2010 PLANNING NOW --- Early AUGUST - 2010 in NASHVILLE. 2010 - USS O"CALLAHAN REUNION in NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE . The dates are August 4,5,6,7,8, leaving on the 8th which is a Sunday. ( Wednesday through Saturday - Sunday Checkout). This will be a little longer than previous reunions because there is a lot to do and see. The rates are about $ 85 per night including taxes and the location is excellent. Best Western Suites - 201 Music City Circle, Nashville, TN 37214-1220 Reservations at this price by July 1, 2010 Call 888-994-9940 The room includes continental breakfast daily 0630 - 0930 Airport Shuttle is $15 R/T from airport 0800-2000 M-F - call 888-994-9940 Hospitality Room will be open from Wednesday thru Saturday. Drinks and snacks provided by the association. Membership dues for USS O'Callahan Association is $40 every TWO YEARS. Usually members elect to pay the dues at the reunion but feel free to send them in to Joe by mail. Joe Allen also requests prompt return of the postcard confirmations of attendance so he can plan the banquet head count. Or - Email him here: rascal68@centurytel.net Joseph H. Allen - Treasurer and Secretary of the USS O'Callahan Association. If you want to make a longer vacation - come two days ahead of the reunior and/or stay two days after - the rates are the same. The Normal rate is $120 / night plus tax. Near Opryland Hotel, Grand Ole Opry and many other local sites. The hotel is situated a few miles away from the Nashville airport.

Some Special Things to See and Do in Nashville THE HERMITAGE Andrew Jackson's Home Civil War Battlefields ... Nashville (end of the Confederacy) Franklin (The Battle of the Generals) Murphreesboro (Stones River - Begins the big push South to Georgia)

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2008 - HIGHLINE NEWS - The Reunion NEWSLETTER from Boston. (PDF).

Be SURE to check the BLOG for AUDIO INTERVIEWS from the reunion.
Some of these stories are classics. One of our crew was a 10 year old witness to Pearl Harbor only 3 houses from the main gate. His dad was serving in a ship in the harbor at the time -- in his 20th year of Naval Service. A story about the MAST from the Constitution is below.

ALL DONE FOR 2008 ---
The Members voted to pursue Nashville for 2010. See more discussion in the HIGHLINE link above.

BIG AND WONDERFUL REVIEWS on the LOBSTER RISOTO at the Bistro.
Steak was great too!!

THE STORY OF THE MAST FROM THE CONSTITUTION

Some of us discovered the Navy was THROWING AWAY the old masts from the Constitution that had laid out for many years on the yard for display. I think NEW "old masts" are about to be available since new masts were being installed. Since they were just tossing out the old masts - estimated to be the ones in place from about 1870 - 1930 (maybe) some of us took parts of the masts as keepsakes. They were dumpster bound - it was quite an opportunity. Seems the Navy cannot SELL government property like that and is bound to destroy it. What a waste! They could sell pieces like that on Ebay and raise TONS of dollars for "Wounded Warriors" or some other good cause. Vic Campbell took one of the larger pieces he took from the old mast and had it put in a shadow box as a gift to his brother, Jim Campbell whose retirement ceremony from the Navy Reserves was in early August in PENSACOLA. Vic spoke at the ceremony and made reference to the mast in his talk -- and related the service of the mast to the service of career sailors. Jim started as an E3 corpsman in 1967 and retired as a Captain (0-6) not a hundred yards from where he and Vic sold watermelons to the sailors at NAS Pensacola in the early '60s. It turns out the Constitution was refitted in about 1870 at PENSACOLA and the MAST we took wood from in BOSTON was likely from local virgin pines nearby. It was refitted there because the LIVE OAK preserves near Pensacola provided a stash of wood to refit the ship. THAT LIVE OAK wood was not used up and reserves of wood were kept in a holding pond for the future. When the airfield called Chevalier Field at NAS Pensacola was being built (maybe in the 1930's or 40's) the wood was rediscovered in the same location but the pond was filled in or silted in by then. It was rediscovered as construction equipment was digging there. THAT WOOD was shipped to BOSTON for future live oak repairs to the Constitution and is what they are probably using for this refit. The MASTS this time though are from Canada SPRUCE. Several people provided the information here -- some confirming what others told me. So -- the story of the wood is probably close to accurate though the exact dates are not clear to me.

A copy of Vic's speech at his brother's retirement is HERE. (reference to the mast fragments we took from Boston).

CREW ROSTER UPDATE ... PLEASE PRINT FOR CLARITY PRINTABLE FORM HERE Are you ATTENDING THE 2010 REUNION? yes / no IF YES—please include Banquet Reservation and Dues Fees First Name: Last Name: Spouse Name: Your former rate or rank: Active Duty Address: Current Mailing Address: Home Phone: Cell Phone: Plank Owner? YES / NO (circle one) Retired Military? YES / NO (circle one) Can we share this information with shipmates? YES / NO Dues are $20 per year and we have a reunion every two years. (raised to $20 by members at this meeting. Costs require it or the admin staff ends up out of pocket too much to bear. $20 was determined to be a very reasonable figure and we will all try to provide more info by the web and newsletters - using sources and help from all the membership who can support the effort. The next is an undetermined date in the SUMMER of 2010. Wait to make your commitments until we have specifics closer to the date. Send dues to: JOE ALLEN 6007 N. Greenvale Drive Milton, WI 53563 Make the check out to JOSEPH H. ALLEN In the notation space for your check note: "The Irish Song Association" Questions? Email Joe Allen ..jha218@centurytel.net