12, 2001 We would like to congratulate Linda Alvers and her crew for the most professional video we have seen in a long time. It was truthfully done and it was great. The order form for the tape is on the LST-325 Quick Link above. It would be a great Christmas present. I have received news that it is going to be on again on Friday, November 16, 2001 at 6:00 am EST. Also at 6:00 am in Ca. I will verify the time and date for you. Again it was great. The National Association was very proud that our membership donated their money to bring the LST-325 home. If it was not for our membership being so generous with donations it might not have come home when it did. Again thanks Linda for the great coverage.
November 11,2001 We have a message from Linda Alvers Exec Producer of the "Return of the LST-325" It will be very enjoyable. Click on the link above "LST-325" to get the order form for the tape. Also the crew of the LST-325 is being honored in Mobile Al. on November 12, 2001. We are very proud of them. Say a prayer for all of our departed shipmates on this day. Thanks Mike and Linda Hello Everybody! November 5, 2001 The order form for "The Return of the LST-325 is on the LST-325 Link above please go there for the order form. Hope you like it. The Sept-Oct issue of the Scuttlebutt has been mailed out to you. Sorry it was late but better late than never. You should receive it by Friday or before we hope. "The Return of the LST-325" will be on the History channel on November 11, 2001 at 7:00 pm. est. This is from Linda Alvers directly. Hope everyone enjoys the program. Please contact History Channel 888-423-1212 The Return of the LST-325. We will be getting the reservation forms ready for the Nov-Dec 2001 issue of the Scuttlebutt. If you want people to receive reservations forms and are not members please get in touch with me. No reservations for the reunion will be taken over the phone. You will be pleased with the hotel. It is beautiful. Hope you get the paper soon. Linda
October 19, 2001 The site for next year's reunion has been chosen. It will be in St. Louis, Mo. August 27-September 2, 2002. We will have ONE hotel and that will be the Adam's Mark. The activities will be held in the ballrooms and various other places in the hotel. Hopefully we will only need a few shuttle buses to get you around the local sites. No walking to another hotel. We hope you will be pleased with the choice. It is the flagship of the Adam's Mark chain. A full page ad will appear in the Scuttlebutt this month Sept-Oct issue. Sorry for the delay. The paper was delayed one extra week because we wanted you to know where the next reunion will be. Remember you can come as long as you want and stay 3 days before or after. The necessary registration and hotel reservation forms will be in the Nov-Dec 2001 issue of the Scuttlebutt. Please send them in as soon as you can. We will have 700 rooms. The rate is 84.00 plus tax. This hotel is beautiful. It is right downtown and just across from the Arch. Which is in walking distance We hope you will be pleased. Many tours will be available more on this next issue.
October 16, 2001 We will have the 2002 reunion locked down in the next few days. We will announce it by the end of the week. It will be a good one we guarantee. More information to come. The Scuttlebutt will be one week late arriving so we can put the information in the paper. The History Channel will air the "Return of the LST-325 on Sunday, November 11, 2001 at 18:00 Hrs or 6:00 pm. Hope everyone that is interested will watch. I'm sure a tape will be available to purchase. Hope everyone enjoys the story. We are going to start sending refunds back to our people next week. I have received the information from the hotels. If you have not sent in your letter to me about canceling your reservations please do so ASAP. I need to have the letters to match up to the original ones that I have for the accountants. Thanks for your help in this matter. Linda October 5, 2001 I have had a few inquiries concerning the refunds. If you have not sent in a letter to me with a note stating you had to cancel the reunion. I cannot process them until I have it. The auditors require it for accounting purposes. All bills from the reunion have to be paid before I can send out checks. This is because many of the things that were planned had to be paid in advance because of guarantees. Thanks for waiting, it won't be very long. We will be looking for the 2002 reunion this week. It will be in the next issue of the paper. It is a very important time. The hotels want the business but are still looking at the attendance and etc. Please be patient and you will be able to make your plans soon. The reservation form and all of the necessary items will be in the Nov.-Dec of the paper. The reunion will be held in ONE HOTEL next year. Still don't hesitate to make your reservations when the paper first arrives. I hope this helps with your plans.
September 30, 2001 Hi everyone: We arrived back on Wed. from Mobile and we are happy to report that those of you that came had a good time. It was a sad thing that happened just before the reunion was to begin. We had 1500 at the banquet and about 1850 attending the reunion. The cancellations were not that bad. I will be working on them for at least the next month. We are attempting to retrieve some of the money. Please be patience until we get the bills paid and the figures updated. When we have to put the deposits and guarantees in at least 4 weeks in advance it is tough getting it back but I will try. The hotels have been very cooperative.
