2012 Flotilla 73 Crew & Coxswain Academy

Shipmates,
We are extraordinarily lucky to have the annual FL73 Crew & Coxswain Academy as an option for our members. This course sets the standard for our safe and effective operations program. Please keep in mind that the material and the schedule are challenging. It is not everyone's cup of tea and there are alternative methods to pursue crew and coxswain qualification.

Be safe out there and look to the safety of your shipmates,

Daren

By Todd Mains

Ken Babick will once again coordinate the Flotilla 73 Crew/Coxswain Academy. This academy has been very popular over the years for AUX members that desire to qualify to serve on the water. The academy reflects the high standards of the Coast Guard. It is mentally and physically challenging and requires extraordinary effort in order to complete the classes and qualify. In short, it’s not for everybody.

The 2012 Crew and Coxswain academy will start on Tuesday, 17JAN2012 at 1900 hours on the Training Deck of MSU Portland. The Academy will run through the end of May 2012.

Academy members should make arrangements with their home flotillas to acquire the Seamanship Manual M16114.5C Qualification guides will be provided for crew trainees.

Ken Babick will provide the qualification guides and the Operations Manual for the coxswain candidates. Academy trainees are urged to find a qualified mentor to help them through the process. Candidates are expected to be prepared for training sessions by having familiarized themselves with the material before each class.

Crew candidates are required to complete ICS 100 and 700:

http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/IS100b.asp

http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is700a.asp

Coxswains are required to complete ICS 100, 200, 800, and 210 (or 300). Note that 210 (or 300) is not offered online – check with your Member Training Officer.

Uniform for the academy is ODU. Sessions will begin promptly at 1900 hours on Tuesday nights and Saturday sessions beginning at 0800. Some Saturday sessions are required for coxswain only with crew welcome, and sessions typically last all day. On the water sessions are split with AM and PM sessions. All sessions are held at USCG MSU Portland. Accordingly, uniforms must be worn properly and proper base security procedures must be observed.

Ken Babick will supply an Academy Summary and an Academy Curriculum to candidates. Candidates can expect that the academy will wrap up in late spring with a QE (Qualifications Examination) session.

To enroll, contact Ken Babick:
(503) 663-2537
sarek68@yahoo.com

Questions? Contact Ken Babick, Don Verkest, Lynn Easton or Todd Mains.

Here are some photos from 2011:

Commander's Comments November 2011

Shipmates,

As 2011 draws to a close so too does my term as Division Commander for Division 7. Over the next few months I look forward to visiting with many of you as we change the watch at each of our five Flotillas and for the Division. The message I plan to convey at these events is a simple one:

Thank you

A few years ago I came across a little exercise. Unfortunately I don’t recall the source and I wish I could give credit as this exercise has a profound impact on my thinking and my practice of leadership. The exercise is to take ten pennies and put them in one pocket. Each time you say or write thank you move one penny to the opposite pocket. When you run out of pennies start moving them back.



At first it is a bit of a game and a subtle reminder to thank people. From a leadership perspective it is a reminder to thank shipmates for their service and for specific actions. Initially I was looking for the positive lift of our team -- looking to motivate our members. A funny thing happened along the way. While I intended to have an impact on others the practice of deliberate thanking of my shipmates had an even greater impact on me -- an impact in a number of ways. I’ve become more aware of the great work we do together. I’ve developed a greater sense of well being and a reservoir of positive feeling that has carried me through the inevitable challenges. I recognize how lucky I am to be associated with this Division, with the Auxiliary and with the Coast Guard.

After a short while I didn’t need the pennies anymore - I’d formed a habit of thankfulness. In honor of those first ten pennies here are ten “thank yous” -- only a small fraction of those I could give.

Numbered by the phonetic alphabet...

Wun: Thank you for being safe and looking to the safety of our shipmates. We engage in risky work and your attention to safety is absolutely critical.

Too: Thank you for the extraordinary mission performance. Your work shows that Auxiliary Flotillas can perform at a very high level in spite of often cited challenges.

Tree: Thank you for teaching your fellow members and the public -- directly in the classroom and by your actions in the field.

Fow-er: Thank you for building your skills, for qualifying in new areas and for maintaining those qualifications. Each small step in your “career” as an Auxiliarist builds the capability of your Flotilla and of the Auxiliary.

Fife: Thank you for recruiting and mentoring new members. Our membership is our strength and, while we don’t grow for growth sake, we do need to continue to build a strong, competent membership to sustain our organization and execute our missions. These efforts are also a gift to those members who find a fit in the Auxiliary -- a gift of an opportunity to serve.

Six: Thank you for doing all the tasks that sustain our organization, from turning in your hours to doing the administrative duties each of our programs requires.

