Document wgEgyoLQyEw5zK6Mzqxovpng3

COPIFO FROM THE CCJELErriONS IN THE CENTER FOR AMERICAN H!.ST()ii THF. UNI VP.RSITY OF TRY A C A T A H C T IM Esso Bangor' Gets Million Manhour Award The Esso Bangor has a bright new plaque to her credit. It reads: "Presented to the men of the Bangor for their outstanding performance in working 1,000, 000 manhours without a lost-time injury." Approximately 775 officers and crew members were involved in setting the record from midnight, May 18, 1968, to midnight, December 28, 1971. Each person who sailed on the Bangor during this period receives an individual safety award which he selects from a merchandise catalog. The engraved bronze plaque was presented to the Esso Bangor on May 18 when she was in port at Baytown, Texas. At a ceremony, held on the starboard bridge wing and attended by ship's per sonnel and Marine Department representatives from the Houston Office, General Manager Emmett A. Humble said: "Company managers take great pride in safety accomplishments like this one and they look upon such accomplishments seriously, both from a humanitarian standpoint--nobody wants any one to get hurt--and from a business standpoint. The ships we sail and the equipment we use to maintain them are very expensive. They must be handled properly to avoid costly injuries to our selves and also to prevent expensive repair bills that can occur when we misuse the tools of our trade. Again, congratulations to each of you for a job well done." Captain Roy J. Merritt, master in the Esso Bangor, accepted the plaque on behalf of all officers and crew members who made the award possible by working safely during the 43-month period when the 1,000,000-manhour mark was set. Ship Participates In Rescue Of 'Wrong Way' Cuban At 1021 on May 17, the Esso Gettsburg was skirting the Florida Keys sailing at full speed in an effort to make the afternoon tide the next day at Wilmington, North Carolina. Captain John B. Sappington, master in the Gettys burg, had just finished his coffee. He started to go below when Third Mate Robert N. Cleveland shouted: "Captain, I see a small boat that may be in trouble!" Both officers rushed to the port bridge wing and, looking through their glasses, they saw a small craft about 3 miles away. They could make out a man waving his arms. Captain Sappington swung the Gettysburg hard to port toward the boat and started reducing speed. While he was easing the big vessel to pass close by, Mr. Cleveland was making radio-tele phone contact with the U.S. Coast (See RESCUE, page 2) fJ . 4:- H. V iL-ASA Marine Department representatives and ship's personnel who attended the 1,000,000 manhour safety award presentation ceremony on the Esso Bangor were, standing from the left: E. W. McNeil, Jr., adminis trative manager; Captain Torrance Inman, assistant port captain; F. Ames Smith, operations manager; Charles D. Hahn, 2nd mate; Mr. Humble; Stephen Verbonich, radio officer; Donald E. Graham, employee relations coordinator; Willard L. Avant, AB; Captain Merritt; Kenneth P. Naley, MM/2P; James Tosney, 2nd mate; Anthony Santagata, AB; Charles A. Laratta, chief engineer; and Adinario E. Alves, chief steward. On the ladder, from top, are: Andrew J. Dunne, 1st assistant engineer; Stanislan Skadovura, OS; and John R. Dudley, 3rd mate. Kneeling, at left, are: A. B. Randall, Jr., safety officer, and Jesse Sumter, chief cook. EXX-MOR-008024 Rodriguez, O'Neill watch boat RESCUE, continued from page 1 Guard in Miami and Chief Mate Richard J. O'Neill was organizing the deck gang to prepare ladders and lines to take the boat along side. Mr. Cleveland, who wrote Fleet News about the event, said: "On the first pass by the small boat, we discovered that the single occupant could speak only Span ish. From the well deck, Chief Pumpman Julio R. Rodriguez heard the man yell `three days at sea.' As Captain Sappington commenced the intricate maneu ver of bringing the 715-foot, 40, 000-dwt Gettysburg alongside the drifting 15-foot boat, word was re ceived from the Coast Guard to stand by until their patrol boat arrived. By 1100, the Esso Gettys burg was laying 50 yards off the small, green-hulled boat which was flying an American flag from her jackstaff. Chief Pumpman Rodriguez, conversing in Span ish, learned that the victim was a Cuban from Miami who was trying to reach Cuba to deliver money and clothing to his chil dren there. During his mission of mercy, the boat's motor conked out. The `wrong way' Cuban ap peared in good health, still had water to drink, and refused the offer of food. "At 1150, Coast Guard Patrol Boat No. 513 arrived on the