LAS VEGAS 25 Planning
The clock is ticking on our next Bates reunion - LAS VEGAS 25 - 29 days, 1 hour and 21 minutes, according to the countdown timer on the coldwarboats.org website.
If you have already RSVP’d as “GOING”, now is the time to purchase your tickets - $35 for a single, $50 for a couple - to help defray the cost of our hospitality suite and light refreshments for the duration - room and meals not included.
You can pay on the website: HOMEPORT >> SOCIAL ACTIVITY >> REUNION INFO >> REUNION PAYMENT (click the link). If you would rather pay by check or cash, by mail, or at the door, contact me and let me know.
It is important that you have RSVP’d or contacted me directly so we have an accurate count!
Don’t forget your room reservations - there is a group of rooms set aside for us, but without your reservation, they will not be held.
If you are still on the fence about going, now’s the time to commit!
To help influence your decision, here is the list of RSVPs that we expect to see in Las Vegas.
GOING
John Barry
Bob Bethard
Miles Bradley
Bill Byers
Scott Elder
Richard Gagne
Dave Gordon
Richard Hausvik
Noel Hernberger
Jamie Hogan
Dorn Jensen
Tom Johnson
John Kettelle
Michael Langenheim
Jerry Lundquist
Kelly D. McLaughlin
Steven Perry
Robert Pitchford
Joe Ramsey
Brad Williamson
INTERESTED
Michael Akers
Michael Fees
Albert Frankel
Sean Gawne
Mark Herber
Mike Kimball
Richard Machinski
Ernesto Maisonet
Albert C. McKinley
Tom Meyer
Jim Meyers
Chris Mumford
Robin Rickman
Lynden Uplinger
Walt Weber
If you have any questions, refer to the previous posts on the ssn-680.org website or our Facebook groups. If all else fails, drop me an email or text, and I’ll get you sorted out.
Looking forward to seeing all of you there, and remember, if you can’t make Las Vegas, we are still working to make an East Coast reunion this fall. Stay tuned…
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The USS WILLIAM H. BATES (SSN 680) West reunion for 2025, LAS VEGAS 25, is coming together and we need your action and feedback.
First, the critical information.
WHEN: 5 - 8 MAY 2025 - only 167 days away as of today!
WHERE: Tuscany Suites & Casino, Las Vegas, NV
WHO: You, of course, and as many SSN 680 shipmates as we can convince to join us!
Early May should allow us to miss the searing southern Nevada heat. The hotel is located off the strip, so we won’t be bombarded by the bulk of the tourist traffic, but within a relatively short walking distance (15 minutes) for those who wish to take the unique sites, sounds, and smells of Las Vegas in all its glory, and ground transportation is available for those longer trips.
We are not planning activities for this reunion expecting that, given the wide range of entertainment available, group activities will emerge spontaneously. That doesn’t rule out a reunion dinner and the traditional tolling of the bell ceremony, but we will await your feedback before we get carried away.
So, what to you need to do?
Back in June we first announced REGROUPEX 25 as the next USS WILLIAM H. BATES (SSN 680) reunion.
What I expected was not what turned out. Things got complicated.
It had been over seven years since our last REGROUPEX reunion. The bell has tolled for some of those who were with us in Orlando in 2017. All of us are seven years closer to ‘shipping our own oars’. Yet there are still things to do, sights to see, places to go, and sea stories to be told.
Time and tide wait for no man, it is said, and we cannot afford to miss an opportunity for shipmates to gather. Deliberation over the where, when, and what regarding a reunion led us to an unexpected conclusion - that one is not enough!
As a result, 2025 will bring us not one, but two reunions.
The first, to be held in early May, will be organized simply, much in the fashion of REGROUPEX 09 and will take place in Las Vegas, NV, just off the strip and the excitement that is Las Vegas!
Designate contact LAS VEGAS 25!
