2nd Class Petty Officer Patrick Casper
US Coast Guard – USCGC Taney
Machinist Mate
March 1971 – March 1975
US Coast Guard – USCGC Taney
Machinist Mate
March 1971 – March 1975
Patrick Casper was born in 1952 in Baltimore, MD. His dad was a Quarter Master in the Coast Guard which meant they moved frequently. Patrick spent time growing up in Oregon, California, New Jersey and Virginia Beach. In June of 1970 Patrick graduated from Lake Taylor High School in Virginia Beach. He then promptly received his draft notice in November of ’70. Patrick talked with his parents and his dad suggested Patrick join the Coast Guard. Patrick went to speak with the Coast Guard recruiter and at that time a certain amount of college was required to join. Fortunately Patrick had taken some collage classes in high School which helped him over that hurdle.
Patrick headed for Cape May New Jersey for 12 weeks of basic training. Patrick thought boot camp was tough and believed the Coast Guard had the toughest boot camp second only to the Marine Corps. Growing up in Virginia Beach he was very comfortable in the water, but he found the water aspect of basic training to be the toughest part. He remembers one drill where the cadets would jump fully clothed from a high dive board into the water. While treading water, they would take off their boots and pants and then tie each leg of the pants together. The next step was to put the pants around their neck with the knot behind their neck. The final step was to take the open end of the pants and thrust it into the water, so it filled with air. Instant life preserver. In a different drill they would be fully clothed and have to dive to the bottom of the pool and retrieve an 8x8x16 cinder block, bring it to the surface and place it on the edge of the pool.
Patrick was initially assigned to a ship out of Wilmington, NC as a mess cook. After only two weeks, one of the officers asked Patrick if he would like to go to school to become a Machinists Mate. Patrick said yes and the next day he was on his way to Great Lakes, IL for Machinists Mate school. After 10 weeks of school Patrick graduated, was promoted and assigned to the USCGC Taney. The Taney was located in California but was being transferred to the east coast. Patrick begged to go to California and return with the ship. His dream was to come through the Panama Canal but the Coast Guard said no.
Patrick spent most of his time in the Coast Guard aboard the Taney as the number two throttle man in the engine room. The Taney was commissioned in 1934, had gauges in the engine room dated 1919 and was at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The Taney escaped damage during the bombing and saw its share of action during WWII. The Taney tracked and gathered intelligence on Japanese ships and then later served as a convoy escort for US ships crossing the Atlantic.
In 1971 the Taney’s primary missions were weather patrols. They would leave Norfolk, VA and spend 42 days in the Atlantic collecting weather data. They would return home and then. The ship was 327’ long and could accommodate a helicopter landing pad. There were 156 men on board and Patrick knew each one of them. “There is no place to go. You get to know everyone.”
Patrick recalled being in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for training in August of 1972. They left there and headed to Montego Bay, Jamacia for some R&R but were called back to the ship because a big storm was coming in. They needed to get out into the open water because “the safest place for a ship to be in a storm is out in the middle of the water. We were in 60’ seas. It was a tough couple of days.” I asked Patrick if he was worried, and he said yes. “The ship was close to 40 years old and when we went up on top of a wave there was a lot of creaking noises.”
In March of ’75 Patrick left the Coast Guard and joined the Fire Department in Norfolk, VA. The training to become a fireman was tough but not nearly as tough as the Coast Guard. He thought the toughest part of the training was going into a smoke filled room to retrieve a dummy and bring it out of the building. Patrick enjoyed his time with the fire department and the friendships that he has to this day. Patrick said 95% of the calls they responded to were minor. Unfortunately, Patrick experienced the other 5% firsthand.
It was a Friday evening, and a mother and son were home around dinner time. The mother was frying fish on the stove while her six year old son was napping upstairs. The doorbell rang and she answered the door. While she was talking at the door, something happened, and the stove caught fire. When Patrick and his crew arrived, the mother was frantic and told them her baby was in the house. Patrick went into the house and found the little boy on the second floor, in the tub under a blanket. Patrick thinks the little boy woke up and saw that he couldn’t get past the flames to get down the stairs. He went into the bathroom and pulled a towel over his head and ultimately suffocated. Patrick carried him out of the house, handed him to the paramedics, sat down on the back of the fire truck and began to vomit. He told his captain he couldn’t do this anymore and he retired in late 1984 after 10 years on the job.
For the next 10 years Patrick sold fire protection equipment and then opened his own construction company. When he moved his company to Suffern, NY he had difficulty finding help and ultimately shut down the business and retired. Along the way Patrick met Laura on the internet and they were married
They have a blended marriage with 5 children, 6 grandchildren, one great granddaughter and one great grandchild on the way. “It’s an expensive holiday.”
He loved his time in the Coast Guard and there are times he wished he had stayed in and retired from the Coast Guard.
Thank you, Patrick for your service to your country and risking your life as a fireman for the citizens of Norfolk. Most of us will never know what that is like.
Patrick headed for Cape May New Jersey for 12 weeks of basic training. Patrick thought boot camp was tough and believed the Coast Guard had the toughest boot camp second only to the Marine Corps. Growing up in Virginia Beach he was very comfortable in the water, but he found the water aspect of basic training to be the toughest part. He remembers one drill where the cadets would jump fully clothed from a high dive board into the water. While treading water, they would take off their boots and pants and then tie each leg of the pants together. The next step was to put the pants around their neck with the knot behind their neck. The final step was to take the open end of the pants and thrust it into the water, so it filled with air. Instant life preserver. In a different drill they would be fully clothed and have to dive to the bottom of the pool and retrieve an 8x8x16 cinder block, bring it to the surface and place it on the edge of the pool.
Patrick was initially assigned to a ship out of Wilmington, NC as a mess cook. After only two weeks, one of the officers asked Patrick if he would like to go to school to become a Machinists Mate. Patrick said yes and the next day he was on his way to Great Lakes, IL for Machinists Mate school. After 10 weeks of school Patrick graduated, was promoted and assigned to the USCGC Taney. The Taney was located in California but was being transferred to the east coast. Patrick begged to go to California and return with the ship. His dream was to come through the Panama Canal but the Coast Guard said no.
Patrick spent most of his time in the Coast Guard aboard the Taney as the number two throttle man in the engine room. The Taney was commissioned in 1934, had gauges in the engine room dated 1919 and was at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The Taney escaped damage during the bombing and saw its share of action during WWII. The Taney tracked and gathered intelligence on Japanese ships and then later served as a convoy escort for US ships crossing the Atlantic.
In 1971 the Taney’s primary missions were weather patrols. They would leave Norfolk, VA and spend 42 days in the Atlantic collecting weather data. They would return home and then. The ship was 327’ long and could accommodate a helicopter landing pad. There were 156 men on board and Patrick knew each one of them. “There is no place to go. You get to know everyone.”
Patrick recalled being in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for training in August of 1972. They left there and headed to Montego Bay, Jamacia for some R&R but were called back to the ship because a big storm was coming in. They needed to get out into the open water because “the safest place for a ship to be in a storm is out in the middle of the water. We were in 60’ seas. It was a tough couple of days.” I asked Patrick if he was worried, and he said yes. “The ship was close to 40 years old and when we went up on top of a wave there was a lot of creaking noises.”
In March of ’75 Patrick left the Coast Guard and joined the Fire Department in Norfolk, VA. The training to become a fireman was tough but not nearly as tough as the Coast Guard. He thought the toughest part of the training was going into a smoke filled room to retrieve a dummy and bring it out of the building. Patrick enjoyed his time with the fire department and the friendships that he has to this day. Patrick said 95% of the calls they responded to were minor. Unfortunately, Patrick experienced the other 5% firsthand.
It was a Friday evening, and a mother and son were home around dinner time. The mother was frying fish on the stove while her six year old son was napping upstairs. The doorbell rang and she answered the door. While she was talking at the door, something happened, and the stove caught fire. When Patrick and his crew arrived, the mother was frantic and told them her baby was in the house. Patrick went into the house and found the little boy on the second floor, in the tub under a blanket. Patrick thinks the little boy woke up and saw that he couldn’t get past the flames to get down the stairs. He went into the bathroom and pulled a towel over his head and ultimately suffocated. Patrick carried him out of the house, handed him to the paramedics, sat down on the back of the fire truck and began to vomit. He told his captain he couldn’t do this anymore and he retired in late 1984 after 10 years on the job.
For the next 10 years Patrick sold fire protection equipment and then opened his own construction company. When he moved his company to Suffern, NY he had difficulty finding help and ultimately shut down the business and retired. Along the way Patrick met Laura on the internet and they were married
They have a blended marriage with 5 children, 6 grandchildren, one great granddaughter and one great grandchild on the way. “It’s an expensive holiday.”
He loved his time in the Coast Guard and there are times he wished he had stayed in and retired from the Coast Guard.
Thank you, Patrick for your service to your country and risking your life as a fireman for the citizens of Norfolk. Most of us will never know what that is like.