One of the patches on a submariner’s vest reads, 48,000 lives lost in Viet Nam. We Remember. I’m sitting in the chairs set up to watch the memorial service at the USS Requin, SS 481. The time marked today is in airplanes and souls lost September 11, 2001, but also today we will remember boats and souls lost from the inception of submarine service in the United States. The men are trying to get the Hunley added to the list as she is truely the first… Even though she was a Confederate States boat. We were brothers. I’m surrounded by hundreds of old sailors this morning, many WWII and many, like Chuck who can’t claim a "named war" but wear badges remembering the cold war. The flag is coming in… After the presentation of colors and the National Anthem, our speaker, a submarine captain who was in the Pacific on September 11,2001, said that day our lives changed and we are in a war longer than any war we have ever fought. Submarines are a small force, but are accountable for great enemy losses, and, as I have cited in previous blogs, have the highest % of losses of all services. As the Silent Service, we remember our losses with the tolling of a ship’s bell. We remember the lost beginning in 1915, and ending with SS593 April 10, 1963 the Thresher and SS589 May 27, 1968 the Scorpion. Cold War losses. Before closing with prayer, a poem was read: "Sailor on your final dive, do you wonder, ‘Am I dead?’ No. You made your stand at the bottom of the sea, and you are locked in the hearts of all sailors. Sailor rest your oars." The memorial ended with a 21 gun salute, Taps, and a prayer: " We pray for protection for all service members who are in harm’s way. We ask our Lord to let the healing begin." God bless you.
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