38 years ago the ship, the Marine Electric sank off the coast of Norfolk VA. With a crew of 34, only 3 survived. One of the survivors was Gene Kelly , my husband. He was invited to speak about the sinking and his survival on September 9, 2021 at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy as an Alum of class of 75.
The day of the speech, he finally met the co pilot of the helicopter that pulled him out of the water, Pat Rutludge. It was an emotional meeting to say the least!
The last photo is Pat Rutludge, Gene Kelly and Robert Frump (author of the book - Until the Sea Shall Them)
We planned our travels to meet Pat in Elizabeth City NC. He took us on a tour of the US Coast Guard Station where the helicopter was deployed from. Again, another emotional time for Gene! Here are a few pictures.
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