Last week, amid the tumultuous hysteria that was the presidential election, your friends at Observation Post brought you the tale of MA1 Brian Dunne’s reenlistment aboard the starboard anchor of the aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman.
That got us wondering what other outlandish reenlistment practices were out there. So, we asked you to send in your most off-the-wall examples, and several of you answered the call. B to the Z!
A few particularly noteworthy ones are below, but we want more. More I say! Send your non-boring reenlistment pics to geoffz@militarytimes.com. Include the names of those featured in the images, as well as dates, locations, and backstory, and we’ll feature the best ones.
Other services are welcome. Did your reenlistment locale put others to shame? If so, hook us up. This is after all a “Joint Force” effort.
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Onto the pics!
The winner of this best reenlistment round has to go to Senior Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Shawn Szoke, who was reenlisted in July 2011 on the bridge of the sunken Japanese ship Toki Maru, resting 75 feet underwater in Guam’s Apra Harbor.
The best part? Szoke, then a first class, rocked his dress whites for the occasion as Cmdr. Norm Maple reenlisted him.
Next, we have Electronics Technician 2nd Class Nicholas Sheehan, who spent this past Halloween in Hawaii reenlisting 90 feet underwater while diving the wreck of the Sea Tiger, a Chinese vessel intentionally sunk in 1999 as part of effort to enrich the region’s diving experience.
Lt. Pastweski, left, reenlisted Sheehan, while Cmdr. Ellis swam below. In true enlisted fashion, Sheehan did not provide the first names of either officer.
When the fast-attack submarine Hartford broke through the ice at the North Pole as part of the Navy’s 2016 ICEX exercise, Sonar Technician-Submarine 3rd Class David Berger jumped at the rare opportunity.
Lt. Grant Wanier, a weapons officer, reenlisted Berger, who is now stationed in Virginia Beach, in the frosty Arctic air.
“The American flag directly behind us, believe it or not, was my grandfather’s U.S. Navy burial flag from 1990,” Berger told us in an email. Salute.
To round it out, we have some throwback excellence of then-Air Traffic Controller 1st Class James “Al” Channell shipping for six atop the mast of the since-decommissioned amphib Iwo Jima on June 29, 1977, at Norfolk Naval Shipyard.
To all the junior enlisted dreaming of getting extravagant ink tattooed after that next paycheck, note AC1′s simple-yet-salty tattoo on his left forearm. Timeless sailor energy right there.
Again, we want more of your unique reenlistment pics, so send 'em our way!
That’s if you’re not already nestled snugly in that precious DD-214 blanket.
Geoff is the managing editor of Military Times, but he still loves writing stories. He covered Iraq and Afghanistan extensively and was a reporter at the Chicago Tribune. He welcomes any and all kinds of tips at geoffz@militarytimes.com.
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