A salute to Tom Tarbox
By Tiffany Strong
The Herald Gazette Reporter

http://knox.villagesoup.com/print/Print.cfm?StoryID=165266

 

Tom Tarbox. (Photo by Tiffany Strong)

  Thomas N. Tarbox was born March 7, 1935, in Montana. "My father loved initials," said Tarbox. "The 'N' doesn't stand for anything, he just liked that my initials were TNT. I used to tell people that 'N' stood for 'nothing.'" Tarbox graduated from high school in 1953 and from the University of Colorado in 1957 with a bachelor of arts in geography.

  He then enrolled in Naval Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I., and started UDT training. At the time there were no careers in UDT, so he left and went back to the University of Colorado and started studying to become a journalist. In the summer of 1962 he got a call from a friend telling him about the SEALs. His friend told him SEAL stood for "sink enemy and leave." 

He left school and enrolled in basic training in Little Creek, Va. Officers and enlisted men train side by side to become SEALs. SEAL actually stands for "sea, air and land," and the training is considered by many military experts to be the toughest training in the world.

At the time basic training lasted for four months. It was very physically demanding, Tarbox said. "We ran everywhere. There was a lot of swimming and the instructors constantly harass you."

The harassment is necessary to see if a man is going to break when things get tough, Tarbox said.

There were 91 men in his class when it started, but only 20 finished. "I was confident I could make it through," said Tarbox. "I would look at the next guy and think if he can make it then so can I."

Tarbox said men who are afraid of the water or heights or who are claustrophobic won't make it. "I'm a strong swimmer, " he said. "I did a lot of swimming with my brother when I was young.

A man may drop out of the course at any time, Tarbox said. To do this a man strikes a brass ship's bell three times and places his helmet down on the ground. Most classes lose about 80 percent of their trainees due to dropouts or injuries. Tarbox said winter dropout rates are higher due to the cold, and he was lucky his class was in the summer.

Tarbox did make it through and was eventually named commander of the Basic Underwater Demolitions/SEAL (BUD/S) instructors.

The only time Tarbox ever lost a man was in May 1965 in a skydiving accident. "When you skydive, a man who is free falling will wave his arms to let other skydivers know that he is going to open his parachute," Tarbox said. For some reason Melvin Melochick, a man in his late 20s, did not do this, Tarbox said. The man above Ochick, Jerry Todd, fell into Ochick's chute, which caused it to malfunction. Ochick died of a broken neck.

"He was my teammate," Tarbox said.

In 1971 Tarbox volunteered for service in Vietnam. The SEALs were initially deployed in and around Da Nang, training and supporting the South Vietnamese in naval special warfare, including reconnaissance and combat diving.

Much of what Tarbox did during his career is still classified, he said. His son Wit, who lives in Tuscon, Ariz., said of his father, "He didn't go into details of what he did or where he was doing it. He's a man of honor and never shared anything that wasn't to be shared."

Emails:  28JUNE2011

From: Franklin Anderson
to:      Tom, David, Maynard, Joe, Dan, 

I have a question for Tom, on page 8, Harry Beal makes the statement “Tom Tarbox signed our Plank owners plank on 1 January l962.

 I question this statement for the fact that= SEAL TWO wasn’t in existence on that Date, and If I am Correct John Callahan reported on board and established SEAL TWO on 8 January 62.

 Tom, can you enlighten me on this statement, as you weren’t in SEAL TWO, at that time. Thanks - Franklin

From:Tom Tarbox 
to: Franklin, David, Maynard, Joe, Dan,

Guys, 

I haven’t received my copy of Vol. 43, No. 2 of the BLAST, and so haven’t been able to read Harry’s letter, but I think I know to what he was referring. I reported to SEAL Team TWO on 27 Aug 62, and so wasn’t a plank owner by any standard. 

I think Harry was referring to sometime in the period 1977-79, when I was CSO of NSWG-2. Dante Stephensen said that all those who had orders to SEAL Team TWO when it stood up (a number of those people still had operational commitments with their previous Teams—mostly UDT-21, but others as well) should be plank owners. 

I looked into it, and agreed with Dante, and so they put all those names on a display (I’ve seen it, but have forgotten what it was) at the Museum. Hope this clarifies it. 

Tom

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from:  Dante throc  [at]  bellsouth  DOT  net
to: "Erasmo \"Doc\" Riojas" <docrio45  [at] gmail  DOT com>
date: Thu, Jun 30, 2011 at 10:53 PM
subject RE: “Tom Tarbox signed our Plank owners plank on 1 January l962.

