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Honoring Our Past

At the Spill Control Association of America’s (SCAA) recent Annual Meeting, held in Ypsilanti, MI, former Executive Director John Allen was honored by the Associations leadership, including current Officers, Board Members and Past Presidents.

As the Spill Control Association of America (SCAA) passes its 51st year in existence, we continue to look back and reflect upon our journey, as well as recognize our history. In the spirit of honoring our past, SCAA wanted to honor the past service of John Allen to the Association, but just as importantly, to our country. As SCAA’s long time Executive Director and Outreach Manager, John was instrumental in helping in both the growth and transitioning of the Association for more than a decade.

Upon graduation from Naval Officer Candidate School, Newport, RI, in 1967 followed by four months of diving and salvage training at the Naval School of Diving & Salvage, Washington Navy Yard, John’s 21-year naval career began aboard the fleet ocean, tug USS KIOWA (ATF-72), homeported in Little Creek, Virginia. He was assigned as Operations Officer and Ship’s Salvage Officer from 1967-1969. KIOWA was an ocean towing workhorse, towing a conventional submarine from the Panama Canal to New London, CT, and towing a disabled helicopter landing ship (LPH) off the East Coast to Norfolk, VA. USS KIOWA performed numerous target towing exercises for combatant ships and aircraft in the Virginia Capes exercise area. The towed target was a Williams Sled towed astern on a 1,000 ft. cable. John has two memorable towing experiences. A Navy destroyer started their shooting exercise coming close to the towed target but progressively shooting closer and closer to USS KIOWA before firing was called off. The other experience occurred during a fleet “Blue & Gold” exercise, with USS KOIWA posing as a Russian spy trawler. Two Navy destroyers pulled up close on the port and starboard side of the ship and suddenly the starboard destroyer made a hard left turn colliding with KIOWA, causing a large gash in the hull just forward of the engine room and causing flooding of one forward compartment. Only the quick action of the damage control team and lifting the Williams tow sled off the work deck to hang over the port side, raising the hole in the hull above the waterline, enabled KIOWA to limp into the port of Wilmington, NC for emergency repairs. John’s girlfriend at the time and his sister came to Virginia Beach and went aboard USS KIOWA for a “Tiger Cruise” with family and friends aboard. John suited up in the MK-5 Deepsea Diving suit, breastplate, helmet, weight belt, and boots and went over the side for a demonstration. He married his girlfriend a year later - go figure! John was honored initially in November of 2022 at a Clean Gulf reception following his retirement from SCAA. At that time, he was presented with a Certificate of Achievement and given the honorary position of Director, Emeritus with SCAA. Nelson Fetgatter, who was the sitting SCAA President at the time, suggested to several members of the Association’s leadership that an additional gift, and one that truly honored John’s legacy and life, might be in order.

During this past month’s SCAA Annual Meeting, Nelson and Brian House, SCAA’s current Executive Director and a Past President presented John with a custom-built scale model of the USN Kiowa (AT-72), the naval vessel that John had served on during his Naval career. Nelson had done some intensive research on the Kiowa’s history, and worked directly with the model maker to make sure it hit the mark.

During the presentation, Brian remarked, “Certainly, the name of Dave Usher comes to mind whenever the Spill Control Association of America is mentioned, as both its founder and cultural leader for so many years after its founding. At the same time, John Allen was a constant, dedicated and passionate voice of SCAA for much of the past fifteen years. It could be argued that his impact on SCAA is second only to Dave Usher’s, and therefore appropriate that we continue to recognize his contributions”.

Due to some last-minute travel constraints, John was unable to attend the meeting in person, but joined via a Zoom link and was able to interact directly with a number of his former work colleagues and industry friends. The model was subsequently shipped to John’s home in Virginia, where it is now proudly displayed.

Our past guides us. We cannot and should not forget where we have come from. Times change, challenges change, but dedicated service remains a constant we can all learn from. Thank you, John Allen for your service to SCAA, and to our Country!