Home Page of Hoffman Island Radio Association
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TRAINING ORGANIZATION, WAR SHIPPING ADMINISTRATIONHOFFMAN ISLAND RADIO ASSOCIATION
A social organization, Hoffman Island Radio Association is mainly composed of graduates, instructors and staff at Hoffman Island Radio School. The school was operated by the United States Maritime Service in New York Harbor between the years 1944 and 1945. Presently, Hoffman Island Radio Association (HIRA) boasts of approximately 165 full and associate members. Although HIRA is mainly a social organization, its membership is dedicated to preserving their memories of Hoffman Island Radio School and their service as radio operators in the Merchant Marine.REUNION - MAY 20-23, 2008 GRAND RAPIDS
2008 Reunion is to be May 20th to 23rd... Try to be there for 2008!!!
The Hoffman Island Radio Assn. 17th annual reunion will be at Holiday Inn Crown Plaza, Grand Rapids, MI 49546. The room rate is $85,and a registration fee per person is $85. Reservations - 1-800227-6963 or 606-957-1770.
Registrations may be mailed to Wm.. Meyers, 1991 Burning Woods Court SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-8249.Hoffman Islanders, Gallups Islanders, other ROs, and USN Armed Guard Veterans are welcome to join us.
BEGINNINGS
Our past President Richard Waechter was the catalyst in the formation of the Hoffman Island Radio Association. He was ably assisted by five other Hoffman Islanders at a meeting in 1989 in Pennsylvania, PA The full story appears in our September 1997 newsletter.NEWSLETTER
Tales of Hoffman, published quarterly, contains stories of Hoffman Island, letters to the editor, poems, sea stories, and many items of interest. Upon joining Hoffman Island Radio Association, you will be supplied with all the back issues of Tales of Hoffman. Reading these newsletters will bring you up to date on our group.ARCHIVES
Hoffman Radio Archives donated to Ft. Wadsworth. HIRA had a rather impressive collection of artifacts in its archives. Included were uniforms worn at Hoffman Island, study manuals, FCC licenses, photos about Hoffman and Swinburne, photo albums of almost all graduating classes, various uniform insignia, seamen wallets, training tapes, World War II posters, biweekly newsletters during the war, our quarterly newsletter from 1990 - 2007, autobiographies of cadets, stories about Capt. Harry Manning, who was our Superintendent - waiting for a great job as skipper of the SS United States!Some of the artifacts were brought to our annual Reunions and were eagerly sought after. Some have been duplicated, i.e. histories, newsletters, photos, etc. We will have to go back if there are some items which we really want to look again.
The island still stands, although there is nothing there except bushes and some lonely trees for the birds. Fort Wadsworth is only two miles away northwest from Hoffman and the two areas were full of History during war and peace. The fine National Park below the huge Verrazzano Bridge looks back to Brooklyn and to the ocean which was a wet backyard to our school. A fitting place to return our items.
AUTOBIOGRAPHIES
HIRA is encouraging all its members and others who served as merchant mariners during WWII to document their personal experiences of their Merchant Marine service. These personal histories will be complied and disseminated to various university/college libraries. Besides written autobiographies, tapes of oral histories taken at our Cape Cod Reunion are currently available at the library on Ellis Island.
Silent Keys:
Richard F. Waechter on May 15, 2008 at 5:05am. We are blessed that he had family around him and passed peacefully. I need to tell you all that HIRA was dear to him.
James Burger passed away surrounded by his wife and all of his children in July 2007
Ed Simpson passed away July 8, 2007. Doris told us that his battle came to an end with family surrounding him. The reunion was his final contribution to HIRA - insisting that he would plan, execute and attend the event in spite of failing health. He will surely be missed as our archivist, past President & Vice President, friend, and fellow man. God bless and comfort his family during the days ahead.
Donald Hall, R-19 of Hoffman Is. December 12, 2006
Charles Fies, R-18. October 17, 2006 - He had a most interesting life. We mourn these RO's passing! The new Tales of March 2007 has a wonderful story for Charles & his wife.
Ed Janes passed away on April 7, 2005 It is with great sadness that I tell you of another passing. Former President , VP, Ed Janes passed away on April 7, 2005, exactly 1 week after being diagnosed with esophageal cancer. He first experienced problems in February, so the fight while heroic was short. We all will miss "Big Ed"
John Murray, July 8, 2004 at his home in San Antonio, TX
Robert C. Haen, Alden, NY and Florida, passed away December 26, 2003.
Cody Totman, 1001 N. 35th St., Phoenix, AZ Sept. 2003
Bernard Mueller, Bernardsville, NJ Dec. 12, 2003
P. J. Nicholson
Alex Phillian (R-5), West Paterson, NJ
Ray Smith, (R-5), Alexandria, VA
Ralph S. Paden, (R-16) Naples, Florida
Leo Spagnoli, R-41, suffered a heart attack May 2002
Thomas B. Newell, 19593 Parke Lane, Groselle, Mi 48138 passed away May 7, 2003
John Brundage
Eugene J. Beuhler, Washington, D.C. January 2, 2003, former Secretary and Charter Member.
Edward Van Beverhoudt, 176 Larkin Court, Stratford, Ct. passed away in May, 2003. (Ed was a Tennis Judge and a member of the Connecticut Tennis Hall of Fame.)
Eugene Cartwright, WWII radio operator, passed away on April 8, 2003 and a memorial service was at the Hinsdale, Illinois United Methodist Church, April 11. Eugene served as a television engineer and manager and received the Silver Circle Award from the Television Academy.
Bill Yerger (R-26), Fifty-year Radio Op and late Editor of our New Tales of Hoffman
