In March 2025, I was invited to join David Bazzel and Roger Scott on 103.7 FM “The Buzz” in Little Rock for my first appearance on their show. They were curious about my background, especially my 20 years in the nuclear submarine force. I shared a few unclassified highlights — surfacing through the ice at the North Pole, transiting the Panama Canal as hundreds of American high school students sang the national anthem and answering the question I’m asked most often: the longest I was ever underwater, which was 102 days.
During the interview, a caller said he served with me on USS Phoenix (SSN 702). The caller was Capt. Alan Malone, my executive officer during Phoenix’s decommissioning, and we connected for the first time in 27 years. As a member of the USS Arkansas Commissioning Committee, he shared that the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas could support the ship and crew through the committee.
There have been five ships named USS Arkansas in the U.S. Navy. The first was a steamer built in 1863 in Philadelphia that served the Union Navy as a supply ship supporting their blockade of Confederate ports. This ship was decommissioned in 1865, sold at public auction and ultimately sank off the coast of Key Largo, Florida, in 1866. The second was USS Arkansas (BM-7), a monitor-class ship commissioned in 1902 for coastal defense. Its name was changed in 1909 to free the name Arkansas for a new battleship.
The third was USS Arkansas (BB-33), commissioned in 1912, fought in WWI and WWII. USS Arkansas (BB-33) earned four battle stars during WWII and participated in D-Day and invasions of Southern France, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
Cool fact: This third ship is responsible for the Arkansas state flag. When the Daughters of the American Revolution prepared to present a flag at the ship’s 1912 commissioning, they discovered Arkansas didn’t have one. A statewide contest followed, and Pine Bluff teacher Willie Kavanaugh Hocker’s design was selected and adopted in 1913.
Furthermore, USS Arkansas (BB-33) also participated in Operation Magic Carpet, bringing home American servicemen from the Pacific and was finally used for atomic bomb testing at Bikini Atoll in 1946. She survived the first blast (ABLE) but was sunk by the underwater nuclear test (BAKER) on July 25, 1946. She is resting today, inverted in about 180 feet of water in the Bikini Lagoon acting as an artificial reef.
The fourth was USS Arkansas (CGN-41), a Virginia-class nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser commissioned in 1980 that suffered early decommissioning in 1998 due to the high cost of midlife reactor refueling.
The fifth is USS Arkansas (SSN-800), the 27th Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarine under construction at the Newport News Shipyard in Virginia. She is 377 feet long, 34 feet wide, weighs 7,800 tons and is capable of speeds of 25+ knots with an impressive reactor core life of 33 years. Imagine going 33 years between trips to the gas station. Another interesting fact: During the keel laying in 2022, the initials of her sponsors — the six women of the Little Rock Nine — were welded into her steel and she will literally take their names all over the world. At the christening, Newport News Shipbuilding President Jennifer Boykin said, “Their courageous spirit will forever inspire Arkansas and her crew.”
The crew of USS Arkansas (SSN-800) consists of 15 officers and 120 enlisted dedicated sailors. A longstanding tradition is for the crew of U.S. Navy vessels to do Namesake Visits to strengthen the bond between the crew and the location for which the ship is named. I never got to go on one when I was serving, but those who did always returned with great stories. These visits help the crew form relationships with those they are representing.
This year, the cooperatives were able to support USS Arkansas’ Namesake Visit. The crew was treated to a tour of our state Capitol and met with Arkansas House Speaker Brian Evans and Rep. Shad Pearce. They also toured the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum, the Old Mill in North Little Rock, the USS Razorback (see QR code to take a tour yourself), and a trip to the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn. They also met with officials from Benton, Bryant and Hot Springs.
I was blessed to have dinner with the crew, including Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Michael Huber; Chief of the Boat, STSCM Winfred “Keith” Cameron; and Assistant Weapons Officer, Lt. Cade Anderson. We intend to maintain our relationship with the crew of the USS Arkansas.
I have many fond memories of our namesake city sending Christmas cards from local schools when we were deployed over the holidays or delivering treats for the crew when we pulled into port. These little reminders of home are real morale boosters. Messages from home on a submarine were sparse. Our families were allowed one Familygram for each month we were deployed and they consisted of only 40 words, so these little extras were always appreciated.
I want to personally thank the USS Arkansas Commissioning Committee for allowing us to help support the crew, and we look forward to more opportunities to thank these dedicated men and women for their service. It is our chance to show them true Arkansas hospitality and to demonstrate that the name on their ship represents a state — and a network of cooperatives — that stands firmly behind them.