PBY Catalina International Association
Newsletters
1989 Volume 1, Number 1 (p.02)

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The PBY Catalina International Association's News Letter * JULY 1989 * 1st Edition

ANAHEIM MEETING: The Anaheim meet can be considered nothing less than a success. The attendance, including ladies, was 160 at the banquet which is about twice that of Jacksonville. Aside from our internal communication of the event, Joe Dinneen took the initiative to enter the Anaheim meeting dates of 25-30 April 1989 in all military/veterans publications he could locate. Joe DeSalvo arranged for the accommodations etc., which is no easy task in Anaheim at any time. This is the second Quality Inn complex selected, for which they seem to have an affinity for locating conveniently to peripheral attractive points of interest. This occasion was walking distance to Disneyland, and low bus fare routes to such other sites as Knotts Berry Farm, the HMS Queen Mary, Howard Hughes "Spruce Goose" (still the worlds largest aircraft), as well as several military installations of interest, plus the convenient connections to a host of sights in the Los Angeles or San Diego area. The first couple of days were devoted to registering and the opportunity for the meeting of old PBY crewmen, discussing and comparing memories of commonalties of locations or occurrences with many PBY vets never known before, but still share that common bond through the only aircraft we know of that not only had character, but even a personality and loyalty to its crewmen. On the third day, the business meeting was held in the morning:

BUSINESS MEETING HI-LITES consisted of (1) New names added to the 391 count (watch for them to appear on a subsequent roster). (2) Lower-rate mailing will be assessed. (3) Appropriate member name display devices to be investigated. (4) Chairmanship to be assigned yearly to someone at each new meeting site. (5) Secretary/Treasurer assigned to James P. "JIM" Thompson. (6) International Contact Committee Chairman assigned to Warren "MARTY" MARTIN. (7) NEWSLETTER TASK ASSIGNED TO I. JAMES "JIM" Morrison. (8) Richard "DICK" KLINGE nominated as Association's patron. (NOTE: Dick was not in attendance to accept or reject nomination.) (9) Francis Clifton (not in attendance) had submitted in letter form to transpose the association title from "International PBY CATALINA ASSOCIATION" to the newly accepted form. It has a more correct priority of identity as 'PBY CATALINA INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION'! (10) The next meeting/reunions are to be held in the northern hemisphere's Fall of 1990 at New Orleans, Louisiana and in December 1991 in Hawaii. (NOTE: Dues will be tried to be minimized through reduced operating and mailing costs coupled with non-profit proceeds from reasonable sale prices of display articles, etc.)

MEMBERSHIP CONTRIBUTION to the success of this "meet" at Anaheim can be acclaimed not only to those who attended and universally pitched in from the initial arrangements through to overall demonstration of sharing of things that needed to be done at any level, also to those who for some reason could not attend yet contributed to the "Hospitality Room" with everything from open funds to even a case of champagne. "The Aqua Velva Man" cannot hold a candle to "The Catalina Man" from this reporter's observation! EMOTION was observed throughout this meet/reunion. In one instance, two men met up for the first time in FIFTY years. Both had served with PATROL WING TEN squadrons in the Philippines during 1939. Others who had been reported Missing-In-Action (MIA) to being MIA Presumed Dead saw the not-so-dead at this meeting. There were one U.S. Army Air Corps and one U.S. Navy crews in attendance complete with the exception of ONE man each that would have been in attendance but could not due to other priorities. Both crews had served in the early FORTIES at the South Pacific. FOUR men from New Zealand, whose squadron flew PBYs alongside our U.S.Navy PBY squadrons during the Solomon Islands campaign were reunited with their countrymen as well as some of the U.S. "Airdales" right there in Anaheim. NOW HEAR THIS! Overheard or related to this writer were these statements from attending ladies: "I have learned more about my husband I have needed to know all along in our more than forty years of married life, and it's all good!", "I expected to be bored to death at this reunion; it was anything but boring. I haven't had so much fun in years.", "The interaction between men and women could not be better.", "This association is fun, free-moving, has an atmosphere free of status yet pleasantly organized." to "I can hardly wait for the next meeting in New Orleans.". Thank you ladies not only for your "superlatives" but your demonstration to pitch right in to emphasize your not "Auxiliary", your on joint membership roles!

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