Photo of the Day: Ticket to the Vatican
Posted by TerryC | 8:09 AM | Christmas, Italy, USS Coontz, Vatican | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: Refueling at Sea
Posted by TerryC | 1:09 PM | refueling, unrep, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz Plankowners Certificate
Posted by TerryC | 4:27 PM | plankowner certificate | 0 comments »I'm happy to announce the creation of the new USS Coontz Message Board! Please feel free to use the message board as a resource for sharing memories and sea stories from the USS Coontz, locating shipmates and posting messages to others on the board.
I think you will find this message board very user-friendly, accessible, and over time, a valuable resource for sharing information and memories with other USS Coontz crew members.
You can find the message board on this page under "Links of Interest," or you can get their directly through THIS LINK.
If you have any suggested forums for the new USS Coontz message board, please feel free to suggest them to usscoontzddg40@yahoo.com
First Thanksgiving Menu from USS Coontz - 1960
Posted by TerryC | 1:27 PM | Thanksgiving Menu, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Shrimp Cocktail Cocktail Sauce Lemon Wedges
Roast Tom Turkey Baked Ham
Apple and Raisin Dressing
Snowflake Potatoes
Candied Sweet Potatoes Giblet Gravy
Cranberry Sauce
Buttered Cut Corn
Garden Fresh Peas
Salad Bar Selection
Green Onions Radish Rosettes Stuffed Celery
Sliced Tomatoes Tossed Salad
Piquante Dressing Blue Cheese Dressing
Assorted Olives Assorted Pickles
Hot Clover Leaf Rolls Butter Bread
Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream
Apple Pie
Assorted Ice Cream
Fruit Cake
Assorted Mixed Nuts Hard Candy
Hot Coffee Chilled Fresh Milk Grapeade
H.H. Ries, CDR, USN
Commanding Officer
C.J. Boyd, LCDR, USN
Executive Officer
R.G. Nicol, LCDR, USN
Supply Officer
K.G. Norby, ENS, SC, USN
Commissary Officer
E. Gonzales, CSC, USN
Chief Commissaryman
Thanksgiving Prayer
We give thanks, our Father, for the many blessings we have
received throughout our lives. Forgive us for being so blind that we
often miss the great joys of companionship, freedom and comfort. Keep
us strong in the defense of the ideals which were born of Thee and
for which our country stands. Amen.
Photo of the Day: USS Coontz in Dry Dock
Posted by TerryC | 8:01 AM | drydock, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz ship's bell, Naval Hospital Charleston
Posted by TerryC | 4:52 PM | ship's bell, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz Signal Bridge Crew in Philadelphia
Posted by TerryC | 12:19 PM | Philadelphia, signal bridge, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz 5-inch gun in action
Posted by TerryC | 10:00 PM | underway, USS Coontz, weapons firing | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz Haze Gray and Underway, August 1983.
Posted by TerryC | 11:47 AM | underway, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz in Typhoon Cruising to Phillipines during 1965 WESTPAC
Posted by TerryC | 10:31 AM | DLG-9, USS Coontz, WESTPAC | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz Full Power Run
Posted by TerryC | 8:37 AM | underway, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz Port Call in Djibouti, 1987
Posted by TerryC | 8:01 AM | Djibouti, MEF 2-87, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Port call in Djibouti, Africa during the MEF 2-87 Cruise. We delivered supplies to the U.S. embassy and each crew member received a ration of two beers on the pier! We also took on water, which was so contaminated it had to be chlorinated for two days before it was drinkable. It tasted like water from a swimming pool.
