SAMPLE TOUR TIMELINE - Pensacola

We will have an extra day of tours available but this is a sample of  timelines for some of the tours. This one was set up for USS Gregory which is one week after our reunion in Pensacola.  You can see a little more detail in this. I will work with Beachbum Trolleys to get our page on their site up and visible for everyone.

http://beachbumtrolley.com/gregory.htm

REUNION REGISTRATION by SEP 25 Please

GET YOUR REGISTRATION PACKET HERE

TWO PAGES

Print and Fill out and Mail In

July 31 modified OCT 6 to PENSACOLA tours - NOT MOBILE

Here is what you are downloading to print

USS O’Callahan Reunion Schedule and Sign Up

Arrive October 5 - Tours Oct 6-9 -  Close and depart October 10

Be ready for All Tour Days to start at 8am Highlighted Items on Daily list are Included in Fee

Some days - evening meals are on your own. Fast Food and Fine Dining and tourist areas are plentiful. Some attending will have private cars for these nearby venues.

Download: USS OCallahan PRINT

Download: USS OCallahan PRINT

THIS STORE WILL CLOSE OUT BY THE END OF JULY. WE WILL PUT THIS AND MORE INTO ANOTHER STORE To replace the vendor service.

Here is the link to buy ($20) and download our ship's graphic files that you can have printed up for framing. They are amazing work by our shipmate - Bill Scroggins.

Tentative Tour Plans for Pensacola

This plan is not yet FINAL. It does give an idea of the activities for the week in OCT.  When ironed out - there will be a registration form with payment instructions. Some big pluses - - the Hotel does NOT require advance payment but registration is encouraged. Our hotel provides a FREE large Host suite with bar - tables - etc. The tour costs estimated here include the transportation, meals and venue tickets. Our breakfasts are included at the Hotel.

OCT 5-10 - Ashton Hotel Navy Blvd --- Beachbum Trollys - Wheelchair and scooter access. Items in BOLD are cost items in the daily estimate. We chose an inexpensive but  nice hotel which we felt allowed more felxibility for everyone to take advantage of the tours. The tours require no driving. One day we will use a bus and the other days are using the Beach Bum Trolly. You can see past tour photos and descriptions at the Beach Bum Trolly site. These folks are veterans and know veterans and KNOW THIS TOWN. SO - experience is bringing us a very cost effective and fun package for every day.  

A Registration form will provide an opportunity to select for the tours but I would encourage all of them. Two days will be long ones (but not driving) and two will be "half days" to allow plenty of rest time or extra activity. IF ALL TOURS are signed on a COUPLE can expect a $500 budget plus or minus $50. BUT - you don't have to sign on for every day's tours. 

....

OCT 5 WED -- Arrival  

Hospitality Suite at Ashton -- Town tours at will - dinner on your own

Suggestions will be made available -- Beach - Town -etc.

OCT6  THURS --  This is the longest and biggest day - est $80 each  (Not Trolly  but tour bus this day)

TOUR BUS MOBILE TRIP to include:

Austell new ship construction - Belengrath Gardens plus lunch and then river cruise - return to Mobile and dinner at Wentzells famous seafood downtown. Return to Pensacola - Ashton Hotel - Hosp Suite.

OCT 7 FRI --  Pensacola FOCUS day Est. $50 each - Trolly and City Tour with history - 10:45 Veterans Park Honors for Fr. O'Callahan, USS Franklin and our own shipmates. NAS Naval Chapel's Fr. Pete McLaughlin will participate with about six Navy Colorguard which we will comp as they join us for lunch. LUNCH at Maguires. (we may use this time for some normal banquet presentations)   Return to Ashton - Host Suite.  Afternoon Free - other Tours and restaurants will be suggested for individuals. Possicle board meeting in our Host Suite.

