By the Fleet Reserve Association
The latest meeting of the Fleet Reserve Association on Monday, Feb. 6 was exciting. Exciting not because of what happened but what is about to happen. Discussion was looking forward to the activities of the new year.
Like many organizations, attendance has been down because of the pandemic. However, a new email blast campaign brought a good turnout. There were no returns from USPS mail announcements and no returns on the email blast, a good indication that the work that has gone into cleaning up the membership roster has been effective.
New items discussed were a family picnic in the late spring which was voted on and approved; participation in both the Greenwood and Southport summer activities centered on the Fourth of July; a field trip to Vincennes, Ind. for a visit to the Indiana State Museums Historic Site: the original Territory Capitol Building; That item is reminiscent of the recent field trip we took to Evansville, Ind. to visit the LST ship that is there.
The enthusiasm of the membership for these activities, getting out and doing something after being frustrated by the pandemic lockdown was evident. Also discussed was the possibility of a public service project although it is unclear as to exactly what we want that to be at this point.
The next get-together on the agenda is the second Tuesday of the month breakfast meeting at Denny’s. There was also discussion of getting the model of the ship out of the museum at Fort Benjamin Harrison and getting it out on display somewhere as an attention-getter as we have done in the past.
The ship has been used in the Veterans Day Parade and at other events. It is a 14-foot-replica of the USS Indianapolis; the branch is known as the USS Indianapolis Memorial Branch. That ship went down in the closing days of World War II after delivering the atomic bomb to the island of Tinian where it made its last leg of its journey to Japan via an Air Force bomber.
The Fleet Reserve Association is open to members of the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. Any veterans from the sea services are invited to attend. The meeting of the branch is on the first Monday of each month at the VFW in Greenwood at 6 p.m. (or 1800 hours military time). On the second Tuesday of each month we have our get-together at Denny’s at 9 a.m. for breakfast. That is a social event, and wives or family members are encouraged to come along. There are social events throughout the year, including picnics, the annual Christmas party and other activities.
For more information, go to fra130indy.org
