During World War I, my grandfather joined the Navy in 1918 and served aboard the first USS Helena PG-9 which was a Wilmington class gun boat with steam engines as a machinist mate. When World War II came around, he was sent to diesel mechanics school and became an engineman working on the ship’s diesel engines. One of the many ships he was assigned to was the USS West Virginia whose Executive officer was Commander Jesse B. Oldendorf at the time.

Commander Oldendorf re-enlisted my grandfather aboard the USS West Virginia some time prior to becoming Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf and being credited with Crossing the "T" during the battle of Leyte Gulf, in the Philippines. My grandfather would go on to retire as a chief petty officer from the Navy shipyard in 1945.

During the Korean war, my father served from 1950 to 1954 aboard the third USS Helena CA-75, a Baltimore class Heavy Cruiser as a culinary specialist which is now a monument in Helena, Montana. My first tour of duty when I joined the Navy in 1977 was Pre-Commission training in San Diego, California, for a Spruance Class Destroyer named after Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf which was commissioned on March 4, 1978.

I retired from the Navy in 1996 and the USS Oldendorf was decommissioned on June 20, 2003. My Executive officer aboard the USS Oldendorf was Commander Magnus who was from Helena, Montana. As far as I know, I am the only one with this unique connection to the first and third USS Helena, Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf and Helena, Montana.