From the Desk of a PMO: Supporting the Maine Maritime Academy or...How I Spent my 27th Wedding Anniversary (Sorry Linda...)

Sea Cadets listen while our Charleston PMO, Tim Kenefick relates sea stories.

This was my fifth deployment in support of the VOS Program with the Maine Maritime Academy.

I reported aboard the "State Of Maine" in Castine on the 2nd and debarked in Aruba on the 16th of May. This was an extremely profitable two weeks, and, no, I didn't hit the lottery. I felt a real sense of duty and interest in contributing to the "Big Picture" that has been instilled by Captain Larry Wade and the officers and faculty.

I delivered lectures to each of the companies of the 2/C Midshipmen on NOAA, NWS, the VOS program, and taking and submitting weather observations. Plus I also went over Tropical Cyclones, severe weather evasion, and the mechanics of meteorology. Beyond that, I fielded questions about weather and oceanography from all the deck and many of the engineering students, plus the faculty and other officers on the ship. They learned that I was vaccinated with a phonograph needle and I'm a man of a few thousand words.

I was highly impressed with this latest class of Midshipmen from Maine. They were always ready to do the weather observation, (once they realized that the times listed in the Captain's Night Orders were in UTC), and they were always asking questions and answering them. They actively noted techniques for estimating the amounts and height of the clouds, the best place to observe seas and swells, how to best judge the visibility, then how to determine what's going to happen with the weather and why! They were all ready to listen and learn...

Delta Company really impressed me. They asked me to spend an afternoon with them because they were not on the schedule to have my lectures, due to my rotation out in Aruba. This I was happy to do, even though I lost my voice after 4 hours of motor mouthing. They gladly gave up their free time; it was only right to give back to the tax payer his dollars worth!

All of these young people are real "eager beavers," and genuinely interested in what was going on, keeping on top of everything! If they are half as enthusiastic out in the fleet, as they were out on this cruise, the VOS program will definitely prosper in the future. Maine Maritime Academy has a real reason to be extremely proud of this up-and-coming class of mariners.

In closing, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Captain Larry Wade, Chief Mate Brendan McAvoy, 2/nd Mate Bill Erlanson, all the other officers and the faculty and the multitude of support personal-from Doc Iverson and Nurse Ellen, to all the engineering staff, John the IT guy, and Omar and his crew from Sodexho (who really put on quite a spread), the Admin and Supply and even Nancy the Ship's Barber (who has a well stocked library as I've seen in a Barber Shop in years), and the Bosun, Mark, who if it's on the ship, he knows where it is. They set aside time and place for me to "preach" the gospels of WMO, NOAA, NWS and the VOS Program, and I was listened to.

Can it get any better than three hots and a cot at sea? Not when you're with Maine Maritime!

Your at-the-sea reporter, Tim Kenefick, Portly Meteorological Officer Charleston, SC.

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