Yesterday I got an email from the daughter of a DD-467 man, Ronald Rhude. Mr. Rhude passed away on the 15th at age 96. Below is the contents of his obituary with a few edits because his service and burial have passed. If anyone would like to contact the family personally, let me know. Thank you to Kate Fontaine for keeping me informed of your Dad's passing. 

Ronald Chesley Rhude, age 96, passed away on Monday, June 15th, 2020 at home with his family by his side. Ronald was born on January 8, 1924 in Pugwash, Nova Scotia. He was the son of the late Charles and Violet (Lockhart) Rhude. Following his education, Ron joined the U.S. Navy in 1942 and served aboard the USS Strong (DD-467, which sunk on July 5th, 1943) and received his honorable discharge in 1945. His career began at Western Electric and later he worked as an electrician at General Electric Co., Schenectady. Later, he became an insurance consultant for Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. where he worked for a fulfilling 27 years. After retiring, he was determined to stay busy and he took up some work at Lakeside Farms in Ballston Lake for 20 years. He resided in Burnt Hills since 1963 where he raised his family and enjoyed many special times. His legacy lives on deep in his children and grandchildren as he taught them the values of hard work and commitment. Ron always had a side job going on and taught his skills to those he loved. Ron had many outdoor interests like fishing, and hunting. He enjoyed attending and vending at the local antique markets. He loved a chance at the slots and often ventured out to the casinos. Ron was a giver and he volunteered his time and dedicated himself to many organizations including the B.P.O.E. lodge and the Free Masons. To all who knew him, Ron was considered a perfectionist.

Ronald is survived by his loving wife, Marion S. Rhude; his wonderful children William (Holly) Rhude, Kathleen (James) Fontaine, Wayne (Loretta) Rhude and Doreen Brooks; and his grandchildren Chuck (Lisa) O’Neil, Kellie (David) Viddivo, Meredith Weller, Paul (Alese) Fontaine, Jenn (Adam) Frenzel , Tim (Jeannie) Fontaine, Jason Rhude, Kyle (Katie) Rhude, Lindsay (Chuck) Freeland, Kenny (Andrea) Brooks, Eliz (Jim) Jennings, and Sean Brooks.

Along with his parents, Ronald is predeceased by his brother John Rhude and sister Barbara Ireland.

Interment was with military honors at Gerald B.H Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery, Schuylerville. Committal service at the cemetery was livestreamed via the Townley & Wheeler Funeral Home Facebook Page.

Memorial Contributions may be made to Wounded Warriors Project or St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Ronald Chesley Rhude please visit our Tribute Store.

Rest in peace and smooth sailing, Mr. Rhude.

​-Tammi

​The project to find STRONG DD-467 has taken me roughly 22 years. In February 2019 this finally came about thanks to my introduction to Paul Mayer of the RV Petrel by my friend David Mearns. I will forever be in their debt for their efforts and just wonderful relationships. Sadly, the ocean exploration of WW2 and other wrecks for the Petrel has come to a halt - for now. COVID 19 has caused Vulcan, Inc. to shut down operations through the rest of this year and for the moment, all of 2021. The company says that it will surely resume, but only time will tell. 

I had a conversation with Paul yesterday. One regret he has is that this came so suddenly, he and the rest of the team that has worked so closely for so many years did not get to say a proper good-bye. Some of the team has been furloughed, while Paul, Rob and a couple others will stay on to help with other projects. I'm so sad for them, but admit to being selfish in that the memorial plaque is still sitting boxed up in my den. I had hopes of putting the plaque in the water sometime in the next year. When I mentioned this to Paul, he dropped a suggestion to me that I will follow up on. No details just yet, I need to see if this will lead anywhere. In the meantime, my preference is to get this done with Petrel and the crew in the future. Time will tell how realistic that will be. 

Here is the Facebook link to the story: RV Petrel closure

For those of you not on Facebook, here's the news: 
  The impact of the COVID-19 crisis has changed the world for the long term in ways that we never could have imagined.As a result of operational challenges from the pandemic, R/V Petrel will be placed into long-term moorage and she will not be deployed for the foreseeable future. We were tasked with a monumental mission – discover, educate, and honor – and we’re hopeful we will eventually be back in service.

And for the record, I am not giving up. We're not done. I've hit many speedbumps along the road to seeing this through and this one is a monster. But if life gives you speedbumps, you find a way to go around them. I will work on that. 

Thank you Rob, Paul and the crew for all you have done for so many - and here's to seeing Petrel back on the water in the future!!!

Tammi

*A family member, Andy Hoder has some thoughts on the moorage of RV Petrel during these times:

Most of this text is from a comment I posted on Facebook, following the announcement that R/V Petrel was abruptly taken out of action for the rest of 2020 and probably/possibly through all of 2021.  No doubt many factors came to bear in making this decision, but rumors have already evolved that this turn of events was somehow a result of the demise of the ship's founder/owner, Paul Allen (billionaire co-founder of Microsoft).
 