If you canceled and did not send me a letter please do so. I need to match up the information so I can see what can be refunded. No tours will not be taken care of by me. You need to contact Bay City Tours. Please be patient. Hope to have more news shortly about the site for 2002. We do have postal cachets from the reunion. If you want any please contact me and I will send it on to Mr. Schreiber. The cost is 2.00 each with a self addressed envelope please. Mike and Linda September 14. 2001 The LST-325 has been moved to it's dockage in front of the Mobile Convention Center. We are very happy they have completed what they started last spring. Everyone is waiting to see how well the "ugly duckling" has become the beautiful " White Swan" we know the men and women that have been working so hard have completed the jobs they volunteered for and we give them a huge PAT ON THE BACK. It could not have happened without your help. The workers never seem to get the credit they deserve. Hope to meet some of you at the reunion next week. Linda Gunjak
NOTICE!!!!!!!!!! 9-11-2001 NOTICE TO ALL CONVENTION ATTENDEES: WE ARE STILL PLANNING ON THE REUNION GOING ON. THIS WILL HELP TO BRING OUR FAMILIES TOGETHER AND PRAY FOR THOSE THAT HAVE NOT MADE IT THROUGH THIS TRAGEDY. WE HOPE ALL OF YOU ARE SAFE AND THAT YOU WILL STILL BE ABLE TO ATTEND. IF YOU CAN NOT PLEASE CALL THE RESPECTIVE HOTELS YOU ARE STAYING AT AND CANCEL YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS. ALSO IF YOU ARE CANCELING PLEASE LET ME KNOW IN WRITING. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. CANCEL YOUR HOTEL FIRST THEN LET US KNOW. WE ARE STILL GOING ON AS OF NOW. Mike and Linda Gunjak
United States LST Association UPDATES FROM THE ASSOCIATION The Convention starts on September 18th-24th. Please come see the ship and attend the reunion. You can still register at the Adams Mark when you arrive. You will have to find your own housing. It is finally all coming together. The Blue Crew has done a great job. The Gold crew has helped a great deal also. See you in Mobile Mike and Linda
August 25, 2001 The ship has been officially taken to dry-dock. Mr. Jornlin will be there today to help oversee the inspection. Hope everything goes as planned. I will try to update any information either on the LST home page or the LST-325 in the middle of our home page. More information will follow soon. Linda August 24, 2001 News from Mobile about the dry-docking of the LST-325. It was moved this morning at 6:30 am to Bender Ship Yard for painting and other repairs. We are very happy to hear they are getting the job done. We have a update from Capt. Jornlin regarding this issue. Remember as long as the ship is in dry-dock you will not be able to board the vessel. They hope the ship will be available to be seen in the first part of September. The ship will be docked at the State docks just north of the Mobile Convention Center. More information will be provided at a later date. We are not taking any more room reservations. We do not have any more at the time. I will be sending out the brochure to the convention attendees in a couple of weeks. Thanks Linda
August 20, 2001 On the dry-docking of the LST-325 a notice has been posted on our site when it will be there and various other information. Please click on LST 325 on the top of the page. It has various pictures also. For those of you that do not have the web page for the ship I will repeat it for you. www.lstmemorial.org please continue to check both sites for updates on our web page also. More information to follow in a few days. Linda August 18, 2001 I haven't updated in a month and some people are upset with me. I'm sorry but with reunion coming up it has been very busy around here. After the reunion is over I will try to do it at least every week. First off I want to tell you the reunion in Mobile, Al. is on a fast track and is coming down to the wire. I will be sending out a booklet giving information about the activities at the reunion. This will only go to the attendees. All attendees should have received your confirmations by now. The only ones that haven't are the late comers. We have doubled checked with the hotels and everything in A-ok. I will include the names, addresses phones numbers of the hotels so anyone can contact you if necessary. I have tried my best to keep the ships together at the various hotels. When the reunion started it was for only 600 rooms. But now it has grown to over 900 and I just signed for one more hotel next to the Holiday I-65. So if you still want to go we do have a few more rooms. They will include free breakfast and parking. The buses will pick up only the people staying at those 2 hotels. Everyone will have light weight place bracelet for identification purposes. This will admit you to the parties in the evening and to ride the shuttle buses back and forth to the hotels and the Alabama,malls and other restaurants. I will have more on this in the booklet that everyone should have by the first of September. If I send it out sooner someone will lose it. Please bring it with you when you come. The Scuttlebutt will be sent out next week, it has some great stories, pictures and other interesting things in it this time. One thing that will disappoint a few people is I have removed them from the roster list do to non payment of dues. We have continued to mail the paper to those people and they have not responded to our notices. We started with the November 2000-April 2001 year to send out the notices. If you received such a letter please let me know ASAP if you still