After Action Review of my Philly Tour: The Big Blue Marble

It was great to be back in the old city. I hit a few of my old haunts for good measure. The highlights were of course, finally meeting Flavius Jankauskas (one of the heroes in the book) and visiting readers at the Big Blue Marble Bookstore. (More on Flavius next week.)

The Big Blue Marble Bookstore is in Mt. Airy, a lovely neighborhood in Philadelphia. Sadly, I had never been there while living in Philly. Seeing it now, I sure wish I had. It’s filled with great big homes and warm neighbors. And, there is a cool co-op a few doors down from the bookshop.

I enjoyed my time getting to know Maleka and Mo, the shop’s keepers. They were surprised when I said my home base was Pittsburgh. What a drive!

The shop itself is a marvel. It’s not that unlike my own home. It was built more than 100 years ago, including 3 floors filled with books, and creaky narrow staircases. I loved it! They had a great children’s area downstairs and a delicious café upstairs- where the readings happen.

We had a small crowd who came because they love ham radio (Saul was our evening ham expert) or were simply interested in learning about a new topic. Even the young readers were intrigued by the subject matter. All in all- a good show. Thanks Blue Marble. I hope to return one day soon.

Frank William Crilley, Medal of Honor Winner

As a curious young girl, I was always in things I shouldn’t be- scaling closest shelves and plumbing the depths of attics to uncover hidden Christmas presents, foraging through drawers for secrets unknown, and rummaging through hidey-holes for stashed candy and treats. So naturally, after some thorough scavenging work, I came across my great-grandfather’s story. Tucked away in a cold, metal filing cabinet, I discovered a yellowing newspaper clipping with a colorful illustration of a diver, replete with large, metal, ominous helmet, surrounded by sharks of varying sizes and ferocity and an article detailing the heroic deeds of Frank William Crilley.

My great grandfather was a diver for the navy in the early twentieth century. A man who, as family traditions murmurs, taught Amelia Earhart how to dive. He wore the cumbersome, metal helmets, the ones seen in old Scooby-Doo episodes, a number of which account for the décor in my family home. While he was diving off the coast of Honolulu, one of his fellows, William F. Loughman, became trapped in the water, his air hose jeopardized. In danger not only of entrapment, but also of the pressure generated by the depth of the water, Loughman needed immediate attention. My great-frandather realized all of this. I can only imagine the tumult of emotions that must have assaulted him. Shock. Confusion. Fear. And finally determination, his single-mindedness in rushing to his friend’s aid. Under water for two hours and eleven minutes, my great-grandfather surfaced with Loughman, alive.

Frank William Crilley received a Medal of Honor for his courageous deed that day and recently a dive school in San Diego, California was named after him. Another building is also dedicated to the memory of my great-grandfather, located in the Navy Yard in Washington, DC. In addition to his Medal of Honor, he was awarded a Navy Cross. My own father, his grandson, followed in his footsteps and became a diver as well.

It is always amazing to discover pieces of your personal history. The awe of unearthing where your ancestors came from and the connections they have to your life is a bridging moment, an instance where history and the present flow together as one. All are alive in yourself and therefore society. When that history is alive and ebbing beneath the communal body the present and future are illuminated. To know that my great-grandfather not only participated in history but lives on written down and memorialized feels like a tribute to me and the person I am in some small way and I can only hope to add myself to that living memory.

Writer of this article, Mariah Crilley, has joined Lisa Spahr in promoting World War II Radio Heroes while a student at Chatham University.

Join me in Philadelphia on September 18th!

It will be so good to be back. I love and miss Philadelphia. I spent 2003-2007 at Temple University studying Psychology. I lived in the West, North and Art Museum areas. Boy, those were the days!

I'll be back the week of Sept 16-19. I'd love to see you at the Big Blue Marble Bookstore in Mt. Airy on Friday September 18th at 7 PM. I'll be signing books and doing a reading. Check out this link for more information and directions!

http://www.bigbluemarblebooks.com/events.html

Join me on August 20th on American Heroes!

On August 20, 2009, Conversations with American Heroes at the Watering Hole will feature an interview of Lisa Spahr the author of WWII Radio Heroes: Letters of Compassion.

Program Date: August 20, 2009

Program Time: 1700 hours, Pacific

Topic: WWII Radio Heroes: Letters of Compassion

Listen Live:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement/2009/08/21/WWII-Radio-Heroes-Letters-of-Compassion

About the Guest
Lisa Spahr, a former volunteer firefighter, "is an investigative psychologist who owns a life coaching and consulting business in Pittsburgh PA. Ms. Spahr has an extensive history in the field of research for universities and private organizations, focusing on law and psychiatry research, military applications, and policing operations and tactics. Examples of her work include: examining the construct of psychopathy in prisoner and juvenile populations, and creating guidelines for suicide bomb response for police officers in the United States.
Lisa Spahr said of WWII Radio Heroes: Letters of Compassion, "More than 60 years had gone by before I found them. Dozens and dozens of letters written to my family during WWII- from total strangers- to tell my great-grandmother that her son had been captured and was being held as a POW. How did they know this? Well, it seems that the short-wave radio had held all of the answers. POWs were allowed to state their names and hometowns on the radio, and sometimes relay a short message to their families. Scores of Americans, listening to the German propaganda from so far away, heard my grandfather's information, and took it upon themselves to write to my great-grandmother. All of these dear people wanted to give my great-grandmother a measure of comfort to know her son was alive."