OCT 8--SAT -- AIR MUSEUM DAY Est $75 each for the day --  Trolly to Air Museum - Cubi Club Lunch in the Museum - BIg Screen Films - Back to Hotel probably about 4pm.  Fish Fry with best seafood in area (including chicken for non fish eaters).  The Fish fry and meal at our very large Hosting Suite will possibly serve as our banquet with all appropriate remarks and honors.

.... OCT 9 SUN - BEACHES and SUNDAY SAND Est $50 each for the day -  Trolly to possible beach service and then --  A 10 AM Dolphin Cruise with PICNIC at the Marina. at Noon we will have flex time for more beach access or walks and Trolly return to Ashton Inn. Host Suite. End of Reunion. Use afternoon to pack, independent town exploration- Restaurants.

MORE DETAIL ABOUT TOURS at this website ... 

http://www.beachbumtrolley.com/link05bum.htm

Membership Dues Request

Joe likes to remind me to inform everyone to please "join" the association or pay your dues if they are up. If you simply can't for financial reason we understand. Nobody will shake you down. This and the Scroggins print files help bring in a little stash to help out with mailings ( a few prefer that to the web) and to cover some of the minor reunion expenses outside of normal personal costs. Just download this and print it and mail it to Joe with a check. Or- print it and bring it to the reunion and turn it in there.
Membership and Dues Form .... Print and Mail

Reunion Transportation

Reunion Transportation

We will be using BEACH BUM TROLLIES for our group tours in Pensacola in October. You can see their tours here -- some of which we will choose. Also notice they are OLD HANDS at military reunions and a LOT of other Navy and sister military organizations are represented in their reunion schedules. Tours usually include the transportation, meals, and any fees for entry to venues. I hope to SHANGHAI one or two of my history professors who liven up the area knowledge to join us.

REUNION LODGING and MORE

Ron Harper says COME ON DOWN !

Twin Queens with mini kitchen

Here is a link to the information about REUNION Lodging.  Go ahead and reserve a room in our OCT 5-10 time frame. IF you want to stay a few more days to catch the annual big home (AN EARLIER NOTICE HAD THE WRONG ROOM PRICE- correct price is $75 and includes the continental breakfast) coming practice and show with the Blue Angels - just add some days.  The HOTEL DOES NOT require a credit card reserve and they are very flexible on late changes or cancellations. THIS IS A BIG PLUS. So go ahead and reserve ... it will help us plan all other reunion activities as we build numbers. -- ALSO - encourage our affiliated ships that we may share some history with to join in (Just let us know). AND all the HSL detachments are very welcome and encouraged to come along as we were shipmates through and through. Affiliated guests and friends of our ship and its history are all welcome to join in.
HERE IS THE LINK.

The hotel is within a mile of NAS Pensacola and within two miles of downtown Pensacola. Beach bum trollies will be our key transport for all the group touring and they have a stellar reputation with veteran groups.

JANUARY UPDATES on the OCT. Reunion

Ahoy USS O'Callahan shipmates, affiliated units and camp followers -

Our 2016 reunion is scheduled for October 5-10 in PENSACOLA , FL. (All updates will be posted  HERE - linked by "News" from our main website  www.ussocallahan.org)

- Also welcomed are the HSL detachments we sailed with and sailors from other ships related by our heritage or our operating histories. Just let us know and sign in for the ride.  

- YOUR CONTACT: 

vic@buzzcreek.com (Served '71-73 - OC Div. Officer)

Vic Campbell  6933 Martin Road , Milton , FL   32570  850 994 6120 (text or call)

Everyone is welcome to attend all or part of the reunion. Registration forms will be in a later email. (probably by March)

Visit our FaceBook Page -  https://www.facebook.com/groups/irishsong/

It is a closed group so you will have to ask permission to join, lots of discussions and sea stories.

The local international airport is PENSACOLA INTERNATIONAL.

In a few weeks, we will have a more definitive plan for the hotel accommodations. I will include some contacts for other lodging options as well - such as the excellent camping facilities including one on NAS Pensacola that retirees can use.  