If you have any photos from the USS Coontz you would like to share, please email them to usscoontzddg40@yahoo.com
Photo of the Day: USS Coontz NATO Cruise 1979, Blue Nose Ceremony
Posted by TerryC | 11:44 AM | Arctic Circle, Blue Nose Ceremony, NATO cruise, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: Launching Terrier Missile from USS Coontz
Posted by TerryC | 7:27 PM | Terrier missile, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz in Dry-Dock at Metro Machine, 1987
Posted by TerryC | 7:10 PM | drydock, Metro Machine, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Commanding Officers of the USS Coontz
Posted by TerryC | 7:22 PM | Commanding Officers, USS Coontz | 0 comments »CDR Herbert Hamilton Ries Jul 15 1960 - Jul 14 1962 CDR James Richard Collier Jul 14 1962 - Mar 7 1964 CDR Eugene C. Kenyon Jr. Mar 7 1964 - Aug 14 1965 CDR Charles Ward Cummings Aug 14 1965 - Jul 27 1967 (Later RADM) CDR Eugene Dale Geiger Jul 27 1967 - Feb 7 1969 CDR Donald Patterson Roane Feb 7 1969 - Jul 8 1970 (Later RADM) CDR Thomas Joseph Bowen Jul 8 1970 - Feb 23 1971 (Decommissioned Feb 23 1971 - Mar 18 1972) CDR Thomas Rogers M. Emery Mar 18 1972 - Dec 20 1973 (Later RADM) CDR Frederic Northey Howe Jr. Dec 20 1973 - Mar 6 1976 CDR Silas Oscar (Sy) Nunn III Mar 6 1976 - Apr 8 1978 CDR Walter Potts Martin Apr 8 1978 - Sep 28 1979 CDR Clifford P. Willoz Jr. Sep 28 1979 - Sep 6 1981 CDR Joseph Paul Reason Sep 6 1981 - Dec 17 1982 (Later ADM) CDR Leon Preston Brooks Jr. Dec 17 1982 - Feb 25 1985 CDR Charles Henry Gnerlich Feb 25 1985 - Apr 11 1987 CDR William Wilson Cobb Jr. Apr 11 1987 - Jul 21 1989 (Later RADM) LCDR William Elwood Cox Jul 21 1989 - Oct 4 1989
Photo of the Day: Admiral Robert E. Coontz
Posted by TerryC | 7:42 AM | Admiral Robert E. Coontz | 0 comments »The American Legion awarded the Distinguished Service Medal to U.S. Navy Adm. Robert Coontz and and visiting Polish Gen. Josef Haller in 1923.
After growing up in Hannibal, Mo., where Mark Twain was a family friend, Coontz attended the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, followed by duty on numerous ships.
Coontz served as governor of Guam from 1912 to 1914, then returned to the Navy as commanding officer of the battleship Georgia and commandant of the Navy Yard Puget Sound until the end of World War I. He was assigned to the Pacific Fleet in late 1919 when he became chief of naval operations, serving until 1923. Later, Coontz was commandant of the Fifth Naval District.
The celebrated naval commander had two ships named in his honor. He also was an author. His autobiography, "From the Mississippi to the Sea," covers his boyhood through the end of his career. He suffered a heart attack in 1934 and died a year later, at 70.
Original article: American Legion
Photo of the Day: USS Coontz transom in Hannibal, MO
Posted by TerryC | 6:08 PM | photos, USS Coontz | 0 comments »USS Coontz Transom Donated to City of Hannibal, MO
Posted by TerryC | 5:58 PM | Hannibal, transom, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Of the Courier-Post
Ken Coontz II joked Saturday that Hannibal might be one of the few places on earth where most people might be able to spell his name correctly. Anyone with a question on the proper spelling of that name need go no further than Nipper Park, where the nameplate of the USS Coontz was dedicated Saturday during a special ceremony.
Among the speakers addressing the crowd of approximately 125 people was Rear Adm. Nathan Jones, deputy chief of information for the U.S. Navy. According to Jones, Hannibal native Robert E. Coontz, who eventually rose to the rank of admiral, was worthy of the honor paid his memory during the ceremony.
"He was our second CNO - chief of naval operations. He came from Hannibal, Mo., so he's in the heartland, went to the Naval Academy and provided 43 years of service to this nation, really filling a lot of key places including commander and chief of the U.S. fleet," he said.
Jones also paid homage to the guided-missile destroyer and her crew, a number of whom were on hand Saturday.
"This ship was able to provide 29 years of great service around the world for this nation," said Jones. "The crew members that were on board, which was nearly 400, manned it for those 29 years. This nation owes them a lot of 'thank yous' and many of the sailors that served on board were able to come here today for this dedication."
Among the ship's former crew members in attendance was Terry Cordingley, secretary of the USS Coontz Association. He was pleased with the strong turnout of association members, many of whom contributed money to save the ship's transom.
"We just started holding annual reunions in 2005 and this is really our first event here as an official association," said Cordingley, who makes his home in Oklahoma. "It's great that everyone came together. Without them and without their donations, and the time and effort everybody has put in on this, it never would have become a reality."
Ken Coontz, the great-grandson of Admiral Coontz, was not surprised by the association's representation at the dedication.
"I think that anything like this deserves a strong turnout," he said. "The guys in the association really do back this project and really are sincere about who they are and what they believe in."
Chris Atkinson, director of the Hannibal Parks and Recreation Department, was hopeful the veterans would enjoy the dedication program.
"It was a perfect culmination to the 12 months of hard work that we put into this project. The memorial service was real simple, real nice," he said. "Everything went really, really well. The gentlemen who served on the USS Coontz appreciated and liked what we did, and that's the main thing. As long as they're happy, I'm happy."
