thedrifter
10-17-03, 06:12 AM
Submitted by: MCB Camp Pendleton
Story Identification Number: 2003101505655
Story by Gunnery Sgt. Matt Hevezi
SAN FRANCISCO(October 14, 2003) -- In a metro region once a huge hub for military operations, but then stripped clean of its soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines during the 1990's base closings, Bay Area residents warmly welcomed the 2,500 servicemembers who arrived Oct. 6-12 to wave their service's flag and help produce the annual military show known as Fleet Week.
During World War II, the Bay Area was home to more than 100,000 military men and women. Today there are less than 2,000.
The Army's Presidio, the Navy's Treasure Island, Alameda Air Station and Mare Island shipyard were just a few of the Bay Area's bustling military installations. They're all gone now.
With hoards of WW II, Korean War, Vietnam War and Desert Storm vets settling in and around San Francisco -- there are roughly 1.2 million veterans residing in northern California according to Veterans Administration -- following their service, Fleet Week organizers said it was no surprise when more than 1 million residents flocked to see Fleet Week's festivities.
Even with boiling international controversy over the Iraq invasion, citizens of every imaginable political persuasion came to meet, shake hands, take photos with, and thank the group of mostly sailors and Marines for their sacrifice and recent service overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"I cried when I saw the uniforms back," said lifelong San Francisco resident Tara T. Cronan, 42, a Bay Area real estate developer. "I voted to keep the military bases here. The military brings money here.
"When they came back from Desert Strom, San Franciscans were so mean to them," Cronan recalls. This is a very liberal city," she said as she sat along Sutter Street sidewalk cafe in downtown San Francisco. "I think it has to do with the gays here; that it's a congregation place for them because they are accepted here," Cronan said.
LIBERAL SAN FRANCISCO
But with San Francisco's label as overly liberal and popular base of operations for anti-war protests, some locals felt uneasy seeing men and women in uniform walking the streets of San Francisco again.
"Not a lot of people here understand the military," said Sharon Orendorf, 32, a camera store clerk who came to San Francisco from Washington, D.C. four years ago. "You have a lot of artists who are against big corporations, against war. In San Francisco, there's more of a concentration of people with that view.
"I think a lot who are anti-military are not against the small guy," said Orendorf, about the young enlisted servicemembers. She said the "small guys" are only following orders and not making the policies which many liberals oppose.
But Fleet Week's patriotic-flavored celebrations which included spectacular aerial ballets from the Navy's Blue Angel flight demonstration team, a flotilla of Navy ships cruising under Frisco's Golden Gate, military parades, and a huge fireworks show all seemed to effectively quell any lingering anti-military sentiment about the weeklong return of uniformed men and women to the streets of San Francisco.
MARKETING FLEET WEEK
Besides Fleet Week's goal of hosting an event to show appreciation for past and present sea service veterans, organizers say it also educates citizens with little or no idea of what the servicemembers provide the nation.
Realizing Fleet Week's marketing value, military public affairs teams erected colorful information booths stocked with promotional giveaways adjacent to the popular Pier 39 tourist attraction in hopes of showcasing their service and connecting with the citizens whom the servicemembers serve and protect.
"I went to the one at Miramar," said Kao Phan, 26, of El Sobrante, Calif., about the only other time he's watched a Blue Angel performance. "We came down to see the Blue Angels again and check out the ships."
Phan and his buddy Sean Saelaw, 24, of Richmond, Calif., said even though they never considered military service, they still think the show by the Blue Angels and Fleet Week's other military attractions are worth enduring the notorious Bay Area traffic.
"We got stuck in traffic on the way over here, so we only saw them from the freeway," said Saelaw who has a sister in the Air Force. "Kids are fascinated by Fleet Week," he said. "If they have ships here, they can get on them and learn more about the Navy."
Both Saelaw and Phan said they supported efforts to bring a moth-balled Navy ship to dock in San Francisco as a museum and tour ship. Such a move is a contentious issue for many Bay Area residents, but Saelaw and Phan agreed it would be good public relations move and help educate the public about the military.