Sev-en: Thank you for stepping up to leadership as staff and elected leaders. Your hard work shows in our shared accomplishments.

Ait: Thank you for looking sharp in uniform. We are a component of a uniformed service and our uniforms are rightly a source of pride. Your properly worn uniform is visible evidence of your professionalism and of your commitment. It is read as such by our shipmates and by those we serve.

Nin-er: Thank you for your fellowship. Not every task as an Auxiliarist is fun and easy but I’ve been carried through the rough spots by leaning upon my shipmates for support and friendship.

Wun Ze-ro: Finally, thank you for your selfless service.

It is truly an honor to serve with each of you. As always, be safe out there and look to the safety of your shipmates.



Very respectfully,
Daren Lewis
Division Commander, Division 7

Uniforms: Past Officer Device on ODUs

By Daren Lewis

Shipmates,
A question recently came up about the Past Officer Device and wear on the ODU. While the new manual has a bit of room for interpretation I am reasonably comfortable that the intent is that no Past Officer Device is worn on the ODU for three reasons:

1. Chapter 10 H.4.g indicates the AUXOP device is the only authorized device for Auxiliarists (with some exceptions for prior service).

Insignia shall be centered directly above the USCG AUXILIARY cloth tape immediately above the wearer‘s left hand pocket. Only one embroidered insignia is authorized. If an Auxiliarist has earned more than one insignia, then the insignia worn shall be at the discretion of the Auxiliarist. Embroidered insignia shall be the same size as the metal insignia, centered on a tape the full width of the pocket. The tape shall not exceed the width of the pocket. Temporary or conditional qualification insignia shall not be worn on the ODU.

Incumbent Commanding Officers and Officers-in-Charge are authorized to wear the embroidered command ashore or afloat devices centered directly above the wearer‘s nametape. These embroidered devices shall be approximately the same size as the metal versions. The same parameters apply to the wear of the embroidered AUXOP device, which is the only device authorized for wear by Auxiliarists on the ODU.

2. AUXCEN does not sell a embroidered Past Officer Device.

3. In ALCOAST 291/11 on Uniform Board 44 the wear of a sew on Past Officer Device appears in the items considered and disapproved list. 

Todd Mains: Ken and the Peregrine

By Todd Mains


It was several years ago.  I was serving as a crewman on Ken Babick’s boat DEFIANT (OpFac 181173).  As usual, I was just trying hard to stay in my seat as 173 leapt from wavetop to wavetop on the Columbia, just below the Interstate 5 Bridge.  Suddenly we were making one of Ken’s patented 180 degree turns.  Usually one has to be in a fighter jet to experience G forces like this, but it happens on AUX 173 frequently.

I began to search everywhere trying to understand the reason for the turn.  I looked at all the deep drafts in the Vancouver Harbor.  I looked for people in the water.  I looked for oil on the water.  Nothing.  173 came to an abrupt stop and Ken moved forward and knelt on the deck.  I saw the juvenile peregrine falcon bobbing in the waves.

You could write a book about Ken Babick, and somebody should.  If you described him all day you would never use the word “delicate.”  Nevertheless, Ken cupped his hands and brought the bird onboard.  He tried to warm it; he tried to get water out of it. He even tried to blow fresh air into the bird’s beak.
All this time I was hoping I wouldn’t have to touch the bird.  I was always told that birds are yucky and you should leave them alone.   I wanted to say, “Come on, Ken, the bird is dead.  Let’s go.”  Ken kept working on the bird.  After many minutes with no sign of life he gave up.  The falcon had a band on its leg with an 800 number.  Ken called from his cell phone and an operator took his report.  The operator said that it is illegal to keep the bird or the band, and to put it back where we found it.  Reluctantly Ken gently put the falcon back in the water and we left the scene.

The next day Ken called to say that he heard from the avian expert who put the band on the bird.  The nest was high up on the Interstate Bridge.  He banded the bird because he knew it was soon to make it first flight.  First and last, as it turned out, Mother Nature can be cruel.

Years went by and I forgot about the hapless falcon.  Today I look at my email inbox and I have a message from Ken with the subject, “See…it coulda worked.”  Attached was an article about a veterinarian in Bend that performed successful mouth-to-beak resuscitation.  It is incredible to me that after all this time Ken still has not given up.  No baby falcon is going to die on his watch!  Many say they are dedicated to Maritime Environmental Protection, but how many back that up by doing the research to be ready – ALWAYS READY – to deliver on the water?

Awards aren’t presented for failing to revive drowned birds.  Yet, the oft used phrase from award citations comes to mind, “… in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard.”