A high point of the program was the unveiling of the transom. The restoration work of Central Stone on the 3-foot by 14-foot piece of steel drew praise.
"They (association members) are really appreciative of all the work the two gentlemen who worked on the transom for us actually did," said Atkinson. "They can't believe how it actually turned out. They remember when it was on the back of the ship."
"It looks brand new. It looks perfect. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out," said Cordingley. "When we first donated it to the city, it was looking pretty rough. It was rusty, dented and bent. I was really concerned about how the finished product would look and it's beautiful."
Both Coontz and Cordingley expressed their satisfaction with the transom's riverside location.
"I think it's a wonderful place," said Coontz. "It's in a very well decorated environment and it couldn't be better to have the flags there."
"Nipper Park is the perfect location, overlooking the Mississippi River," said Cordingley. "I think Admiral Coontz would be proud. I know I'm proud. All the shipmates here are proud. I hope that the residents of Hannibal are proud of it and it will become an attraction here in the city for them as well."
Admiral Coontz Painting - Columbia, MO Veterans Hospital
Posted by TerryC | 5:49 PM | Admiral Robert E. Coontz, Hannibal, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Admiral painting to hang in Columbia Veterans Hospital
By MARGIE CLARK
Of the Courier-Post
One of Hannibal's most famous sons will soon have a permanent home thanks to a local artist.
"I started the painting last fall and it took about four weeks," said Brosi. "It was exhibited at the Hannibal Arts Gallery first. I had a choice of donating it to the state capitol or the VA hospital and decided more veterans would be seeing it at the hospital."
Robert Coontz was born in Hannibal in 1864 and graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1885. He was an admiral in the United States Navy, who sailed the Great White Fleet and served as the second Chief of Naval Operations. From 1912 to 1914, he was the governor of Guam and maintained many prestigious positions after that.
From October 1925, until his retirement in June 1928, Coontz served as commandant of the fifth Naval District, reverting to the rank of rear admiral. He remained active after retirement until he suffered a series of heart attacks, dying in 1935.
In 1930, Coontz wrote his memoirs in a book, "From the Mississippi to the Sea." He covered his naval service in the Spanish-American war, the Philippine Insurrection, Vera Cruz incident, World War I and the great cruise of the fleet to New Zealand and Australia. The book also featured some rare photographs of Coontz and his colleagues.
"This book is one of my inspirations to do the painting," said Brosi. "I'm not too much of a historian, but I really enjoyed this book - it being so close to home. I could hardly lay it down after I started reading it. I got the feeling I almost knew him (Coontz) personally and that he was a very honest and outright person who never did anything wrong. He is pictured in the book with two presidents and General Pershing." The portrait is painted from one of the pictures in the book, capturing a distinct and unique likeness of Coontz with a flag added in the background.
Another inspiration, Brosi said, came from a Hannibal man, Gene Yarbrough, who was a sextant at Mount Olivet Cemetery where Coontz is buried. Yarbrough died in 2002.
"Gene was a 30-year veteran himself and thought Admiral Coontz needed a new monument in his memory to replace the old stone that was in bad shape," said Brosi. Before Gene bought the new monument in 1989, I went out and refurbished the old stone a couple of times. Admiral Coontz could have been buried at Arlington National Cemetery with the highest honors, but preferred to be buried at Mount Olivet with his family and his love for Hannibal."
Brosi is a stone carver whose family traces its roots to 1840 in Germany. The family business, Hannibal Monument Company, has been in stone masonry for five generations passing the art from one to the next. Brosi retired in 2002, leaving the business to his son and starting taking more advantage of his many hobbies and talents.
"I've been painting off and on ever since I got home from World War II," he said. "I've never taken any lessons. My sister took me to an exhibit in Quincy where I looked at it and liked it. I thought I could do it, so I painted the River Queen. That was the first painting I exhibited and it won the People's Choice Award." He has since won numerous prizes.
A painting of Mark Twain by Brosi is on display at the Missouri State Capitol in Jefferson City. Another famous person portrait is of Charles Lindbergh which is portrayed in Lindbergh's home town at Little Falls, Minn. He painted the Wabash Cannonball and presented it to country music legend Roy Acuff on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tenn.
"He (Acuff) told me he wanted to hang it in his home instead of a museum," said Brosi. "I sell most of my paintings, but these are some that I have donated."
Serving in the Air Force from 1941 to 1945, Brosi was a flight engineer on a B-17. During a mission over Schweinfurt, Germany, his plane was shot down and he was captured. He was a prisoner of war for the next 10 1/2 months.