Thanks, Doc.
You can add the below, if you wish, to Tommy’s comments. 

ST2’s commissioning from Dante S. Stephensen; yes, I was there): Ours occurred in early January, 1962, (I believe the first Monday after January 1; maybe the 6th). ST2 was only given about 38 men which included 3 Officers; (Skipper John Callahan, XO Roy Boehm and myself for OPS/TR). 

ST1 was commissioned, I believe, with the proper 50 men and 10 officers but verify that with Dave DelGuidice, ST1’s first skipper. 

For ST2’s commissioning and UDT 22’s re-commissioning, UDT 21 was not overflowing with teammates, so we had to get some guys from the fleet like LDOs Tex Hager & Red Cannon & SKC. Hoot Andrews (who we stole from Rickover’s nuclear fleet). We also drew from returning team cruises and next 2 training classes. 

The plank holder question: At the request of some late arrivals I did research with Navy Regs in DC. Initially we did not consider late arrivals Plank Owners, (those who arrived after January, 1962). However, I was directed by the powers-to-be in DC that if orders were written & DATED prior to our January commissioning, even if the men arrived late, they were to be considered Plank owners. Some of our guys, including Rudy, were not happy with that, but we had to follow Navy Regs. I wish I could easily give you those names, but I’m so damn old, I have forgotten my own name. If it is important to anyone, I ought to be able to look it up somewhere. 

Respectfully, Dante Shapiro Stephensen, 1st Ops and TR Officer, ST2; UDT 21 “2nd to none” platoon; Company Commander, UDTRA Class 22, east: PS. We graduated 11 of about 126. Andy Anderson was our honor man. I was told Chief John Rabbit and I tied for 2nd but never saw that in writing and no one gave me a trophy. 

Happy 50th Guys. And remember; growing old ain’t for Sissies!

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WEBMASTER's NOTE:   Dante, You don need no stinkin trophy!  We believe you!

Brothers In Arms Buried Together    

October 4, 2010 4:07 PM

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6927119n  

Travis Manion and Brendan Looney were roommates at the naval academy and became as close as brothers. One became a Marine stationed in Iraq, the other, a Navy Seal in Afghanistan. Both have died and were laid to rest side-by-side in Arlington's National Cemetery. David Martin reports.
Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6927119n#ixzz11bPxbngn

also:

http://www.dreadnaughts-bluejackets.com/links.php

By Ann Scott Tyson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, April 13, 2009 

The operation to rescue Capt. Richard Phillips involved dozens of Navy SEALs, who parachuted from an aircraft into the scene near dark Saturday, landing in the ocean.

 The SEALs were part of a group of Special Operations forces involved in the effort, according to military officials. The SEALs set up operations on the USS Bainbridge, which had been communicating with the four pirates via radio and had used smaller boats to make deliveries of food and water to their lifeboat.

 Yet the pirates were growing increasingly agitated, the officials said. At one point Saturday, the pirates opened fire on one of the smaller U.S. Navy craft that approached. As the seas grew rougher, the Bainbridge offered to tow the lifeboat to calmer waters, and the pirates agreed, linking up the lifeboat to the destroyer with a towing cable that left 75 to 80 feet between the two vessels. Phillips at the time was tied up in the lifeboat, having been bound -- and occasionally beaten -- by the pirates ever since he had attempted to escape by jumping into the water on Friday, the officials said. 

Meanwhile, one of the pirates, estimated to be between 16 and 20 years old, asked to come aboard the Bainbridge to make a phone call. He had been stabbed in the hand during an altercation with the crew of the Maersk Alabama and needed medical care. "He effectively gave himself up," a senior military official said. 

The Navy then allowed that pirate to speak with the others in hopes that he could persuade them to give up. The three other pirates, however, showed signs of growing irritation, as the Bainbridge, 18 miles from shore, towed the lifeboat further out to sea, the senior military official said. "They had no promise of money, clearly no passage. The one ticket they had was the captain," said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter on the record. "In the last discussion, they said, 'If we don't get what we want, we will kill the captain,' " the official said. 

Soon afterward, two pirates moved to one of the hatches of the lifeboat and stuck their heads out. The third pirate advanced toward the captain and pointed his AK-47 straight at Phillips's back, the rifle touching it or inches away, the official said. U.S. military observers thought that Phillips was about to be shot. SEAL snipers, who were positioned on a deck at the stern of the Bainbridge, an area known as the fantail, had the three pirates in their sights. The on-scene commander gave the snipers authority to fire. "As soon as the snipers had a clear shot at the guy who had the rifle, they shot him and the other two in the hatches," the senior military official said. 

