Looking back always invokes a look forward. Not only does D1SR have terrific leadership, locally in COMO Malewski and DCOS Formato, but also in the Director’s Office and in Boston, through CDR Moose/DIRAUX, CAPT Black/Chief of Prevention and Rear Admiral Fagan. You may be aware in fact of the expanded Boating Safety Instruction signed and issued by D1 (attached.) It includes, as part of wide-ranging commitment by active-duty to support us in RBS, a new VSC program called the Responsible Boater program. Under it, when active-duty comes alongside a vessel with a valid VSC sticker on it, the skipper is entitled to an “abbreviated boarding.”
What’s that?
An abbreviated boarding means that the Coast Guard will check for appropriate life-jackets for all aboard, that you have a sound-producing device, flares, registration and fire extinguisher (if required for the vessel of your size) aboard. That’s it. We can “sell” that at the dock, with ease, I’d guess. Also, under the new Responsible Boater program, the boarding officer will tell the skipper whose boat has failed the boarding inspection to contact us, get the violation fixed and recorded as such on the Vessel Safety Check form (that the Vessel Examiner will give you), mail them both in (Report of Boarding and VSC form) and, very likely, the Hearing Officer will note that and no fine will be levied. Fines can run high so this is free insurance! In short, we now have active-duty working to help us conduct VSCs!
As you may recall from last Memorial Day, D1SR and D1NR adopted a common motto – Be There, First! And what does “Be There, First” mean? A lot of things – all of them good…
1. Community needs boating safety classes – Be there, First!
2. Marina needs vessel safety checks – Be there, First!
3. Boat shop needs some program visitor brochures – Be there, First!
4. Report of a fuel sheen on a bay – Be there, First!
5. Private Aids on station or not – Be there, First!
6. Sector needs pictures of shoaling (or ice formation) – Be there, First!
7. Mayday, mayday, mayday – Be there, and be there fast, First!
Story continued on next page.
Immediate Past District Commodore's Message
6 OVER THE BOW - Spring 2015
Shipmates,
With Memorial Day aft of us, we look back in gratitude and honor to those service members who paid the highest price possible for our freedoms. To many of us, this isn’t theoretical as we either have service member currently/nerve-wrackingly under arms, or returned to us from active-duty in war zone(s) (hopefully safely) or, immensely sadly, have family service member(s) lying in God’s loving arms.