‎3 September 1967. Tidbits of History - NMCB-11 Seabees: This was the infamous day of frequent and heavy artillery attacks on the Forward Combat Base at Dong Ha, Vietnam with a resultant 8-hour period of continuous concussion and shock waves from the fires and 20,000 tons of ammunition exploding in the Ammunition Supply Point (ASP) Depot. A total of 35 Purple Heart Medals and 31 Letters of Commendation were awarded to NMCB-11 Seabees for battle injuries and performance during this attack and others in September. MCB-11 Association Historian.

2 September 1945. History Tidbits. The Japanese surrendered, and all Subic Bay facilities in the Philippines were operating at capacity. The 11th, 80th, 102nd and 115th NCBs, plus the 21st Special Battalion and half of the 24th Battalion, as well as CBMU-543 and CBD-1082, were still operating at the base. The 11th Battalion would continue their work at Subic Bay until December 1945 when they were decommissioned with most other Seabee battalions at the end of WWII. MCB-11 Association Historian.

1 September 1953. History Tidbits. CDR James Castanes, CEC, USN, became the CO of NMCB-11 relieving LCDR Allison D. Froman, CEC, USN, who was the acting CO from August 1953. CDR Castanes would be the CO of record when the Battalion was formally commissioned on 14 September 1953 in Port Hueneme, CA. The Battalion was commissioned in response to the Korean War, but she would not serve in Korea, serving instead in the Philippines where construction of the huge Cubi Point/Subic Bay military complex was underway to support political and military objectives. MCB-11 Association Historian.

To all the fellow Bees of ELEVEN who will be attending the reunion next week.  Have a safe trip whether driving or flying.  Looking forward to seeing you there.

I was in MCB 11 A Co. on it's first tour to DaNang in 1966.

10 August 2010. History Tidbits. The new NMCB-11 is currently deployed to eight countries around the world. The 9 August edition of Navy Times shows the battalion deployed to the following areas: the Philippines; Guam; Japan; South Korea; Diego Garcia; East Timor; Cambodia; and Vietnam. The Can Do tradition of NMCB-11 is alive and well as they build for peace with freedom around the world. MCB-11 Association Historian.

A book I wrote titled "Hardest Job in the U.S. Navy Seabees" is available now through Author House Publishing Co. The link below has more information.

http://www.authorhouse.com/BookStore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=72863
Color 8.5x8.5 $20.00 or call 888-280-7715

The book has 100 photographs along with short stories from my two tours in Vietnam, 1967-1969,

MCB-10 and CBMU-301, I was located in the Northern I Corps area.

Life member,  Navy Seabee Veterans of America.

Island x-5, West Valley, AZ