A member of the Special Operations team slid down the tow line into the water and climbed aboard the lifeboat. Phillips was then put in a small craft and taken to the Bainbridge.

Harry Humphries

Hey Rio . we went on liberty together in Siagon...and we had to babysit Joe DeMartino...I was sent there this tour to be an advisor for the Vietnamese Seals.I served In Hoi An and was relieved by Mike Thorton and Tom Morris.

  Small world..LOL..I was Tommy roomate for a few years in VA beach..Went thru class 30 UDTR in Little creek..theres thats it..

  Fire in the Hole.  Dan

Danny Mcevoy..I retired after 28years in 1989 

Doc Clark called me about 0730 hours this morning to let me know that Zmuda had died.  I believe his son Danny called Bruhmuller and told him of his dads death.  It seems he and Rose his wife where in a store and "MUD"  was feeling bad so went outside and then fell over.  No info on whether it was a heart attack or stroke. God bless MUD and his family.  We did a lot of operating together and were both in the same  platoon as well as just living a few doors down from each other on Bernice Pl. , in Princess Ann Plaza .  I could tell stories about him that would take hours.  He was a SUPER team member.  those of you who knew him will attest to this.

Bill (SOB)

Our Teammate Daniel "Mud" Zmuda will be laid to rest in Fredonia , New York this Saturday the 16^th of February. Dan graduated with East Coast Class 26 and retired in 1978 after serving in UDT-22, ST-2 and as an original member of the Navy Parachute Team. Dan is survived by his wife Roseanne, his son Dan and daughters Annette Adamczak and Jacqueline Zmuda. He also has a brother, Frederick and  three sisters; Joanne Sawyer, Marcia Ernst and Claire Knoll while his brother John preceded him. Dan and Rose had 6 grandchildren

    IN MEMORY OF JAMES ERIK SUH

Special Operator (SEAL) Second Class James Erik Suh was a 1999 UF Graduate who died in support of combat Operation Red Wings on June 28, 2005 in Kunar Province, Afghanistan. For a full biography courtesy of the Gainesville Sun please click here. 

                         
The UF Naval Special Warfare Club is dedicating a Memorial to James Suh on June 28, 2011. The dedication ceremony will be held at Van Fleet Hall on campus at 10 AM, with a small reception to follow.

                
   L-R: SEALs KIAs, except Marcus Luttrell "Lone Survivor"(on extreme rt.) Afganistan

April 2009

  Doc Rio,   

James Rad Nelson went from SR to Capt. with a 8th grade formal education. Was UDT in the Korean war as a BMSN, locked out of a Sub, blew a power plant in N.Korea and his team missed pick up, had to evade for several days, maybe longer, I'm not sure of that. 

Any way he made Chief then Ens. Limited Line, petitioned that and was granted Unlimited Line. As a junior officer he was CO of an ATF and  had Command of the Conserver ARS39 out of Pearl and eventually Commanding Officer Panama City. 

 He's one hell of a great guy, lives just outside of Panama City.  

Rad Nelson was my boss when I was on the rivers as Independent Duty Corpsman with River Assault Division 112,

 I was FMF prior to that in '66.  He and I were the only ones in 112 with any prior combat experience, we are very tight to this day.  We were supporting the Marines in I Corps, the only Assault Division up there.   

I feel that I can talk to you because you are a brother Corpsman and have "been there". I'll bet that if you went through my family pictures, you won't find more than two or three of me in-country.  I'll send it but please do not put it up on the internet.

I have one good picture that was taken on the pontoon of the USS Benewah before a beer call.  The gent with the mustache is James Rad Nelson, my "Boss" on the rivers. Please don't put my picture on your web site. 

He was Korea UDT (Two Silver Stars there and Navy Cross 'Nam, five Purple Hearts total) we had a deal which we kept "wherever you go, I go", he retired as CO Navy School of Deep Diving and Salvage, we were in some pretty heavy shit together and are close friends today. Don't expect him to be around much longer as he is in his eighties now.

