After a few days of winding down, I am ready to give a brief report on the USSVI 2025 Convention in Orlando.
First, I have to give a huge shout out to our hosts. The Central Florida, South Lake Florida and Snug Harbor Bases were outstanding in their support, and it was awesome to see the “Red Hats” in every corner of the resort. Thanks to Ken Nichols, SE Regional Director also for his warm welcome. We arrived early on Sunday afternoon after a short flight from Charleston SC and the registration desk people were ready for us. Our packages included the exact tours and events that we had pre-registered for and we were ready to begin our week.
The resort that was the host hotel (Rosen Shingle Creek) was nothing less than classic and well appointed. I have been to dozens of conferences over the span of my second career, and the facility was really among the most luxurious I can remember. From the architecture to the art, you could tell that some thoughtfulness had gone into building the hotel. We had a chance to sample the pools and restaurants, and it was nice to have places to go between work and meetings. The staff was amazing in every detail and made us feel at home.
The room prices were very good for us, and we managed to navigate well between the food venues and planned meals. One small suggestion would have been to have had some coffee stations in the vender and hospitality rooms. But I do understand that costs would be impacted if those amenities were provided. The plus side to the resort was that we got a lot of steps in. The wife and I were averaging nearly ten thousand steps a day, but the exercise was great since we had such amazing meals. Thanks to our hosts for arranging generous discounts for the participants at each of the restaurants.
The food was very good overall, and the execution of the planned meals (Holland Breakfast, Ladies and Gentlemen’s Lunch and Awards Banquet) was outstanding. The hotel staff went out of their way to make sure each experience was done in a very highly professional manner. We had a small glitch at the banquet when one of our tables was MIA, but the staff responded in lightning speed to correct the issue. It must have brought us luck since we ended up having three major awards for our base. (More about that later.)
In the opening brief, the hosts reminded us to enjoy the fellowship and relaxation as well as meeting old shipmates.
This was especially pleasant for me since I saw so many friends that I have known from a distance for many years. Whether it was Facebook or the leansubmariner, we met with so many people and instantly had a connection. In fact, my first mate was kind of surprised that so many people knew me from all of the years I have been on social media and of course the blog.
What was truly special was that people like Martha and her husband Rik from the Snug Harbor Base were as warm and genuine in person as they had been online. It was an honor to meet two people who so exemplify the comradery of the submarine community in person. Happy 60th anniversary to you both and many more to come.
Also, a Happy Birthday to my brother Rod. Remember that 70 is the new 50.
I really enjoyed reuniting again with people from my past like Kenny Hicks.
Kenny was one of my chiefs from over fifty years ago who made a real impact on my life. I readily admit that my first four years were not indicative of the rest of my career as I tried to find my center. Kenny was my chief on the Halibut and kept me from going too far off the range. After I came to a better place in my life, I often used his leadership style and coolness under pressure to finally come to a position of leadership that hopefully did the right things. Considering my career path that followed, we must have done something right. It’s funny how life comes full circle since my USSVI base commander was also a friend of Kenny’s from the old Halibut days. I often think the Navy could do well by naming a future submarine after the Halibut. At least one can wish.
Some play some work
The other task I had while there was helping to man the table for the USSV Charitable Foundation. It was great to see my team leadership and fellow members in person as we continue to educate the community about what the foundation does. You can read more about that by checking out our new web site. There are detailed instructions on the web site on how to access the various funds as well as ways you can contribute to the foundation.
Financials: Our drawing and the silent auction took in $2,465 in cash (on its way to the bank now). Additionally, we brought in several thousand in plastic payments (Bob has that number but it’s in the two or three thousand range).
Since many of us are getting to the later stages of our lives, estate planning is becoming more of a priority. Also becoming more of a priority is what we will leave behind. Estate planning services are available and I would highly recommend you use some method to plan for what happens when you are gone.
From our Charitable Foundation Vice President, George Palmer:
Ken Earls won the Joe Negri Award (our highest honor, see recommendation letter attached)
Congratulations Ken. Very Well deserved
By the way, meet our New Mascot:
Home Base:
The last part of our journey included getting to know our fellow Charleston area folks better. We had a large group of us and enjoyed our time together. From the moment we left our house until the moment we returned, we were surrounded by friends that helped make our days a lot brighter and more enjoyable. This is the true essence of what comradery should be. Getting to know people and sharing our stories was a blessing and certainly something that has been meaningful in our lives.
