| | In
1965 when they opened Ship 520 up to kids 11-14 Mark Thorpe invited a bunch of
his school buddies (me included) to join. The top leaders/HS seniors were Jim
Curwood, Grant Thorpe, Stuart Thickman, Luther Thompson, Cliff Ficke, and others
I can't remember. I stayed in until I graduated high school in 1971. Got Eagle
Scout, Quartermaster, 20+ Gold Stars, great memories, student pilots license,
ended up being Boatswain for my last few years, made some great friendships and
found faith in Christ that was the most important lasting impact on my life.
I was fortunate enough to attend the Naval Academy and graduate in 1975 with a
BSEE (couldn't resist the recruiting film propaganda Grant Thorpe would show when
he came home on leave). Mark Thorpe also attended graduating in 1976. Served 7
years active duty as a Surface Warfare Officer plus 15 years in Naval Reserve
Intelligence Program attaining rank of Commander before finishing in 1995.
I live in Vienna VA with my wife, Karen, and have four kids (two in college and
two in high school), I work in wealth management with Smith Barney and am very
plugged in to local school and community activities. My daughter, Erin,
and I have been meaning to dig out the hundreds of old photos I have from Sea
Scouts and my Navy days. Will try to forward some when we scan them. I'm sure
I also have some of the "Sea Scout Logs", kind of a newsletter Dave
Wood published. I'll scan all and forward. Thanks for putting this together. There
are many kids who benefited greatly from the commitment of Dave Wood, Charlie
Berry, Frank Fitch, Bill Curwood, et al, and I am one. Best regards, Mike
Manfredi | |
