“Are you ready for a boat ride?” The voice on the other end of my telephone belonged to Ricky Dunnington. I agreed enthusiastically, and Ricky told me to meet him at the “Raven” at 10:00 the morning of July 10. Ricky and his twin brother Bob own the “Raven,” a well-known Oceanside Virginia Beach, Virginia, restaurant.

Both are members of the Virginia Beach Lynnhaven Auxiliary Flotilla 57. Their assignment for that day was to patrol a designated sector of the Elizabeth River in their boat, the “Raven Rescue,” in support of Norfolk, Virginia’s 29th annual Harborfest.

Now, New York may have its “Fleet Week,” but Norfolk has a smaller but just as important event, with grand celebrations of its proud maritime history both ashore and afloat. The ritual always includes a parade of over 300 ships and vessels of every kind. The Coast Guard is responsible for ensuring that the afloat events run smoothly.

When I arrived at the Raven Restaurant, the Dunington Brothers were loading supplies (including our lunches) into their Raven Rescue Truck. This truck is a remarkable Auxiliary Radio facility with lots of electronic gadgetry and its own call sign, 5 India. I was given the seat of honor next to the driver so I could observe the action. I turned on my tape recorder to record radio traffic for possible use in my public education classes, while we were under way to the Ocean Marine complex in Portsmouth, VA, home port of the Raven Rescue vessel.

We arrived at the marina with some time to spare. The weather was cloudy, with intermittent rain drizzles, not good for the “Harborfest” but we were promised fair weather later on in the afternoon. Ricky showed me our patrol sector, from Hospital Point to Nauticus and the USS Wisconsin. It was called sector “A.” While waiting for the remainder of our crew Bobby was busy with a few vessel examinations.

At about 11:00, we were joined by Flotilla 57 members Roy Maurer and Bill Photinos who signed on as crew.

After checking in with our control, the USCG Cutter Kennebec, we got under way and headed for our northernmost patrol. While under way, we encountered many Coast Guard, Coast Guard Auxiliary, and Norfolk, Suffolk and Cheasapeake maritime police boats with missions similar to ours, on their way to their assigned sectors.

At about 3:00, we spotted the head of the ship parade; fireboats, spewing curtains of water. We sailed parallel to the parade until we came to its tail and then came about, turning in the same directions to ensure that the participant ships had a clear channel.
Here’s a lineup of some of the more interesting parade vessels:
“Virginia.” This 122’ pilot schooner is a replica of the last sailing pilot schooner which served the Chesapeake Bay from 1917 to 1926. The replica was built in Norfolk in 2004. It made its first public appearance in this parade.

“American Rover.” This 135’ replica of a 19th Century cargo schooner features red sails and offers cruises to the public.

“Godspeed.” A 68’ replica of the original vessel that sailed from London to Virginia in 1606.

“Kalmar Nyckel.” A 116’ replica of the Swedish ship that brought the first permanent European settlers in 1638.

“Serenity.” This traditional 65’ gaff-rigged schooner takes passengers for Chesapeake Bay sailing cruises. She was decked out as a pirate ship, a traditional role.

In addition to several Coast Guard and media helicopters, we saw a flyover by two Hawkeye E-2 Radar domed aircraft from Naval Station Oceana.

The very end of the parade featured the USS Fast Frigate “Elrod,” its crew manning the rails in their white uniforms. I noticed an uncovered 50 caliber machine gun, a grim reminder of the war on terrorism. Our vessel was proud to escort this warship as it turned at “Town Point” and headed back to its station.

After the last remaining parade participant left our sector, we joined a group of Auxiliary and police boat crews for a picnic dinner of hamburgers and hot dogs, at the US Naval Hospital Portsmouth Park. This event was hosted by the Coast Guard and enabled us to socialize with some of our active duty friends.

For the “Raven Rescue” crew, dinner did not end our duties. Before we could secure for the day, we still had to transport the Group Commander, LCDR Richard Condit, USCG, from the US Coast Guard Cutter “Block Island” to the Coast Guard Base in Portsmouth.

When asked what he thought of the ship parade, Condit said, “Harborfest is the largest public event (for the Coast Guard) in this area but the event gives me the fewest problems, because everybody knows what they are doing.”