ashdigger and other Forums friends sent me a rare and beautiful item, a direct connection to my Forums user name. 'digger let me know something was on the way, but I had no idea. It really stopped me cold. After some Forums discussion about US Navy ship lighters, I joked about how my minesweeper, USS Gallant, wouldn't have a lighter because the customer base wasn't big enough (about 70 crew members at once, though perhaps a few thousand over many years). Well, ashdigger has his sources, and other Forums friends chipped in, and wow, I was amazed to receive a USS Gallant crest emblazoned lighter along with a tin of my favorite Mac Barens HH Latakia Flake.
Let me back up and point out that the ship was commissioned in the 1950's, hull built of Washington Spruce (to not attract magnetic mines). I served on it during the Vietnam War in the South China Sea up near the DMZ (so-called demilitarized zone) with a hospital ship and a carrier in Operation Market Time. We did patrol, weather, recon, and some junk chasing. Also some sonar searches for downed C2-A cargo aircraft. Eventually I transferred off, served on Midway Island for a while, Milwaukee recruiting for a few months, then off to school and back to civilian life.
Years later when the first Persian Gulf War started, watching CBS, there was USS Gallant featured, with crew members being interviewed on the outbreak of war. Some time later in the 1990's, the ship was decommissioned, and not long after, sold to Taiwan and renamed for use by their navy. So now I have this rare and beautiful lighter carrying the ship's crest of this historical vessel. Many many thanks for this kind and generous effort to bring this great item my way. It's one of my treasures, all the more for being a long-since afterglow of my good old typhoon rocked USS Gallant! Photos to follow as/if possible.
Let me back up and point out that the ship was commissioned in the 1950's, hull built of Washington Spruce (to not attract magnetic mines). I served on it during the Vietnam War in the South China Sea up near the DMZ (so-called demilitarized zone) with a hospital ship and a carrier in Operation Market Time. We did patrol, weather, recon, and some junk chasing. Also some sonar searches for downed C2-A cargo aircraft. Eventually I transferred off, served on Midway Island for a while, Milwaukee recruiting for a few months, then off to school and back to civilian life.
Years later when the first Persian Gulf War started, watching CBS, there was USS Gallant featured, with crew members being interviewed on the outbreak of war. Some time later in the 1990's, the ship was decommissioned, and not long after, sold to Taiwan and renamed for use by their navy. So now I have this rare and beautiful lighter carrying the ship's crest of this historical vessel. Many many thanks for this kind and generous effort to bring this great item my way. It's one of my treasures, all the more for being a long-since afterglow of my good old typhoon rocked USS Gallant! Photos to follow as/if possible.