We also worked with our army and the RVN Marines. Did a lot of work keeping the river clear of mines, not always successful. I'll attach a pict. of one of the mines we captured. in the picture it is less than 1/2 out of the water. It's an old Polaroid so quality isn't so great. The mine was Russian and EOD said that it  was large enough to sink any ship in deep water. Was magnet, acoustic and pressure influence all interacting and could be set to detonate anywhere from the first boat over to the tenth and anywhere in between.

photo by: "Doc" Borlec

I was undergoing training with  FMF Force RECON. We went to UWSS in Key West FL. Later I finished all aspects of Diving Physics/Medicine along with Chamber Treatment Operations while with SubDevGpONE, wanted to go all the way but BUMED said no, I had to go back to SSN's.

 While in S.D. got to 2nd Class Diver's School and learned to cut and weld, that's as far as I got. Pissed me off as I could have been part of the new Deep Diving Research Unit at Ballast Point. HMC (DMT) Miller had gone AWOL with a Navy Capt. POW's wife and there was an opening, I just didn't have the pull with BUMED that SubPac had. 

I did get to work with TriMix and lectured at the Commercial Diving School, Calif. Mens Prison Chino in Medical Aspects of Diving etc. Was a Licensed Treatment Chamber Operator in Calif.

 Dennis "Doc" Borlek

Doc Rio,

I  trained in Coronado when their training was cut short in Nov 1950. All class members AND instructors were immediately shipped to Korea to serve with UDT-1.
During the Korean war  James R. Nelson  was in UDT-3. This is verified by several documents I have in my possession. It was UDT-1 and UDT-3 that handled the Korean War, with UDT-5 being commissioned later doing I don't know what. 

About; James R. Nelson, BM3  -He also trained in Coronado   -Assigned (PCS – Permanent Change of Station) to UDT-3 Dec 1949 (presumably upon graduation from training)  -Assigned (PCS – Permanent Change of Station) to UDT-1 8/9/1950. 

James Rad Nelson

However, there was never any group in Korea that had to be left behind and "evade capture for several days or longer" during the Korean War. Only one Frog during the Korean gig got left behind and he was dead.

Ken Garrett

Doc,

You can find my photo here:

 http://users.frii.com/rdruss/PhotoAlbumGarrett.html

These photos are from my personal album, or rather just all that I have. So you will be copying my own photos, not somebody else's.

 You can pick me out in the photos to the far top right and second row by the Strand sign. In the top right photo is Steve Bouresky and my swim partner (now both dead also), Paul Brewton. I am a dangerous man to be around. I'm 80.

Ken Garrett

----- Original Message -----
From: Embarq Customer
To: doc rio
Sent: Saturday, August 08, 2009 3:42 PM
Subject: Re: the photos you sent me are here: 
Doc 

Image #1. Kien Giang PRU Leadership (The Original Bad Boys). Third from left = Mr. Hien-PRU Commander. Tuan-PRU interpreter. Frank. Mr. Diep-Deputy PRU Commander. Others-Platoon Leaders. 
Image#2. Left=Stan Rodiman-RD Advisor. Frank. Bob Babb-RD Advisor. 
Image#3. Right to left. Sgt. Jim Fosse-RD Advisor. Frank. Unknown Army Sgt. Mr. Diep. Tuan. 
Image#4. Right to left. Bob Babb. Jim Fosse. PRU interpreter. Mr. Diep. Unknown PRU. Tuan. Mr. Hien, Cobra Pilot. Frank. 4th from left=Stan Rodiman. 

Doc-

The pictures look great. You can add my e-mail address in case someone wants more info. Keep up the good work 
P.S. My last name is spelled Fosse.  email: jimfosse [at] embarqmail.com 

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Sunday, February 7, 2010 

 You can do your magic with any pic that I send to you.
Have added a few more.
MyTho pool,  L t R:  Unk, Rudy, Doc Pachurick,T. Sullivan,J. Lynch (on belly), J. Findley, B. Neidrauer
Pic of the 4 of us, LtR   Hammerle, Neidrauer, Bai(Cheiu Hoi), T. Sullivan
Pic of PRU Advisors Jan 1970
Sitting front M.Collins
Kneeling L t R UNK, J. Tolison, M. Walsh, A. Huey, P. Slempa
2nd row kneeling E. Jones, UNK, Harris
Standing, J Hammerle, Army guy, UNK, D. Drady, Abrahmson,Welch, Whittum, Mihatsch

                PRUs,top row,left: Jerry Hammerle
The group pic with all in Uniform was UDT 21 Oct 1960
Have the names but would be a lot to ID tonite.
Thanks Amigo

Jerry Hammerle

UDT-21