The 2013 reunion, held on board the magnificent Queen Mary in Long
    Beach, will be long remembered by those who attended. Ruth Judge and
    her "Posse" (daughter Barbara Jensen, and friends Gilby Steele and
    Claudia Hedrick) did a fantastic job of overcoming the obstacles and
    making this a truly great reunion

      Long Beach was just about unrecognizeable for those who hadn't been
    back since it was Topeka's home port. Gone are the pontoon bridge, naval
    station, shipyard, the Pike, Navy YMCA, the Jungle, and the 7 Seas Locker
    Club. Along Ocean Boulevard there remains only a couple of buildings and
    the circular Long Beach Auditorium from our era.

      Many people began arriving as early as Sunday and by the official start
    of the reunion on Tuesday most people had arrived.

      Tuesday's tour took us to downtown Long Beach and the very interesting
    Aqaurium of the Pacific. After the aquarium, lunch was on our own and
    we wandered the stores and shops along the waterfront

      Wednesday morning we boarded the Catalina Express ferry for Catalina
    Island. We docked at the picturesque village of Avalon where some hiked
    and others rented golf carts to tour the beautiful island. After our arrival
    back in Long Beach in the late afternoon we had to hurry to clean up and
    catch the bus to Shoreline Village Marina for our dinner cruise around the
    harbor aboard the motor yacht Spirit.

      Thursday it was over to San Pedro to visit USS Iowa BB-61. A former
    shipmate, GMGCS Jerry Johnson, is part of the volunteer staff of USS Iowa
    and he gave us a personal tour of the huge ship, ending with lunch on the
    mess deck. Jerry had served on Iowa's sister ship, USS Missouri, and was
    very knowledgeable on all aspects of Iowa Class battleships.


Photos
Group Photos     Catalina     USS Iowa     Buffet