RECRUITING FLEET WEEK
Military recruiters were also busy handing out cards and hawking prospective new-joins. Marine recruiters rolled out a shiny red hot-rodded Humvee and erected a pair of pull-up bars. The Marines challenge to young men and women passing by ... "Come on. Get on my bar and give it a try."
Working the friendly Fleet Week crowd was a far different experience for Marine recruiter Sgt. Joseph J. Melanson, who faced taunting chants of "Murderer!" and "Baby killer!" when he visited San Francisco City College campus to talk to students about careers in the Corps.
"Pyschologically, it is very difficult to have somebody say that to you," said Melanson, 30, of Meriden, Conn., a former Camp Pendleton Marine who said he was very nervous about his daunting mission of recruiting two Marines each month in a very liberal San Francisco. "I came home that day and did not even want to talk to my wife. She knew," Melanson said.
"Fleet Week is a much healthier environment," Melanson said of his three days working under a bright red Marine recruiting tent on Pier 39. The Marines frequently set up recruiting booths at public events like Fleet Week in hopes of attracting tough, smart, young people to go to boot camp.
The "Pull-up Challenge," as the recruiters call one of their best marketing vehicles, tempts prospects to test their physical strength in public. They say the Pull-up Challenge is one of their most effective recruiting tools that puts the prospect into an instant relationship with a tough-looking Marine who barks encouragement while the crowd watches.
Marine Corps T-shirts, key chains, and stickers are the reward for those who perform pull-ups.
"It's very valuable, Melanson said. "There is very little military awareness here. In a lot of schools here," Melanson said, "recruiters are not allowed to prospect as they would in places like Texas," a traditionally pro-military region of the country.
Melanson says he expects his recruiting efforts during Fleet Week to land him at least 80 new Marines over the three years he'll be assigned in San Francisco.
BAY AREA BATTLE
Major Gen. Mike Myatt, former commander of the Camp Pendleton-based 1st Marine Division during Desert Storm, said he was pleased to see the positive week of military acceptance and support by San Franciscans for Fleet Week.
Myatt hung up his combat boots years ago and now leads operations at San Francisco's Marines Memorial Club, a posh R&R facility for current and former servicemembers with room rates well below those of the four and five-star resorts in the same neighborhood.
But Myatt is still in combat of sorts. He's fighting to get veterans more concerned for veterans. He said activities like Fleet Week are a good start but that there is much more be done. Now is a critical time, Myatt says, for vets in the Bay Area and throughout California. "There are tons issues in Sacramento that are veterans issues," Myatt said from his Suttter Street office. "Most veterans in California don't even know what the issues are."
Myatt's doormen say the busy "retired" Marine usually arrives to work before 7 a.m. His desk is blanketed with stacks of hotel paperwork as well as letters from generals, friends, and servicemembers who are constantly streaming in and out of the Marines Club. His e-mail is always full. His phone seems to never stop ringing.
"We can't leave our children unattended," Myatt said, referring to the current generation of Marines, sailors, soldiers and airmen serving.
"I think the older vets need to start getting concerned. I want to see the vets get out and vote so the politicians start to pay attention to veterans' issues." Myatt says polls show veterans traditionally are low percentage voters.
Myatt estimates 10-20 percent of San Francisco's 400,000 registered voters are veterans or have immediate family members who are veterans. That's why he's working with the Vets-to-Vote program and says if more veterans don't get active in the veterans community it will be the young servicemembers who are returning from combat duty in places like Afghanistan and Iraq who will suffer.
Myatt said recent visits to the Bay Area by the Marine Corps commandant, the chief of naval operations, the 3rd Fleet Commander, are key to gaining a foothold with the public and civilian leaders who support military events like Fleet Week.
"We are going to rebuild what we once had in the Bay Area," Myatt said.
