USS Little Rock

Today I went down on the waterfront to the Buffalo Naval and Military Park and walked up on to the quarterdeck of the USS Little Rock. The Little Rock was my flagship when I served with the 6th Fleet for a six month deployment in the Mediterranean Sea. I had stood on this same deck 45 years ago in the Bay of Naples and saluted the flag. Saluting the flag was a ritual I did every day for four years. I did it again today. And then I respectfully took a knee, said a prayer and silently remembered the many sailors I served with in the military who have struggled then and now with the social injustices that no American should be subjected to in our country. My thoughts also included the neglect of our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico and the countless victims of needless gun violence. I enlisted in 1969 to protect and defend our freedoms including the right to peacefully and respectfully protest these injustices whenever and wherever. Then I went over to the Liberty Hound for a locally brewed beer.

I also took another look at this dental room on board the USS Little Rock. I sat in this same chair as a 20 year old sailor getting a couple of wisdom teeth pulled after a long boat ride across the Bay of Naples from my ship. There were not a lot of dentists in the 6th Fleet so when I had a problem with my wisdom teeth I had to wait for an opportunity to get it taken care of and that happened eventually when we were anchored near the Little Rock. I got in a boat and was taken over to where the Little Rock was anchored and went up the gangplank to the quarterdeck and came on board where I was shown the way to that chair.

Afterward I got a one day light duty chit.

I was really surprised when the Little Rock came to Buffalo as a permanent ship tied to the pier at the Naval Park and I was shocked to tour the ship knowing I had been on this ship before but seeing that dental office brought back some memories.