Association News
‘The Fighting Lady Turns 80’ celebration
April 15th, 10 am – 3 pm
As you know, the USS Yorktown (CV-10) was commissioned at Norfolk Navy Yard in Norfolk, Virginia on April 15, 1943. That was eighty years ago, this year. So, the leadership and staff at the Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in Mt. Pleasant, SC are preparing an 80th Birthday celebration of the USS Yorktown on Saturday, April 15th. Included here is a letter to our membership from the Interim Executive Director of Patriots Point, Mac Burdette:
We are very excited to celebrate the upcoming 80th anniversary of the commissioning of USS Yorktown and are looking forward to having former crew members join us for the occasion during the upcoming work party.
On April 15, we will host a “The Fighting Lady Turns 80” celebration for the 80th anniversary of the ship’s commissioning. We will have family-friendly events aboard the Yorktown from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and invite you, her crew members, onboard to participate in a Meet & Greet with visitors throughout the day.
Meet & Greet events of past reunions have been very popular and well-attended. We expect the same for this event.
At 1 p.m. on April 15, we will introduce participating crew members and toast USS Yorktown’s “birthday.” Following Navy tradition, we will celebrate with cake.
Also as part of the celebration, the Collections and Curatorial Affairs Department is excited to launch a new exhibition entitled “All Who Served: The Uniforms of World War II”. The exhibition features uniforms from all branches of the military, with loans from the Charleston Museum, the National Museum of the Marine Corps, the National Museum of the US Army, and the Charleston Air Force Base.
We look forward to a great day on the Fighting Lady at Patriots Point. We hope Yorktown Association members will consider joining us!
PPDA Employees Deck the Halls
Click the image above to view the contest
2022 Holiday Decorating Contest
“Merry Christmas to all!
We had a Holiday Decoration contest here at Patriots Point and supported by the USS Yorktown Foundation.
There are some really creative peeps on staff. The Attached pdf show all that participated and a sample of their decorations. Take the time to go see them before the end of the holidays.
Have a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year to all.
Ho, Ho, Ho.
Jim Vickers, PPDA Graphics Department”
Five Things to Know When You Donate to USS Yorktown Association
These things are important to know when you give
to the USS Yorktown (CV-10) Association:
- We are a 501(c)(19). As a veterans non-profit, all donations made to us are tax deductible. Simply keep your receipt for your taxes.
- We are the veterans who served on the USS Yorktown and their families – and we’re proud of it! Let’s just say our patriotism comes from personal experience.
- We’ve been in existence for 75 years! That’s right. We were founded in 1948 by the veterans who served on the USS Yorktown in World War II. These men and those of us who served on the ship throughout her history, pooled resources and military influence to save the ship from being scrapped in 1970. We came with her to Charleston, South Carolina in 1975 and created her first exhibits, built the Smokey Stover Theater, acquired World War II aircraft for her decks…the list goes on and on. We’re not done yet.
- We are on the USS Yorktown at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum, but we do not receive any proceeds collected from ticket sales, tours, or the gift shop. Patriots Point is a state agency. While their revenue takes care of salaries, maintenance, and exhibits, sometimes they could use a little extra help with special projects and renovations. That’s where non-profits like us come in. But we must raise our own funds for it. That’s where you come in!
- We are grateful for every dollar you donate. Because of donors like you, we’ve been able to share our stories on the USS Yorktown, host an annual reunion on the ship, and memorialize our fellow veterans. Every dollar you donate is a blessing to our cause.
DONATE TODAY!
Veterans Day Weekend at Patriots Point
November 11 – 13, 2022
Celebrate veterans this Veterans Day weekend aboard the USS Yorktown! Patriots Point will offer free admission to Veterans and active duty military from November 11 – 13. Admission to the museum includes access to the warships USS Yorktown and USS Laffey, and the three-acre Vietnam War Experience.
In addition to offering free admission to veterans, on Saturday, November 12, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the museum and the Patriots Art Foundation will host a live watercolor painting workshop featuring renowned Charleston artist Mary Whyte. Whyte and a team of artists will coach 20 veterans as they paint exhibits located aboard the USS Yorktown.
At 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on November 12, The Citadel’s Summerall Guards will perform a silent precision drill on USS Yorktown’s flight deck. The exercise will feature a unique series of movements that exemplifies the exactness and thoroughness with which military college trains its cadets.
247th Navy Birthday Celebration on USS Yorktown
US Navy personnel all over the world will mark the 247th birthday of the US Navy at 9:00 am (wherever they are). They will ring a bell nine times – 8 to signal the end of the watch and the 9th to represent the start of a new watch. The “watches” in this case are the past and present years in the timeline of US Naval history.
The central theme of this year’s 247th Birthday and Heritage Week will be “On Watch – 24/7 for 247 Years”, which highlights our Navy’s enduring ability to remain fully-ready to respond to and effectively deter emanating threats. Beginning with the establishment of our Navy in 1775 and continuing to our current modern fleet, our Navy has stood the watch. We continue to deploy forward as our nation’s vital maritime maneuver force; persistent, versatile, and capable of winning any fight and ready for the challenges of an unpredictable future.
We will be marking this 247th birthday on the USS Yorktown by ringing a bell at 9:00 am EST.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NAVY!!
A Special Guest
Time stands still when a World War II veteran steps onto the decks of the Fighting Lady.
We were blessed, today, to take Bryce Thornton of the Army’s 104th Infantry Division on a special tour of the ship. As it happens, Pat Waters (grandson of General Patton) was here for a meeting and able to speak to him as well. Mr. Thornton (age 97) was 19 when he stepped onto the shores of Utah Beach in July 1944 as an ordnance specialist. His job after the invasion of Normandy was to clear mines and booby traps ahead of troop movements. He was at the Battle of the Bulge. Out of 36 men in his platoon, 5 made it out of the war alive and not wounded. “I’m just glad to have made it out okay,” he said. He remarked on how cold it was in Europe during winter. He’d heard of a guy’s feet freezing to the mud in a foxhole in Holland.We couldn’t help asking Mr. Thornton his secret to longevity (we could barely keep up with him on the gallery deck). He said it’s important to stay active. He cuts the grass and cleans house, among other things. His other words of wisdom for the rest of us came from his own father, “try to look at the positive,” he said, “we focus on the negative too often.”
