Summer 2018 OLLI Catalog (Interactive)

HISTORY AND SOCIAL SCIENCE
NOTE: All OLLI field trips require a minimum $5 fee for operating expenses. Check the field trip
description for any additional expenses that may be incurred on-site. (OLLI Members are required to
sign a waiver prior to participating in field trip activities.)
Instructor: Rich Abele, tour guide
aboard the museum battleship
USS IOWA (BB-61)
Wednesday, July 11
1:30pm - 3:30pm
Extended Education Building,
EE-1213 (Auditorium)
Fee: Free to OLLI Members
NLLL 251 Section 01
Course No. 30792
The Search for the USS Grunion
(SS-216)
NEW!
Join us in welcoming global adventurer and U.S. Navy Vietnam
veteran Rich Abele, as he presents a slide show about the search
for and discovery of a submarine lost in the early days of World War
II. The USS Grunion (SS-216), under the command of Rich Abele’s
cousin, LCDR Mannert L. Abele, was on its first wartime patrol off
Kiska in the Aleutian Islands when it encountered a Japanese cargo
ship. During the ensuing torpedo attack and surface engagement,
the sub went down never to surface again. Commander Abele had
three sons who spent
decades searching for
information about this
encounter and the
whereabouts of their
dad’s submarine.
In 2006 an initial
search by side-scan
sonar revealed a
possible image of
the sub. But it was in
2007 when a more
thorough search was
undertaken using a
remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV). Rich was on this
expedition and will tell us about the Grunion’s discovery, and
explore the possible reasons for its loss. This is a presentation
that you will not want to miss.
Rich Abele, a graduate of UC Santa Barbara, is a former aerospace
contracts manager for the Boeing Company. He is a retired U.S.
Navy captain and served two tours of duty in Vietnam and
commanded a minehunter. Currently he is a tour guide aboard
the museum battleship USS IOWA (BB-61).
14 OSHER LIFELONG LEARNING INSTITUTE @ CSU DOMINGUEZ HILLS