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/20CEFBEC834F8DC685256DC0001B2F15?opendocument
Sempers,
Roger
:marine:
Story Identification Number: 2003101505655
Story by Gunnery Sgt. Matt Hevezi
SAN FRANCISCO(October 14, 2003) -- In a metro region once a huge hub for military operations, but then stripped clean of its soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines during the 1990's base closings, Bay Area residents warmly welcomed the 2,500 servicemembers who arrived Oct. 6-12 to wave their service's flag and help produce the annual military show known as Fleet Week.
During World War II, the Bay Area was home to more than 100,000 military men and women. Today there are less than 2,000.
The Army's Presidio, the Navy's Treasure Island, Alameda Air Station and Mare Island shipyard were just a few of the Bay Area's bustling military installations. They're all gone now.
With hoards of WW II, Korean War, Vietnam War and Desert Storm vets settling in and around San Francisco -- there are roughly 1.2 million veterans residing in northern California according to Veterans Administration -- following their service, Fleet Week organizers said it was no surprise when more than 1 million residents flocked to see Fleet Week's festivities.
Even with boiling international controversy over the Iraq invasion, citizens of every imaginable political persuasion came to meet, shake hands, take photos with, and thank the group of mostly sailors and Marines for their sacrifice and recent service overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"I cried when I saw the uniforms back," said lifelong San Francisco resident Tara T. Cronan, 42, a Bay Area real estate developer. "I voted to keep the military bases here. The military brings money here.
"When they came back from Desert Strom, San Franciscans were so mean to them," Cronan recalls. This is a very liberal city," she said as she sat along Sutter Street sidewalk cafe in downtown San Francisco. "I think it has to do with the gays here; that it's a congregation place for them because they are accepted here," Cronan said.
LIBERAL SAN FRANCISCO
But with San Francisco's label as overly liberal and popular base of operations for anti-war protests, some locals felt uneasy seeing men and women in uniform walking the streets of San Francisco again.
"Not a lot of people here understand the military," said Sharon Orendorf, 32, a camera store clerk who came to San Francisco from Washington, D.C. four years ago. "You have a lot of artists who are against big corporations, against war. In San Francisco, there's more of a concentration of people with that view.
"I think a lot who are anti-military are not against the small guy," said Orendorf, about the young enlisted servicemembers. She said the "small guys" are only following orders and not making the policies which many liberals oppose.
But Fleet Week's patriotic-flavored celebrations which included spectacular aerial ballets from the Navy's Blue Angel flight demonstration team, a flotilla of Navy ships cruising under Frisco's Golden Gate, military parades, and a huge fireworks show all seemed to effectively quell any lingering anti-military sentiment about the weeklong return of uniformed men and women to the streets of San Francisco.
MARKETING FLEET WEEK
Besides Fleet Week's goal of hosting an event to show appreciation for past and present sea service veterans, organizers say it also educates citizens with little or no idea of what the servicemembers provide the nation.
Realizing Fleet Week's marketing value, military public affairs teams erected colorful information booths stocked with promotional giveaways adjacent to the popular Pier 39 tourist attraction in hopes of showcasing their service and connecting with the citizens whom the servicemembers serve and protect.
"I went to the one at Miramar," said Kao Phan, 26, of El Sobrante, Calif., about the only other time he's watched a Blue Angel performance. "We came down to see the Blue Angels again and check out the ships."
Phan and his buddy Sean Saelaw, 24, of Richmond, Calif., said even though they never considered military service, they still think the show by the Blue Angels and Fleet Week's other military attractions are worth enduring the notorious Bay Area traffic.
"We got stuck in traffic on the way over here, so we only saw them from the freeway," said Saelaw who has a sister in the Air Force. "Kids are fascinated by Fleet Week," he said. "If they have ships here, they can get on them and learn more about the Navy."
Both Saelaw and Phan said they supported efforts to bring a moth-balled Navy ship to dock in San Francisco as a museum and tour ship. Such a move is a contentious issue for many Bay Area residents, but Saelaw and Phan agreed it would be good public relations move and help educate the public about the military.