"When I bailed out of the plane, I looked up and saw it with two engines on fire and two other parachutes coming out after me," he said. "We ended up as POW's for the better part of the year. They (Germans) kept us marching out of camp for about four months to keep the Russians from deliverance. It's something I wouldn't want to go through again. After returning from the war I bought half-interest in the monument company."
Oil painting and stone carving are only two of Brosi's talents. He is a musician, playing the steel guitar and Dobro with a local band that entertains nursing home residents, and performs at senior events and country music shows. He touches and inspires members with gospel music at churches. An accomplished ventriloquist, he, along with his dummy, Hector, perform for audiences in many places, including the incarcerated at prisons.
"I want to keep painting and doing my hobbies as long as I can," said Brosi. "I don't know if I will ever do another portrait of Admiral Coontz again. Maybe, if the need arises."
All contents Copyright 2006 The Hannibal Courier-Post and Morris Digital Works.
Photo of the Day: Rough Seas off Sardinia, 1985
Posted by TerryC | 9:44 PM | Rough Seas, Sardinia, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: USS Coontz in James River Fleet, post-decommissioning
Posted by TerryC | 12:27 PM | decommissioning, James River Fleet, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Photo of the Day: Blue Nose Ceremony While Crossing the Arctic Circle
Posted by TerryC | 4:15 PM | Arctic Circle, Blue Nose, Norway, USS Coontz | 0 comments »Iraq's Attack on the USS Stark - May 17, 1987
Posted by TerryC | 6:26 PM | Iraq attack, President Ronald Reagan, USS Coontz, USS Stark | 0 comments »
Doran Bolduc Lacy | Washington | ||||
Bradley Brown Calera | Alabama | ||||
Jeffrey Calkins | Rickfield Springs, N.Y. | ||||
Mark M. Caouette | Fitchburg, Mass. | ||||
John Ciletta * | Brigantine, N.J. | ||||
Brian Clinefelter | San Bernadino, Calif. | ||||
Antonio Daniels | Greenville, S.C. | ||||
Christopher DeAngelis * | Dumont, N.J. | ||||
James Dunlap | Osceola Mills, Pa. | ||||
Steven Erwin * | Troy, Mich. | ||||
Jerry Farr | Charleston, S.C. | ||||
Vernon Foster | Jacksonville, Fla. | ||||
Dexter Grissett | Macon, Ga. | ||||
William Hansen | Reading, Mass. | ||||
Daniel Homicki | Elizabeth, N.J. | ||||
Kenneth Janusik | Clearwater, Fla. | ||||
Steven Kendall | Honolulu, Hawaii | ||||
Stephen Kiser | Elkhart, Ind. | ||||
Ronnie Lockett | Bessemer, Ala. | ||||
Thomas MacMullen | Darby, Pa. | ||||
Charles Moller | Columbus, Ga. | ||||
Jeffrey Phelps | Locust Grove, Va. | ||||
Randy Pierce | Choctaw, Okla. | ||||
James Plonsky | Van Nuys, Calif. | ||||
Kelly Quick | Linden, Mich. | ||||
Earl Ryals * | Boca Raton, Fla. | ||||
Robert Shippee | Adams Center, N.Y. | ||||
Jeffrey Sibley | Metairie, La. | ||||
Lee Stephens | Pemberton, Ohio | ||||
James Stevens | Visalia, Calif. | ||||
Martin Supple | Jacksonville, Fla. | ||||
Gregory Tweady | Champaign, Ill. | ||||
Joseph Watson | Ferndale, Mich. | ||||
Wayne Weaver | New Bethlehem, Pa. | ||||
Terrance Weldon | Coram, N.Y. | ||||
Lloyd Wilson | Summerville, S.C. | ||||
Vincent Ulmer | Bay Minette, Ala | ||||
*Buried in Arlington National Cemetery |
From time to time we are contacted by former shipmates asking where they can see the USS Coontz today. Unfortunately, the ship was scrapped following decommissioning. Although a few bits and pieces of her remain in private collections, the bulk of the ship was cannabilized and dismantled by Metro Machine (coincidentally, former Coontz commanding officer J.P. Reason works for the company). Metro Machine completed the scrapping of the USS Coontz on March 26, 2003 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The scrap metal was then sold to Camden Iron and Metal in Camden, New Jersey.
Welcome Aboard!
Posted by TerryC | 5:38 PM | DDG-40, Ship's History, U.S. Navy, USS Coontz | 0 comments »The keel of the USS Coontz was laid at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in March 1957, just 39 years after Admiral Robert E. Coontz left his post as the shipyard’s commander. The first guided-missile frigate to be built on the West Coast, and the second ship to bear the name of the Navy’s first chief of naval operations, Coontz was christened by Mrs. Robert J. Coontz, wife of the admiral’s grandson, on December 6, 1958.