Lunga Point (CVE 94) - Naval Cruise Book

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lections of old time spirituals, which were very much enjoyed by all present. Last, but not least, our old favorite, Sieradzinski, Mic, en- tertained us with several snappy numbers on his piano accordian. At the conclusion of this part of the program wc saw an unusually enter- taining movie, Arsenic and Old Lace, fol- lowing which all hands were served ice cream and cookies. Then, all hands turned in their bunks ready to start out on our second leg. Unknown to us, however, there was another party going on that night, also celebrating the first anni ersary of the Lunga Point, but it was a long ways from us; way back in San Diego, C alifornia, Uncle Sugar. Mrs. Eastwold had gotten a group of our Officer ' s wives together at her home, and they chatted away a whole evening in celebration of the great event. It was most thoughtful of them, and, while wc don ' t know too much about the details of the party, we do know who was there, there being, in addition to Mrs. Eastwold, the hostess, Mrs. J.H. Garrett, Mrs. H.C. Howard, Mrs. N.C. Walton, Mrs. James DeAngelis, Mrs. E.G. Osborn, Mrs. VV.A. James, Mrs. LE. Mc- Dougal, Mrs. LL Smith, and Mrs. J.E. DuflS ' alo. It must have been a nice party, the only thing wrong with it being that we couldn ' t be there, too. Now, as we ride at anchor here in Guam, we pause to reflect on all that has transpired during the past twehe months. We ha e come a long ways — 74,746 nautical miles to be e.xact, but mileage is not all we are thinking of in retro- spect. We are thinking more of the things we ha e done; what has happened to us, individ- ually and collectively; the contribution we have made to the war effort. We are thinking of the many exciting experiences, the narrow es- capes we have had in our ship, and how every man has fought her with all his might and main. We are thinking of those friendships we have made on board; friendships which we hope to preserve and maintain down through the years to come. We are thinking of our- selves and the progress we ha e made. Some ha e progressed rapidly and some not so rap- idly, but all hands have progre.s.sed in relation to the best they have in them, because all hands have given their best. There is not a man on hoard who is not a little more sure of himself than a year ago. Therefore, the Lunga Pomt is a better ship, and we are better men as a re- sult of having just been together during the past twehe months. We seem to recall that, during his talk to the Ship ' s Company on the afternoon of 14 May 1944, the Claptain told us that he was determined that the Lungo Point should be the best Clombat CA ' E in the Fleet. With pardonable pride, we believe we have the best Combat CVE in the Fleet. It is no wonder, then, that we are proud to have served in the Lunga Point. Yes, we have had an outstanding record, so our superiors tell us. Be that as it may, no one man is entirely responsible for that record. It is the result of the combined efforts of every man on board, from the Skipper on down. There has been an excellent spirit of .coopera- tion throughout every Division and every De- partment since the day we went in commission, and the results speak for themselves. In every Naval Vessel, however, there has to be leader- ship; there has to be an established policy. If there is any one man who is directly respon- sible for carrying us safely and successfully through our first year, it is our Commanding Officer. There is not a man on board who ques- tions his ability as an aviator or a Mariner. He has been a stern disciplinarian. He bawls us out when we err, but he is equally as quick to recognize merit. He plays no favorites; yet he is fair to all. He is somewhat a perfec- tionist ; he stri es for 4.0, but, in so doing, he is constantly bearing in mind his responsibility for the lives of a thousand men and the job that lies ahead. He has never been known to turn down a rea.sonablc recjuest that would add to the comfort, happiness and welfare of his men. He sweats our planes on and off the flight deck as if each pilot were his own son. In short, he is a man in whom we have implicit confi- dence, and, for getting us safely and success- fully through this first year, to him, our Cap- tain, we give our humble thanks. As for the policy of a ship, the Captain estab- lishes it, and the Executive Officer sees that it is carried out. The mere fact that we have come through this first year successfully is suf- ficient proof unto itself that the Exec has done a good job. While we may not always agree w ith him, or he with us, he ne ' er fails to talk to us straight from the shoulder, and he gets re- sidts. He has always shown a keen interest in the welfare of our officers and men, and thereby he has accomplished the execution of the Cap- tain ' s policy in a manner that, we believe, has been satisfying to the Captain. He has kept himself unusually well posted on conditions existing in the various Departments of the ship,

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GASSINC; PLANES!

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and that alonr has been a ii;rfat hrlp to liim and to us in satisfartorily discharnin our chilics. He, too. has Ix-i-n fair with us, and. alxnc all elsi ' . that is the first trait vc look for in an ollifcr. To our Rxcc. also, wc say, Many thanks! . ncl, now. as wo comr to this last pai c in our rovifw of the past yoar, vvc find more and more of our ollucrs and men u;rttinti; their orders to other duty. Soon, we will all be gettini? our orders, and there will not be a Plank Owner left on board. To you who will man our ship in the future, a word of admonition. Before reporting to the lM ii;a Point and since, we have often heard the Kaiser- Vaneou er CA ' E ' s re- ferred to as Kai.ser ' s C offins. We are all well aware that they arc expendable, but so arc other ships. We know that she was thrown together in the haste necessitated by the exi- gencies of war. No one knows belter than we that she is not a pleasure cruis T. But wc do know this; if you serve her well, she will s tvc you well. Her engines have now chugged along for thousands of miles and there arc thousands of miles left in her. .She fights just as well as her big sisters. Her rerord speaks for itself. Take care of her, for she has served us well. I ' ight her victoriously; so that she will .so(jn be able t(j return to the .Stales for a well earned rest in that Peace for which she has strived so hard. Many happy cruises, and GrxJ Bless you all in the L ' ..S..S. I.un ' a I ' oinl. And. nmv that we are in the Ja ) ' . front yard, 1 1 V xhall keep on going, though the going he hard. Because ive know ive ve got the finest carrier; . othing . o, nothing shall create a barrier To making Hirohito himself anoint The fighting men of the Lunga Point. ' ' ' ' 112