The work we have done is indicative of many bases but this year, we were blessed to receive a number of awards.
From the Base Awards Committee:
Charleston Base,
As Special Events Coordinator, I am pleased to inform you that we were all big winners at the 2025 USSVI National Convention this past week.
1) Charleston Base was recipient of the Meritorious Base Award for Class 1 (Large) Bases. Our citation included our involvement in local activities such as the Amberjack/Lost Boats Annual Memorial Service, Coastal Carolina Fair, Patriots Point Pearl Harbor Memorial, Coastal Coffee Roasters Tolling of the Boats, The Wall That Heals and The Hunley Museum and Annual Memorial for sinking of HL Hunley submarine and USS Housatonic. It also noted our efforts to maintain The Little David and the Cold War Memorial in addition to our involvement in NNPTC Graduation Ceremonies. We also granted 2 large scholarships last year.
2) In addition, our very own Nick Nichols was recipient of the National Commanders Robert Link Award, which is the equivalent of the Navy Commendation Medal. There is only one of these awards given each year. Nick was recognized for his 18 years as Chaplain and 17 years as Webmaster for Charleston Base. His citation included his numerous accomplishments over the past year, one of which was the addition of Associate Members in Charleston Base. There are several other significant accomplishments.
3) And lastly, our very own Dave Harvey was recipient to the Meritorious Individual Award for his efforts in The Coastal Carolina Fair, Thresher Memorial Float renovation, Fund Raising for USS Cobia and his leadership in the planning and coordination of the 2025 Southeast Regional Conference in March.
Well done to all of you who contributed to these efforts. Please be sure to attend our meeting this Thursday and help to congratulate our very deserving award winners. And pat yourselves on the back for helping to win the Base Meritorious Award!
Thomas (Tom) Holcombe
From Mister Mac:
On a personal note, I can think of few other people who deserved the awards given last week as much as our leadership and our base.
Nick Nichols is a shining example of what a brother of the Phin looks like and acts like. On submarines, we counted on each other for our safety and security, we relied on each other in the hardest of times and never once walked away from a shipmate in need, even when they brought that thing on themselves through poor judgment. Nick is the guy who led the efforts then and carries on that tradition today.
He makes sure that we live up to the goal that everyone from E-1 to 0-4 (and their families) sees by his actions that we are a family.
In my short 71 years on this planet, I have never known another man that lived his convictions with such dedication.
David Harvey is also relentless in making sure our culture stays in the front of everything he does. I have seen base commanders that try to do what he does, but not many can compete.
I see nothing but great things for the Charleston Base in the years to come.
A special thanks to Tom Holcombe for making sure the awards team got the best recommendations possible for the base and for our team.
He exemplifies the phrase “Brotherhood of the Phin.”
To the Charleston Base: You make me happier each month that you allowed me to become a member. All of you set the bar very high for what a submarine family should look like.
Why do we gather after all of these years?
Serving on a submarine is a unique experience in and of itself. Being qualified to do so is the mark of distinction.
The shared sacrifice along with the shared growth as a person make for a combination that is something that stays with you all the days of your life. The qualification process hones the mind and spirit in a way that is completely different. Not that other fields don’t have their own unique standards but meeting our standards under the unique pressure of serving on a submarine while doing so makes our breed pretty exceptional. Achieving the designation requires an unmatched dedication to excellence and once you are “qualified” you become part of a community that is different from every other. That is why we gather and refresh old friendships with some while building new relationships with others. The common denominator is the sense of achievement that comes from having that shared outcome.
We are Submariners.
I look forward to seeing what the folks in Corpus Christi are planning for our family. I’m sure it will be remarkable.
https://ussvcf.org/2026-ussvi-national-convention/
theleansubmariner 
An enjoyable edition USSVCF Executive committee appreciate your support and commitment to our community.
It is a great honor to serve our community in this small role.
Bob