want to belong. Some great things are starting to happen. I'm proud to say that we have a new person helping out with the over 10.500 members we have. Laura Buehrer, my daughter has been working with me for a few months as a part time person. She has been helping me for a long time and has attended quite a few reunions I guess Mom is starting to slow down a little and its time for her to learn what this great association is all about. The LST-325 is going to be on display at the reunion and a recommissioning ceremony will take place on Friday September 21, at the docks. We have a large amount of the original crew that sailed her in World War II attending the reunion. Most all of the crew that returned the ship from Crete will be at the reunion to show off how beautiful it has become. When she returned it was in sad shape but after the "Blue Crew" started doing their thing it really started to look like the ship when it was launched. Sure it needs a coat of paint and spruced up a little bit more but the dedicated men and women that helped with work and gave of there time was surely a improvement. I don't want to leave the "Gold Crew" out either because they were down there helping also. You also needed a person that would help with the planning and talking to the people that wanted to see the ship while it was in Chickasaw. I personally would like to thank Mr. Earl Stone for all of his help. One of the Gold Crew Mr. Jim Bartlett took over for Mr. Stone while he was away for a couple weeks they both put in a lot of hours on the old girl. The LST-393 is also coming along quite well. They have had a Memorial Day Service on board the ship that the officers and board of directors of the United States LST attended. It was well attended and everyone that was there are expecting it will be completed by next year. They have started to finish the cabins and people have chosen to donate money to have their names on the doors of certain cabins. This is a great money raising project. I would hope some of you would help with the restoration of this LST just as some of you have helped with the LST-325. It is just as important as the other one. Please try to call Mr. Robert Morin in Muskegon and volunteer or go look at the LST-393 his number 1-231-755-1230, we need 2 ships that fought at Normandy to make people remember that era in history. They forget to easily. I don't think the kids even study that type of history. Well I know one thing all three of my grandsons know what a LST is and now one of the granddaughters has picked up on it too. They are so involved with this maybe they can go to school for show and tell. The Captain of the LST-325 did attend the ceremony and was co-guest speaker along with Mr. Jack Neidermair, son of the man that designed the LST. Many have said he didn't spend enough time on the design, it should have taken at least another hour or two. I hope to see some of you in Mobile in September and I believe we have chosen the site for the 2002 reunion. It will be announced shortly. Hope everyone will be patient. If any one has comments about the association or my opinions please e-mail me. I don't bite. Linda Gunjak
July 17, 2001 The models of the LST's LCT's, LCVP will be discontinued because the supplier will not be handling them at this time. Please do not place any more orders for the ship models. Sorry for the inconvenience. The reunion is very close to being sold out of rooms. Before any registrations should be sent please check to see if we have any more rooms. Sorry but we can't acquire any more hotel rooms at the time. Linda July 15, 2001 The convention is coming along great. We are getting very close to being full at the hotels. I will be sending out the final confirmations to the hotel within the next week. If any of you have a question or a problem please don't hesitate to call. I know some of you are getting very anxious. We will have a update on the ship. I haven't heard to much lately. Remember they are a separate non profit organization. They make there own decisions. Please be patient. Hope I will have more time to update the web site more often. With the reunion coming it is taking a lot of my time. All attendees will receive a brochure about the convention. It will contain all the necessary information about the convention you will need. Thanks Linda
JUNE 8, 2001 Hi everyone I'm sorry I haven't been on the web updating because we have been so busy here getting the hotel and reunion information done. Please notice that the address for the donation to the LST-325 has changed please read the donation page and send any money to them. Thanks Linda. I will get further information on the reunion this week. The LST-393 had a great Memorial Day service and I am proud to say the Board of Directors were included as guests. I will place a update with pictures in a couple of days. Thanks again Linda Feb. 19,2001 Anyone that has sent a new application for membership they will be mailed tomorrow. We are very pleased to say that over 465 people applied for membership in the United States LST Association. The Scuttlebutt will be mailed this week. Sorry it is so late but we had many stories, pictures and a new mailing program to put into this issue. I will be putting the message that Mr. Jornlin has issued into the web page in the next few days. Order forms for the hats,shirts, and LST models will be on the web page in the next few days. Hope you will order these items. All profit will be going to the USS LST Ship Memorial Inc. Thanks Linda
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