STORY BEHIND THE PLAQUE
Service Reflections of CWO2 Donald Stine, U.S. Coast Guard (1974-1997)

I was unemployed with few prospects. I had dropped out of school and got a GED pretty much immediately. I had been working at a dead-end job but couldn’t stand it anymore. My younger brother was already on active duty in the Coast Guard and located at a small boat station in Fort Totten, NY.

In my hometown, the recruiters were usually at the post office. This was before recruiting offices in strip malls. On the day I went, the Coast Guard recruiter was the only one there. I figured, what the heck, it works for my brother.

Additionally, the Vietnam conflict was still going on, and I did not want to die in the jungle.

I spent 23 great years in the Coast Guard. My career path was chosen for a very silly reason. At first, I had considered ET or HM school. I believe they were at Governors Island and Yorktown, respectively. But then, in talking to my recruiter, I found out that Radioman School was in Petaluma, California. I had never been to California. What a way to make a life decision!

I retired while working in the Thirteenth District in Seattle. After 23 years as a CWO2, it seemed that I had reached the peak of my career, so I decided to retire.

I’m not sure what I was involved in is considered an “operation.” I was on CGC Westwind for Operation Taconite, which kept the Straits of Mackinac between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron ice-free through the winter. This might be considered an “economic operation” that mostly benefitted U.S. Steel Corp.

I also completed an Arctic East operation, escorting supply ships to Thule Greenland AFB.

Did you encounter any situation during your military service when you believed there was a possibility you might not survive? If so, please describe what happened and what was the outcome.

My first time ever underway on the Westwind, on Lake Michigan. I was young and naive, but we had lost all power, so I was on the bridge wing during a storm with a handheld VHF-FM radio trying to call the base at Milwaukee. At one point, I looked straight out over the rail toward the “horizon” and saw a straight-up wall of water. My hand slipped off the handrail, and I started sliding toward the outboard side of the bridge wing. In retrospect, I realized I was in no danger except getting soaked with icy water, which I did. But at the time, I thought we were going down!

Turns out that Base Milwaukee didn’t even know we were gone. Our skipper had heard on his scanner that there was a freighter taking on water offshore and decided on his own recognizance to be a SAR resource. Yeah, a 14-knot-on-a-good-day floating football underway for search and rescue.

Hands down, my favorite was CGC Westwind. I don’t think they call them groups anymore. I made many great friends, learned a lot of outdoor skills, and learned more about keeping my own cars running than I had ever known before. But mostly the friends, many Coasties, many locals. It was just beautiful there.

A close second would have to be Governors Island. I was at the LANTAREA Comm Center and MLCLant. The jobs were OK, but being on GOVIS was awesome. I grew up in Northeast Pennsylvania and had spent quite a bit of time in NYC, and I loved it, but I could never afford to live there until I got to live there for free.

It’s hard to say which is my least favorite. I would say the Marine Safety Office Valdez only because, at the time, the Coast Guard was seen as the “other police department.” The locals were not very fond of us.

In actuality, I was never stationed anywhere that I hated. I attribute that to the fact that I was never permanently stationed below the Mason-Dixon line and never wanted to be.

From your entire military service, describe any memories you still reflect on to this day.

While on the Arctic trip to Thule, Greenland, we took a day for air operations. During these operations, there were two helicopters on the ship. Capt McKenzie decided that since they were flying, why not give the crew rides? I had some awesome photos of the Westwind from directly above, at about 500 feet. I wish I still had those slides.

One SAR case in Portland, Maine, on an extremely foggy day, had our boat crews searching for a grounded sailboat all over Casco Bay. The guy wasn’t totally sure where he was but believed he was near a certain island. After 3 or 4 hours of searching, we came up with no sightings of the boat. In fact, when the boat crews sounded their horn, he didn’t hear it. They told him to sound his horn, and it didn’t work. At some point, a breeze came up and pushed the fog out. The grounded sailboat was less than 100 yards off the boat dock at the base.

Of all the medals, awards, formal presentations, qualification badges you received, or other memorabilia, which is the most meaningful to you and why?