scene and relieved the Gettysburg. The Cuban seemed content to return to the U.S. By 1200, we were again back on course, sailing full speed for Wilmington. And we made the tide by the skin of our teeth." Mr. Cleveland said. Hartwell A. Baxter, Retired RO, Calls On Friends Via Motorcycle Or Ham Radio If you are a friend of Hartwell A. Baxter and live most anywhere in Connecticut, don't be surprised if you see him pull up in front of your house someday on a motor cycle. "I have always wanted a motorcycle and since I retired in 1969, I have had two of them. I mostly travel locally, but on occa sion I'll swing upstate to visit friends or over into Vermont for a few days," he said. If Mr. Baxter doesn't come by on his motorcycle, he may call you on ham radio, if you have a set. As a former radio officer in the fleet, he keeps up his radio activities and has a number of friends that he calls, some of whom are retired Marine Depart ment employees. "I have been a ham operator since 1921, even be fore I became a radio officer in the fleet," he said. When he's not motorcycling or ham radioing, he works on his 45-year-old stamp collection. He also repairs clocks in his workshop located in the basement of his house on a IV2acre tract on beautiful, tree-lined Thirsty Lake just a short distance from downtown Guilford, Con necticut. "Although it's true that a retired person who has nothing to do soon gets bored, I find that hav ing something to do is very good providing you can do it in your leisure time," he explained. "I'd say that one of the best things about retirement is that you can have a flexible schedule--no set time or deadline to meet." Mrs. Baxter has a more de manding schedule, however. She is probate judge in Guilford. "We complement each other perfectly," Mr. Baxter points out. "I keep the house in order when she's working, which helps relieve the strain on her and there's still plenty of time each day for me to pursue my hobbies. We both arranged time for a trip to Europe last year." The Baxters have two married daughters who live in Guilford and a son who lives in Cleveland, Ohio. "We have a total of 10 grandchildren and occasional family get-togethers help keep our ties close," Mr. Baxter said. Hartwell A. Baxter taps out a message to a distant friend over his 150-wat* transmitter as Mrs. Baxter looks over correspondence from one of his many ham radio contacts. His station call letters are W1HKI. Part of his watch repair ing equipment is shown at right in picture. Page 2 Esso Fleet Newt COHIHU FitOM THE COLLECTIONS IN THE CENTER FOR AMERICAN HISTOK TAFFRAIL TALK f i CHECKING THE RECORDS. Captain Hans Bonte, right, who is touring various parts of the U.S., stopped by the Marine Department headquarters in Houston on May 18 to visit friends and to check his benefits records with Frank Hagan, senior Bene fits and Claims Adjuster. Captain Bonte, who re tired in 1962 with more than 32 years service, had been touring the southern states, with a jaunt into Mexico, for four weeks before coming to Houston. He left Houston for other scenic areas of the U.S. with plans to visit the Ozarks and the Grand Can yon. "I expect to travel for as long as the money holds out," he said. Captain Bonte, a healthy 69, lives in Eden, Maryland--when he is at home, that is. ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO, Harold R. Smith, now chief steward in the Esso Chester, was having trouble with arthritis in his fingers. He and his wife visited the family doctor who asked her if she could knit or crochet. When she said that she could, the doctor said "teach him," Mr. Smith recalls. "I have been crocheting ever since and very rarely do I have any pain in my fingers. I try to crochet at least a half hour every night," he said. He makes afghans, turning out one every six to eight weeks, usually in four shades of the same color. "The afghans, about 60- by 80-inches, make beautiful decorations, and are very warm," he says. "Crocheting also gives me time to work out the world's problems." R. L. (DICK) VUKIN, operations manager, New York Branch, re ports that officers and crew mem bers in the tug Esso Massachu setts and her barge, Esso Barge -31, were complimented for help ing the Queen Elizabeth 2 meet a tight turnaround schedule on April 16. "The big luxury liner arrived at her berth at 0800 and was scheduled to depart early that afternoon," Mr. Vukin explained. "During her unusually short turn around time, her crew had to take care of passengers, make some repairs, and hold lifeboat drills-- in addition to taking on 13,400barrels of bunkers. By 0820, the --o-- Esso