In the three short years since R/V Petrel began its search of the Seven Seas for long lost sunken ships, this vessel has become legend for its remarkable accomplishments, not the least of which is the discovery of our beloved Fletcher-class destroyer, USS Strong DD-467.  Be that as it may...
 
COVID-19 is a global reality that has come to bear in many tragic, painful and disruptive ways. So it's not entirely surprising that even the mighty Petrel would be diminished by the crippling effects of the Pandemic. But certainly it's not the only ship that's been sidelined by these unfortunate circumstances.
 
There are fleets of cruise ships that are languishing in long term port calls with furloughed crews, and we've all read the stories of cruise ships stuck at sea because no harbor would let them dock. Given some of the exotic destinations to which the Petrel has sailed, we wouldn't want to see her crew end up on the "voyage of the damned" because every country is afraid to let the vessel touch its shores.

But certainly there must be other factors that have curtailed Petrel's operations. Museums and exhibits and public attractions of all types have experienced major hits to their revenue streams, not only because of Covid closures and loss of ticket sales, but also because of a general downturn in the economy.

Of course we don't know all the details of how the Petrel's operations are financed, or to what extent that may be a strand in her current predicament. For now all we can do is acknowledge the legacy that R/V Petrel has established and express our undying appreciation to her crew for all the wonderful discoveries she's made. In the meantime, we wait anxiously for R/V Petrel to set off on another great adventure!

-Andy Hoder

I​t’s a dry season for exploration and anyone involved in the industry. I’m a bystander at best, but I live for the exciting discoveries of the people I now call friends, such as David Mearns of Blue Water Recoveries, LTD and Paul Mayer of the RV Petrel crew, Vulcan Inc. That said, David was with a group off the coast of Oman a few short years ago when they made the wonderous discovery of Vasco de Gama’s fleet and the wreck of the ship Esmeralda. Strong storms took down the Esmeralda and damaged other ships that were moored in the harbor in 1503. In 2016 these ships, their artifacts and histories were brought out of the depths and into the public eye once more. A wonderful website chock full of information, of beautiful photos and amazing videos of the discoveries as they are made is here: http://esmeraldashipwreck.com/history/

While you have the time have a look at this site and the videos. David is featured prominently as he personally made some amazing discoveries of rare and beautiful artifacts. There are also links to published articles on the find, and they can be downloaded if you so choose.

Hope all are well and that this gives you a bit of joy as you live vicariously for a few moments through the stories of the explorers themselves.Also, if any of you in the business of maritime research or exploration do have a tidbit that could be shared, I'm all ears and eyes! Any bit of shareable news is welcome. 

One other bit of news, the documents for the 2020 USS STRONG Association reunion in Dayton, Ohio in September are now available here: https://www.uss-strong.com/1reunions.htm

Not sure if we will go yet this year. A family member is very ill and a lot depends on what happens between now and September. If you would like to attend and have never been, please consider going. These people have become like family to us and we enjoy the reunion so much each year. There's much to learn from everyone there and just some really great camaraderie.

Tammi

Hello everyone and Happy Mother’s Day! This is probably the weirdest Mother’s Day ever. Here locally there’s always a May Day celebration with craft booths and great food in a local historic park and other things going on around town to celebrate mothers who are still here and those that have passed. Now, I can’t really describe how I’m feeling. My Mom is still here, lives close and due to some medical issues with my stepdad, I see them often. We’ll be taking them dinner from a local restaurant later and that will be the most we can celebrate. I hope the rest of you can find a way to show the women in your life who are mothers how much you appreciate them.
Not much else going on. I did have a wonderful conversation with Paul Mayer yesterday, just to do some catching up. Not much I can tell you there either, but he did ask me when my next blog was coming out. I laughed and said, “When I have something to write about!” So, here’s the deal. While there is all this time and we are sitting here at home I’d like for you to put on your thinking caps. In the past I’ve asked families to do a write up about their sailor, something I can post in the blog and share with others. So far I’ve had 2 takers over the 8 years I’ve had this website up. Here’s what I propose, 3 options:
1. Take the time to tell me about your STRONG sailor. Where was he born, did he survive? What was his life like before the war and after? Just any stories you’ve heard about him, funny, sad or otherwise.
2. Send me a snippet of information, a sentence or paragraph. Perhaps someone in the family recalls a funny story, something they used to say or do that stuck in the family lore. I would love to have a bunch of anecdotes to post up, and I don’t care if they don’t have anything to do with life on the ship, life before or after. We all love hearing about the other guys and what they were like.
3. Lastly, most of us had more than one person serving in the war, I know we did. My uncle Billy’s brother Gano was at the Battle of the Bulge. He survived and came home. I wrote a blog about Gano and it’s posted on 8/6/2015. Their younger sister Stella also served, and once I learn more about her role I plan to do a write up about this firecracker of a woman. She was something! That said, feel free to send me info about a man or woman who was not connected to STRONG, yet contributed to the war effort in their own way. There are so many stories out there. While we are in COVID mode, let’s find a way to share them.
*In addition, if you are a person who reads my blog and have a story to contribute about someone in your family, please email me and let me know. You don’t need to have a connection to STRONG to contribute.
I did get news from Ron Impello that the STRONG reunion in Dayton is still going forward in September. He hopes to have the newsletter and documents ready by the first of June. As I said up top, my family is dealing with some difficult issues medically and we are not certain we will make it up to Dayton as of yet. But, if any of you are considering it and the current conditions permit you to do so, I recommend finding a safe way to go up and meet some really nice people who have become family to us. Best case, we can head up there for a couple of days or just hold out for a big time in Newport, RI next year.
Please everyone, take care and stay healthy. No one likes the conditions we are living under right now. I miss my grandsons and my little nephews and all the little boy hugs. But we will get back to that and be together again!
Tammi

