Commission Shop for the Needs of the Crew
A special blend of coffee, a private label from FirePower for Freedom in both individual pods and pound packages, is now available at the Commission Shop for SSN796 New Jersey, the submarine now nearing completion and scheduled to be commissioned at NWS Earle in Leonardo in September.
The Commissioning committee, established five years ago to serve as a liaison between the ship and the state or which it is named, has a shop full of New Jersey submarine commemoratives which help raise the funds necessary for numerous activities for the ship’s crew, be they in need of gifts, habitability upgrades, NWR support or scholarships.
With the addition of coffee to the variety of caps, tee shirts, cups, decal, keychains and other gifts, the Commission is now also contributing to Bridging the Cap for Veterans, Inc., a New Jersey based 501.3 organization whose mission is to provide transition assistance and open career doors for military veterans.
The organization holds programs and seminars on military installations as well as college campuses teaching veterans tactics, techniques and procedures for employment in the civilian workplace. Coffee available at the Commissioning Store comes in both one-pound packages and 24 K cup boxes.
The Coffee the Bridging the Gap organization has introduced is a mild roast blend called Anchors Away Available immediately on the submarine commissioning committee’s website, it will also soon be available through various fundraising programs with youth groups. Kiosks are set up in Atlantic City for its Air Show as well as in numerous towns for their special activities. All products will be available at various locations during Commissioning Week.
In its five years, the Commissioning Committee has introduced the new submarine and its pre-commissioning crew to the state for which it is named. Starting with a group of five members of the Navy League, the committee has grown into a separate (501) 3 c nonprofit organization with 17 members, all of whom have background or attachments with the US Navy, with five of them submariners and three executives from the Battleship New Jersey (BB62) museum in Camden. Also serving on the committee is the parent of a sailor stationed on the submarine.
Purposes of the Commission is to organize and fund various events surrounding the upcoming ceremony and to establish and grow a relationship between the new ship and its namesake state’s residents. The Commission arranged for members of the pre-commissioning crew to visit various locations in the state meeting with students, residents and municipal. County and state leaders.
Their first visit last year included spending time with the NJROTC cadets at MAST, the Marine Academy of Science and Technology at Sandy Hook, as well as at Hartshorne Woods, the Monmouth County historic park where guns from the second state named ship New Jersey (BB62) are part of the former fortification overlooking New York Harbor.
Commission Committee member Peter Engleman pointed out that many of the items in the shop are common elements seen in any ship’s store, including caps and sweatshirts, as well as challenge coins and stickers, water bottles and spicy sauce.
Also to be included in the new merchandise available at the store will be the commissioning coin with a design by MAST student Russell Karchmer. Kashmer’s design and artwork for one side of the coin was the winning entry out of the more than 300 submitted by students from throughout New Jersey.
The ship’s coin and one representing the legacy, the two previously New Jersey-named ships, BB 16 and BB62 will also be offered for sale, either individually or a set of the three, each with its own design. Engelman said the shop may also carry prints of a painting of the submarine.
Persons wishing to view and purchase items from the Submarine New Jersey (SSN796) store can visit their website at http://njcommissioning.org