Massachusetts and Esso Barge ^31 were alongside ready to discharge their cargo. By 1200, the discharge was completed and the unit was clear of the ship so that the lifeboat drills could be held without delay. The quick, efficient manner in which Captain Toralf M. Olsen and Mate Thomas R. Coufal in the tug and Captain Joseph P. Salustri and Mate Ed ward C. Nilsen in the barge made the delivery drew high praise from the Queen's chief engineer," Mr. Vukin said. On May 16, commendations were again in order when person nel in Esso Barge -31 discharged 25,450 barrels of bunkers to the big liner in record time, helping her lop more than nine hours off the 17-year-old turnaround record set by her predecessor, the Queen Elizabeth. Efforts like these undoubtedly help further good customer rela tions between the ship's owners and Humble. ESSO FLEET NEWS is published every other Monday for active and retired em ployees of the Marine Department, Humble Oil & Refining Co.; Emmett A. Humble, General Manager; Sydney Wire, Assistant General Manager. GENE LEGLER............................................. Editor Contributions and suggestions are invited and should be addressed to the Editor, ESSO FLEET NEWS. Humble Oil & Refin ing Co., P. O. Box 2180, Room 4193, Houston, Texas 77001. June 5, 1972 Pag-t 3 EXX-MOR-008026 Retirements CAPTAIN BERNARD E. NELSON retired on June 1 with 34 years of service in the fleet. He began his career with the company in De cember, 1936, as messboy on the S. B. Hunt. He was promoted to OS on the same ship in January, 1937, and to AB in June, 1938. He terminated his service in the fleet in May, 1939, and was re hired in February, 1940, as OS in the R. W. Gallagher. He became AB in the first Esso Houston in December, 1941, and was serving in this vessel when she was tor pedoed and sunk by enemy sub marine on May 12, 1942, about 150 miles east of Barbados. All 38 members of the merchant crew escaped successfully. Captain Nelson was back at sea in the Esso Richmond when on July 13, 1942. he was promoted to Bos'n. He later entered the U.S. Maritime Service Training School in New London, Connecticut, where he obtained his 3rd mate's license. He joined the first Esso New Or leans as junior 3rd mate in Feb ruary, 1943; was promoted to 3rd mate on the same ship in March, 1943; to 2nd mate the following July; and to chief mate in April, 1948. He took his first command in the Esso Florence in Decem ber. 1967. Captain Nelson was master in the Esso New Orleans at the time of his retirement. He lives in Manchester, New Hamp shire. McCasland Messina 1952. His last ship, before taking sick leave and later retiring, was the Esso Huntington. DENVER S. McCASLAND joined the company in June, 1951, as FWT on the Wallace E. Pratt. He obtained his 3rd assistant engi neer's license in 1966. He later elected to sail as FWT, the rate he held at the time of his retire ment on June 1 with nearly 21 years of service. The Esso Miami was his last ship. Mr. McCasland lives in Bacliff, Texas. MICHELE MESSINA was AB in the Esso New York when he took sick leave. He retired on June 1. Mr. Messina was first employed in September, 1951, as OS in the Birch Coulie. After two brief periods of broken service, both in 1951, he rejoined the fleet as OS in the Esso Augusta in January, 1952. He was promoted to AB in the Esso Allentown two years later and was serving in this rating at the time of his retirement with 20 years of service. He lives in Brock ton, Massachusetts. SERVICE AWARDS 20 Years James R. Clark Radio Officer May 21/1972 EUGENE W. GARDNER, who lives in Interlachen, Florida, retired on June 1 with 24 years serv ice. June was also the month that he first joined the fleet, only this was in 1934 when he was em ployed as wiper in the George G. Henry. After serving as OS, AB, and Bos'n in various vessels, he terminated his company service in February, 1939. He returned in November, 1950, as AB in the Kern Hills. Mr. Gardner was pro moted to 3rd mate in November, 1951, and to 2nd mate in April, MATTHEW L. TINGLE, JR., 2nd assistant engineer in the Esso Lexington, visited the Houston office recently where he was presented a 20 year service emblem. Shown from the left are Edward H. Cole, manning coordinator; Captain Leonard H. Earle, port captain; Captain Torrance Inman, assistant port captain; James Gordon, assistant operations man ager; Captain Donald E. Graham, employee relations coordinator, Mr. Tingle; Paul J. McEwan, head of Personnel Services Section; Tom J. McTaggart, port engineer; and E. C. Fischer, head of Benefits and Claims Section. Page 4 Esso Fleet News