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(MESSAGE WAS UPDATED 10/11/07) The crewmembers of the USS McMorris DE1036, their wives and friends, welcome you as a reunited shipmate and friend to all. We are pleased that you found us and can now be kept informed of our reunion activities. The reunion group continues to grow as our shipmates locate us on the world wide web at www.ussmcmorris.org. It has now been 12 years since the reunion group became active. We have had five reunions and are about to sail into our sixth reunion in October of 2008. We began the first reunion in Charleston, SC in 1997 (commissioning home for the McMorris in 1960.) The second reunion took us to San Diego, CA in 2000 (the first homeport for the McMorris from 1960-1965). Subsequent reunions have been in Las Vegas, NV in 2002 (home of lost wages), Philadelphia in 2004 (City of Brotherly Love), San Antonio, TX in 2006 (Home of the famous River Walk.) The reunions have all been great successes. Each has brought its own special meaning to everyone who attends, and each has been able to draw a good mix of people from all different time periods. Some of your shipmates haven't missed a reunion. Others discover the magic for the first time. We have a great time together. There is always something going on for everybody, and we look forward to seeing you at our next reunion. See the reunion section of this website for all current details. Let me give you a quick history of this group. The reunion planning stage began in 1995 by Skip Reynolds (BMSN 1st Div 1970-1972) with all of about eight names on a few pieces of paper and vague memories of where some of these people were from. This was just before the age of the world wide web, so lots of long distance phone calls were made to see if that person was who we were looking for. This is the single biggest thing for our shipmates today; wanting to know if we have found their buddy. We no longer do active searches, and rely on our web presence for our shipmates to reach out to us. Note: We do make every attempt to post our reunion notices in publications such as Naval Reserve, Shift Colors, VFW magazines and the like. The catalyst that sparked the reunions for us was the yearly reunions held by the USS Hamul AD20, the "Can Do" Destroyer Tender of WWII fame. Knowing how much fun they were having, the first reunion was planned for the McMorris. Today we have well over 300 shipmates on record. Not everyone has current contact information, but we do our level best to keep up with you. If there is a change in your contact status, a quick note is all it takes to help us stay in touch with you. We do keep a roster of all names and contact data for everyone we know about. Mostly the names are picked up off of the "Guest" book on this website. Lorraine Galbreth at julorgal@yahoo.com is helping to keep our records accurate. You can send your contact information directly to her. We also have designated shipmates who were from your general era that you can contact for information. Your "Liason" is as follows: 1959-1964 James Pike can be reached at 352-518-0075 As you can see, there are many locations to visit, plenty of information to read and pictures to see. There are opportunities for you to contribute to this website. One, please sign the guest book and let other's know you are onboard. Secondly, please provide us with a special moment you may have experienced aboard the McMorris so that it can be included in the "living history" section of the website. Thirdly, if you have pictures of your life aboard the McMorris, please provide them so that they can be included in the pictures section of the website. This is all yours to enjoy. Your input is welcome, and requested. The email addresses that are posted are there because your shipmates want to hear from you. Stay in touch with them and us. Let us know how you are doing and just know that there is an old and a new friend standing by. To help keep up all of our administrative activities and to help us put together the best reunions possible, we ask for a yearly donation of $25.00 from each crew member. Payment can be made by check to the USS McMorris Reunion or to Harvey Reynolds and will be deposited to the general account (for instructions on paying dues click here). Your voluntary contribution is appreciated! Contact us at any time if you have a question. Drop a line, call, or email us and a response will be immediate. Future reunion time periods and locations are selected by majority vote during the general business meeting at the current reunion. However, if you have thoughts or ideas about your special area of the country, we would love to hear about it. Any other thoughts or ideas are graciously accepted. We want your reunion to be the best it can be. With Best Regards, Skip Reynolds
COORDINATOR/NEWSLETTER EDITOR: SKIP
REYNOLDS |
