DATE: Thursday, May 1, 1997                 TAG: 9704300707

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Military 

                                            LENGTH:   65 lines

WEEKLY BRIEFING

IN GENERAL

NAVY-MARINE CORPS RELIEF DRIVE: The 1997 Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society Fund Drive will kick off Monday and continue through June 6 to raise funds for sailors, Marines and their families in time of need. In Hampton Roads last year, $3.8 million in loans and $223,000 in grants were given to families seeking emergency relief. The Society also provides budget counseling, post-secondary education scholarships and loans for dependent children of active duty personnel. Donations are accepted in the form of payroll deductions, checks or cash. The society also welcomes help from volunteers. Cmdr. Mike Colesar is the Hampton Roads point of contact. He can be reached at 444-2083.

VIETNAM SEMINAR: The Norfolk Campus of Tidewater Community College and the General Douglas MacArthur Memorial presents ``The American Experience in Vietnam,'' a one-day seminar Saturday at the MacArthur Memorial in Norfolk. Red McDaniel, executive director of the American Defense Foundation, will deliver the keynote address. Panels will discuss the origins of the war, the media's role, veterans' experiences and the conflict's outcome. For more information, call Helena Krohn at 683-9790.

FORT MONROE SALUTE: Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month will be saluted at Fort Monroe at 10 a.m. May 9 at the post theater. Featured will be Jaome (Heather Grimm), a Filipino-American and vocalist from Hampton. Also included will be dances from Pacific Ocean islands and a demonstration of a Japanese tea ceremony. The public is invited. For more information call 727-3692 during business hours.

FORT STORY FEST: Fort Story's Child Development Center and the U.S. Armed Forces Association will co-sponsor Kinderfest '97 from noon to 5 p.m. Friday to mark the end of the month of military child observance. Displays, carnival rides, face paintings, games and pony rides are among the festivities. Child safety seat inspections will be offered, as well as Ident-A-Kid. Events are free and open to the public. For more information call 422-7693.

SHIP VISITS: Three Navy ships will be open for visiting between 1 and 4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The guided-missile cruiser Normandy and the destroyer Deyo will be at the Norfolk Naval Station. Visitors should enter through Gate 2 at the North end of Hampton Boulevard. The dock landing ship Ashland will be at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. Visitors should use Gate 1 at Shore Drive and Little Creek Road.

G.W. MUSEUM OPENED: The carrier George Washington has opened its remodeled George Washington Room, which includes historic artifacts and items from the ship's history, including a recently donated letter signed by Pres. George Washington. The letter was donated by Timothy Forbes, chief operating officer of Forbes Magazine. Another signed letter also is being donated by two sisters who have family ties to the nation's first president.

FORT LEE HONORS HEROES: Fort Lee will mark Armed Forces Day observances at 1 p.m. May 17 at the Army post by honoring 46 Medal of Honor recipients who were from Virginia or who worked in a combat service support field during ceremonies. A plaque and walkway will be dedicated in their honor between the commissary and post exchange. Guest speaker will be Brig. Gen. Jack Mountcastle, a Virginian and commander of the Center of Military History in Washington. The event is free and open to the public.

COMINGS & GOINGS

The fast attack submarine Phoenix has returned to Norfolk from its final cruise, a three-month deployment to the North Atlantic where it steamed 21,000 miles and made only one port call, at Brest, France. The sustained operations were part of endurance test, requiring the submarine to load extra provisions and maintaining radio silence. The 15-year-old, Los Angeles-class sub will be deactivated later this year.

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