Sitting this coronavirus out is getting tough. I’ve been trying to think of something to write about, a blog topic that might provide something new to think about. Right now we are fundamentally dead in the water. I can’t even do any research beyond the internet that involves phone calls or emails with universities, libraries or museums – they’re all closed. There’s a bronze plaque sitting here in my home office that I had hopes of getting in the waters of the Kula Gulf this year. Many of you paid for me to have this made and I can’t let you down, or let down the men who died. It will happen some way, some how – until then I’ve been thinking about ways to make connections.

Even though we are not able to visit with extended family members or friends we do still have the advantage of phones, the internet with Skype, Zoom or Facetime – and email. As I’ve proceeded with this project I’ve always encouraged the kids of STRONG to contact one another. Many of you have such interesting stories about your father, grandfather, uncle, husband, brother – and I believe now that we have a lot of time on our hands we can reach out and make a new connection with other STRONG family. I’ve already been in contact with every STRONG family member who has ever contacted me. Many of you I’ve talked with on the phone or met in person, which is just the best! Wish I could do that with more of you. The in person connection, meeting you either locally (hi Connie!) or at the reunions has meant so much to me and to Greg. There aren’t words. I’d love for more of you to feel this connection and learn from others.
On the website I have a page titled “STRONG Contacts” dedicated to the emails of family members listed with the name of their sailor and the relation. All of these folks have agreed to contact, so pick one and see what happens. Some of you are relatively new to the group, so if you do not have your name on the page then I will be happy to add it with your permission. Keep me posted if you do make a contact. I’d love to hear what you might learn. And keep me informed of how you’re doing in all this. I worry, and I like hearing from you!
Tammi

A couple of weeks ago Paul Mayer of the Petrel crew posted a link on the RV Petrel Facebook page about a documentary produced by the Japanese featuring the discovery of the IJN Musashi by Vulcan Inc. in 2015, "Unsinkable: Japan's Lost Battleship". In February of 2015 the Musashi was discovered in the Sibuyan Sea of the Philippines. At the time, the same technical crew headed by Rob Kraft (which included our friend Paul) was on the M/Y Octopus, the late Paul Allen's luxury yacht. David Mearns of Blue Water Recoveries, LTD was with them in the discovery and is featured in this documentary. Unfortunately, you could only pick it up to view on CuriosityStream, an independent network. Strangely though, when we added the station to our line up on Amazon Firestick I could not find the documentary. A little birdy told me that the documentary was available on YouTube and I watched it today. See the link below. 

Having met David and Paul, I feel so privileged to work with these guys and call them friends. David started this journey with me back in 2012 and has been madly supportive and informative. When he needed to step back and take care of getting his book out, David introduced me to Paul. From there you know the rest. 

Shortly after locating the wreck of Musashi, the team held a live broadcast from the wreck site that was over 2.5 hours long. We got to see Rob and David for commentary as the ROV cruised the site. I posted a blog in March of 2015 with a link to the recorded broadcast. Unfortunately the link is no longer viable. If this changes, I will post this information. 

In the meantime, sit back and enjoy the history of the Yamato class of battleships, the intricacies and science involved in the discovery and the teamwork necessary to accomplish such a Herculean goal, finding a battleship in miles of sea. 

- Tammi

Unsinkable: Japan's Lost Battleship: Musashi documentary

IJN Musashi on RV Petrel site: IJN Musashi

February the 25th of 2019 I posted a blog about the discovery of STRONG and all the people involved who have helped me on this journey over the years, decades even. This was a follow up from an article I wrote in 2014 that was published in April that year in the TCS publication prior to locating STRONG. Terry Miller told me he wanted a follow up, and it took a year for them to fit it into their publication schedule. Not only did they print my article, but the US Pacific Fleet Public Affairs Office also submitted an article about the discovery of STRONG and quoted me at the end! Better late than never and I'm just happy it made it to print on both counts. 

Below are JPEGs of the US Pacific Fleet PAO article and mine, which is essentially the same blog I posted on February 25th, 2019. For those who haven't read that blog, either enlarge the JPEG or click the link for February 2019 on the right. 

​-Tammi