About American Heroes Radio
American Heroes Radio broadcasts from the Watering Hole; for a location heroes go off-duty to blow off steam and talk about work and life. Sometimes funny; sometimes serious; but, always interesting.

About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a
bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a Criminal Justice Department chair, faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in Law Enforcement, public policy, Public Safety Technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in Law Enforcement.

Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement/2009/08/21/WWII-Radio-Heroes-Letters-of-Compassion

Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530

Radio During the Golden Age

Jerry Harris of Ashland MA wrote a wonderful article about radio during WWII. Definitely check it out.


http://www.wickedlocal.com/ashland/news/lifestyle/columnists/x1911310777/OPINION-Remembering-radios-golden-era

Fresno California Invites WWII Radio Heroes to a Radio Near Them!

Mark your calendars for July 25, 2009 at 4 PM (EST).

Listen for me on KMJ 580 with Paul Loeffler. Paul does an outstanding job of recognizing our brave men and women- and those who support them. His show is called Home Town Heroes.

http://www.kmj580.com/pages/paulloeffler

If you miss the broastcast, you can listen to the Podcast from his site.

Thanks Paul. It was a pleasure to be on your show!

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS PUT TO THE TEST — FIELD DAY 2009

Local Radio Operators Test Emergency Communications During Nationwide Event

PRESS RELEASE

Wednesday, June 09, 2009

New Kensington, PA – MEMBERS OF THE SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY WILL BE PUTTING
THEIR RADIO SKILLS TO THE TEST DURING THE ANNUAL FIELD DAY EVENT, SPONSORED
BY THE AMERICAN RADIO RELAY LEAGUE. THE 2009 FIELD DAY WILL SPAN 27 HOURS
STARTING SATURDAY, JUNE 27 AT 2 PM, RUNNING THROUGH 5 PM SUNDAY, JUNE 28.
FIELD DAY IS DESIGNED TO TEST AMATEUR RADIO OPERATORS’ SKILLS AND
CAPABILITIES UNDER ADVERSE EMERGENCY CONDITIONS, SUCH AS THOSE EXPERIENCED
DURING HURRICANE KATRINA. FIELD DAY OPERATORS FACE THE CHALLENGE OF QUICKLY
SETTING UP AND RUNNING 2-WAY RADIO STATIONS UNDER SIMULATED EMERGENCY
CONDITIONS WHERE COMMERCIALLY GENERATED POWER IS NOT AVAILABLE. ALTERNATIVE
ENERGY SOURCES INCLUDING GASOLINE GENERATORS, BATTERY, AND SOLAR WILL BE USED
TO POWER ALL THE RADIO AND COMPUTER EQUIPMENT BEING USED IN THE EVENT.
PRESIDENT OF THE SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY, LARRY KELLER (AB3ER) SAYS, "ONE
OF OUR GOALS DURING THE 2008 FIELD DAY EXERCISE IS TO RAISE AWARENESS WITH
THE PUBLIC AND EMERGENCY OFFICIALS. IT’S IMPORTANT THAT COMMUNITIES KNOW
THAT WHEN AN EMERGENCY ARISES, WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO SEND AND RECEIVE
CRITICAL INFORMATION, EVEN WHEN ALL OTHER MEANS OF COMMUNICATIONS HAVE
FAILED."
THE SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY MEMBERS WILL BE OPERATING RADIOS FROM THEIR
CLUBHOUSE LOCATION NEAR NEW KENSINGTON AS WELL AS A SECOND FIELD STATION AT
TOWNSEND PARK IN MURRYSVILLE, PA. THE PUBLIC IS INVITED TO OBSERVE, ASK
QUESTIONS AND EVEN "GET ON THE AIR" FOR THE FIRST TIME IF THEY’D LIKE.
IN ADDITION TO EXCHANGING INFORMATION WITH OTHER RADIO OPERATORS BY VOICE,
THE SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY CLUB MEMBERS WILL BE USING ONE OF THE OLDEST FORMS
OF DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS - CW - MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS MORSE CODE. THEY WILL
ALSO BE USING LEADING EDGE TECHNOLOGIES SUCH AS SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS AND
COMPUTER SOUNDCARD-BASED COMMUNICATIONS MODES.
"SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY IS A VERY PROGRESSIVE AND FRIENDLY CLUB, ESPECIALLY
WHEN IT COMES TO SHOWING PEOPLE WHO HAVE LITTLE OR NO RADIO EXPERIENCE WHAT
WE DO. WE WANT TO ENCOURAGE ANYONE INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE ABOUT AMATEUR RADIO TO VISIT EITHER OR BOTH OF OUR FIELD DAY SITES. VISITORS WILL BE
GREETED WITH A WARM WELCOME, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW OFF SOME OF WHAT AMATEUR RADIO IS ALL ABOUT," SAYS DAVID KLEBER
(KB3FXI), COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN OF THE SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY.
MORE INFORMATION, SUCH AS DIRECTIONS TO THE FIELD DAY LOCATIONS, CAN BE FOUND
AT THE SKYVIEW RADIO SOCIETY WEBSITE AT WWW.SKYVIEWRADIO.NET.

Contact:
David Kleber, KB3FXI
412-720-0210
David.Kleber@verizon.net
Skyview Radio Society
2335 Turkey Ridge Road
New Kensington, PA 15068
www.skyviewradio.net