Our original dates were OCT 6-10.  I have moved up to OCT 5-10 in order to try to fit in a better tour trip to Mobile .   Pensacola and Mobile are very close to each other.   Mobile hosts Austell shipbuilding where they make the new LCS trimarans.  I hope to get us some kind of tour or a speaker on the topic at Mobile . 

That is in the works.  If not a few other items make a day in Mobile a good day.  Otherwise, the activities will be in Pensacola and therefore a Pensacola hotel will be our base of operations.

Activities Planned  (Links are underlined)

MOBILE - Austell Talk/Tour.   Bellingrath Gardens.  History and technology and dinner at Wentzell's Oyster House in historic downtown.

PENSACOLA   BEACH TOUR including Fort Pickens overlooking the bay, a possible Dolphin tour, dining overlooking the Gulf.  

PENSACOLA NAVAL AIR MUSEUM at NAS PENSACOLA - A premier affiliate of the Smithsonian. It is an amazing museum that can fill a whole day. IMAX films. Blue Angels may be home from tours.  If the plan works out, we may have a cookout on the beach at the waters edge right on the base (at cottages for military and retirees).

PENSACOLA DOWTOWN -- Many small museums and crafty shops and eating establishments will fill the day - Probably Saturday - all within walking distance of the hotel (as planned). Some excellent historical tours will give you insight to the eras of the Spanish colonization, the British and American all overlaid on the Native American experience. The Jackson tour is quite an eye opener about the war of 1812 and post war exnpansion to eventually bring in Florida to the USA .  

A Relative of Fr. O'Callahan

This was posted in our guestbook... If anyone can suggest ways to invite Richard and other connections to Fr. O'Callahan and Veterans of USS Franklin to our reunion this year (Oct 5-10 2016) let us know. ---

Date:   12/14/2015, 7:34 pm, GMT +5 Name:   Richard Yoshida Number:   150 Just found this site. Joe O'Callahan was my uncle through marriage. His brother John was married to my father's sister Anne. I remember meeting Joe when I was quite young. He came to Montreal to visit our side of the family. It's a bit ironic that Joe's sister in law was half Japanese. My grandfather was born in Japan somewhere around 1880 and emigrated to Canada in 1896 then moved east and married an Irish girl in New Jersey. Their daughter Anne was an American and lived in Boston after marrying John. My dad was born in Toronto as was the 3rd child Rosemary. 2 years ago I visited the USS Yorktown in Charleston where I found the terrific memorial to the USS Franklin. I also remember that my aunt Rosemary attended the christening of the O'Callahan at the invitation of the USN. Best wishes to all who served aboard.

Google Calendar

Google Calendar



CALENDAR for 2016 reunion.   October 6-10. Pensacola.

Details will develop in the next few months of 2015. Hotel, tours, activities.  Pensacola is known as the Cradle of Naval Aviation and Pensacola Naval Air Station ...and the AMAZING, Naval Air Museum. In addition the beaches and deep sea fishing and seafood are FIRST CLASS treasures.  History in Pensacola encompasses Native Americans, Spanish, French, British, American, and Confederate history. It is known as the city of FIVE FLAGS. Transportation will be planned in a way to allow some tours within 70 miles of Pensacola, including Mobile, Alabama.  Mobile is home of AUSTEL that is building some of the new stealthy tri-hull destroyers! Depending on attendance, we may select to stay in beach cabins on Pensacola NAS - within a few hundred yards of the Blue Angel's Hangar.  Or we may base a few people there with RV's and the Cabins to maintain an ON BASE cookout/dinner location on the bay a couple of nights. Or - we may use a hotel in town or a selection of condos near or on the beach -- all depending on the deal ew arrange.  We may also invite some other "TIN CAN" sailor's ships to join us for tours or hotels to get better rates on tours and transportation. At this point, suggestions are welcomed.  IT IS NOW NOVEMBER 2015. Vic is about to light the afterburner.
For questions and suggestions please use comments below or email  me - vic@buzzcreek.com .