THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 8, 1995 TAG: 9512080694
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ALVA CHOPP, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
Military ships take pride in their official seal.
Emblazoned on ball caps, coffee cups and unit patches, the seal is the official representation of the ship's mission and history.
It also represents the spirit of the crew.
So, when the time came to design an official seal for the John C. Stennis, the entire crew was asked to contribute ideas.
``There were four things we were looking for,'' said Lt. Cmdr. Walt Reed, spokesman for the commanding officer. ``First, it had to represent an aircraft carrier. We wanted people to immediately associate it with our ship.
``Then, it had to educate the crew on John Stennis' life and contributions to the U.S. Senate and his country,'' he said.
``It also had to represent the mission of the carrier. And most of all,'' he added, ``it had to look good.''
In addition to the crew, the ship asked for ideas from the U.S. Senate historian, the Stennis Space Center, Stennis Center for Public Service and Mississippi State University.
They ended up with 19 different designs.
Senior Chief Jacquelyn Bottos, the ship's draftsman and official artist, was tasked to put the finishing touches on the artwork.
She polished the designs, added the colors selected and mounted them for presentation. Then the crew was asked to select their favorite.
Not surprisingly, they selected the design that had been created using their own suggestions.
``I think it's one of the most impressive and colorful seals I've seen,'' said Buttos. ``When I look at it, it knock my socks off.''
The late senator's daughter and ship's sponsor, Margaret S. Womble, and Mrs. John Hampton Stennis, wife of the late senator's son, also approved the selection, as did Commander Naval Air Forces, Atlantic. A copy was sent to the Department of Defense's Center for National Heraldry.
The specific details in the seal are significant in many ways.
The four gold bands surrounding the seal and eight ties represent Stennis' four decades in the Senate and the eight presidents with whom he served.
The seven stars in the border remind us of his seven terms in the Senate and characterize the John C. Stennis as the seventh Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.
The 20 stars represent Mississippi, the 20th state, and the eagle and shield are a replica of the one overlooking the Old Senate Chamber.
The three arrows in the eagle's talons symbolize the three decades that Stennis served on the Senate Armed Services and Appropriations committees.
In the center, the carrier, cutting a powerful swath through the sea, exemplifies Stennis' philosophy of ``look ahead'' and his pledge to ``plow a straight furrow down to the end of the row.''
Embodied in the ship's hull are the principles Stennis upheld in his service to America - honor, courage and commitment. ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
IF YOU ARE GOING
The Navy has asked that guests arrive for the ceremony prior to
10 a.m. in order to allow enough time to park in satellite lots and
ride shuttle buses to the pier.
Buses begin operating at 7:30 a.m. and continue until 4 p.m.
General parking will be at the helicopter ramp on the Norfolk Naval
Air Station. Motorists should enter the base through Gate 3-A at the
north end of I-564 and Taussig Boulevard.
There will be enough seating for about 14,000 people along the
1,200-foot long pier. Cameras will be allowed and guests will be
invited aboard the carrier for a reception immediately following the
ceremony.
by CNB