Not many formal presentations were received, but I would have to say my “Polar Bear” certificate for crossing the Arctic Circle was the most difficult. It involved a form of “hazing” that I don’t believe is allowed anymore, which is a shame. However, it was a huge team-building exercise and very enjoyable.

On Westwind, I met ET2 Bill Roche. Bill was SUPPOSED to be my best man for my first marriage, but his chief would not let him have the time off. We were deployed to St Ignace, MI, at the time. RM2 Steve Gelwich. He was an ex-jarhead, and we had a lot of fun together. We wandered all over Bristol, England, together when we were there for R&R after a north trip to Thule, Greenland. I would love to find him. We attempted to quit smoking together… not a great experience for either of us. Another one is RM2 Rhett Fritz from Fonda, Iowa. Gelwich and Roche are two guys I would really like to catch up with.

In Ketchikan, I had quite a number of good friends that I’d love to reach out to. MK1 Steve Manske lived in the old CO’s quarters at Point Higgins, which was the retired Ketchikan Radio/NMJ. Steve was one of the best friends I’d had in a while, and he taught me woodworking. RM2 Bruce Erickson and his wife Valerie were great friends. He was from Brooklyn, NY, which made scheduled broadcasts in Alaska quite interesting: “Base Ketchikan this F/V Orca. WHAT did he just say?”. Tim Rollins and Troy Garret were two guys who worked for me and were awesome, dedicated Coasties. I’ve been in touch with Troy, and we talked about being on watch when the cruise ship Prinsendam caught fire and sank in the Gulf of Alaska. Manske and Erickson are the two I would really like to track down.

In Valdez, my next-door neighbor in housing was YNC Joe Ford. Our families were joined at the hip for quite a while. He helped me with my RMC studies and was first in line for my initiation. Unfortunately, I have heard that Joe has crossed the bar.

Governors Island was where I met ET1 Pete Larsen. When we first met, he was an instructor at ET-A school, but when the opportunity arose, he took over the management of the base movie theater. What a cake job. Pete and I started a side business selling stuff at flea markets. We had a lot of fun, and it gave us both time away from our wives. I believe Pete has crossed the bar as well, but I was there for the birth of both his daughters. The older, Alecia, is the same age as my stepdaughter.

I got a job at a computer consulting place in Seattle on retirement. I was to teach networking in Windows 95. That did not work out very well, as the Coast Guard had done NOTHING at that point with Windows workstations. I was like a fish out of water. So, I temporarily was an office manager at Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Washington & Alaska. Then, my first wife’s job transferred her to Southfield, MI. That didn’t work out, either. We got divorced, and I moved to Kalamazoo, where I contracted a few IT jobs at Kellogg, Whirlpool, Bosch, and finally with American Electric Power at the Cook Nuclear Plant in Bridgman, MI. I worked there for almost 23 years and just now retired in February 2022.

In what ways has serving in the military influenced the way you have approached your life and your career? What do you miss most about your time in the service?

My life before the Coast Guard was a mess. The Coast Guard gave me structure and goals. I know that sounds cliche, and it is probably repeated a hundred times throughout other folks’ ramblings, but I think it is true for many people. There are many things I wish I had pursued while in the Coast Guard and immediately after, like more education, a better savings plan, and a walk with God. All of those have happened later in life, most importantly, my salvation.

My advice to anyone who has recently joined and again is probably cliche because it is likely repeated a lot.

1. Enjoy your time in the service. I have read many of these reflections from people who griped about every duty assignment they had. I was never stationed anywhere, and I hated the job. However, I could always find plenty of things that made me happy. Look for them.

2. Educate! The jobs and education opportunities in the Coast Guard have become much more diverse since Homeland Security (it was DOT when I was in). However, don’t expect the CG to give you all the education you will need to have a great second career. I made that mistake. Look for your own opportunities for growth!

3. Save! I cannot stress this enough! You never know what life will throw at you. Money can’t buy happiness, but it can put a roof over your head and food on the table while you WORK on happiness. Just remember: the Bible does NOT say money is the root of all evil. It says the WORSHIP of money is the root of all evil. It is a tool, not an idol.