RECRUITING FLEET WEEK
Military recruiters were also busy handing out cards and hawking prospective new-joins. Marine recruiters rolled out a shiny red hot-rodded Humvee and erected a pair of pull-up bars. The Marines challenge to young men and women passing by ... "Come on. Get on my bar and give it a try."
Working the friendly Fleet Week crowd was a far different experience for Marine recruiter Sgt. Joseph J. Melanson, who faced taunting chants of "Murderer!" and "Baby killer!" when he visited San Francisco City College campus to talk to students about careers in the Corps.
"Pyschologically, it is very difficult to have somebody say that to you," said Melanson, 30, of Meriden, Conn., a former Camp Pendleton Marine who said he was very nervous about his daunting mission of recruiting two Marines each month in a very liberal San Francisco. "I came home that day and did not even want to talk to my wife. She knew," Melanson said.
"Fleet Week is a much healthier environment," Melanson said of his three days working under a bright red Marine recruiting tent on Pier 39. The Marines frequently set up recruiting booths at public events like Fleet Week in hopes of attracting tough, smart, young people to go to boot camp.
The "Pull-up Challenge," as the recruiters call one of their best marketing vehicles, tempts prospects to test their physical strength in public. They say the Pull-up Challenge is one of their most effective recruiting tools that puts the prospect into an instant relationship with a tough-looking Marine who barks encouragement while the crowd watches.
Marine Corps T-shirts, key chains, and stickers are the reward for those who perform pull-ups.
"It's very valuable, Melanson said. "There is very little military awareness here. In a lot of schools here," Melanson said, "recruiters are not allowed to prospect as they would in places like Texas," a traditionally pro-military region of the country.
Melanson says he expects his recruiting efforts during Fleet Week to land him at least 80 new Marines over the three years he'll be assigned in San Francisco.
BAY AREA BATTLE
Major Gen. Mike Myatt, former commander of the Camp Pendleton-based 1st Marine Division during Desert Storm, said he was pleased to see the positive week of military acceptance and support by San Franciscans for Fleet Week.
Myatt hung up his combat boots years ago and now leads operations at San Francisco's Marines Memorial Club, a posh R&R facility for current and former servicemembers with room rates well below those of the four and five-star resorts in the same neighborhood.
But Myatt is still in combat of sorts. He's fighting to get veterans more concerned for veterans. He said activities like Fleet Week are a good start but that there is much more be done. Now is a critical time, Myatt says, for vets in the Bay Area and throughout California. "There are tons issues in Sacramento that are veterans issues," Myatt said from his Suttter Street office. "Most veterans in California don't even know what the issues are."
Myatt's doormen say the busy "retired" Marine usually arrives to work before 7 a.m. His desk is blanketed with stacks of hotel paperwork as well as letters from generals, friends, and servicemembers who are constantly streaming in and out of the Marines Club. His e-mail is always full. His phone seems to never stop ringing.
"We can't leave our children unattended," Myatt said, referring to the current generation of Marines, sailors, soldiers and airmen serving.
"I think the older vets need to start getting concerned. I want to see the vets get out and vote so the politicians start to pay attention to veterans' issues." Myatt says polls show veterans traditionally are low percentage voters.
Myatt estimates 10-20 percent of San Francisco's 400,000 registered voters are veterans or have immediate family members who are veterans. That's why he's working with the Vets-to-Vote program and says if more veterans don't get active in the veterans community it will be the young servicemembers who are returning from combat duty in places like Afghanistan and Iraq who will suffer.
Myatt said recent visits to the Bay Area by the Marine Corps commandant, the chief of naval operations, the 3rd Fleet Commander, are key to gaining a foothold with the public and civilian leaders who support military events like Fleet Week.
"We are going to rebuild what we once had in the Bay Area," Myatt said.
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/20CEFBEC834F8DC685256DC0001B2F15?opendocument
Sempers,
Roger
:marine: