The Next Generation
Captain Pete Clarke,
Renee Cotsis,
Richard Heller, Esq.
Renee Cotsis, 16 year old student at Warwick
Valley High School in Warwick, NY, heard about Richard Heller, Esq.,
an Officer and Director of the NY Council of the US Navy League and member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary, who had been donating books for 17 years to the submarines
based at Groton, Connecticut. She began a project at her school to collect
books for the sailors on the submarines, and after amassing forty boxes,
contacted Mr. Heller about what to do next. He contacted Captain Peter
Clarke of Submarine Squadron Two in Groton who agreed to meet with Renee.
On Feb. 15, 2010, Captain Clarke, and Mr. Heller met with Renee in
New York, and thus began the formal commencement of what Renee had named "Stories
for Sailors."
Captain Clarke kindly agreed to coordinate with his staff in Groton initially,
and then looked forward to extending the program to submarine bases in
Norfolk, Virginia and Kings Bay, Georgia, with the hope that, as the
program expands, the project would go nationwide.
Clarke explained what life is like for the young sailors between 18 and
25 years old serving on our nation's all-nuclear submarine fleet during
their extended missions under the oceans where contact with land and others
is drastically reduced. He described how their attention to their jobs
necessitated strict focus but that availability of recreation in the narrow
submarines is quite restricted. He noted that they are especially appreciative
for receiving books, CDs, and DVDs that might enliven their 30 to 60 day
under-sea missions.
