Note: STG1 Robert E. Dietrich was dropped from this list on 29 Mar 2008 due to 60 days of no contact.
29 Jan 2008:
We have been out to sea for a couple of months. During this time we were allowed to go without shaving if we wanted to. This past Sunday, we took several pictures reminiscent of the ones taken of crews during WWII. Here is one of the crew.
Very respectfully,
STG1 Robert Dietrich
11 Jan 2008
We have received some great support and my division, as well as the crew has been very happy about the quality and practicality of the contents of the care packages. I would like to say that we have received so many care packages, that it is not possible for us to answer every one. I have divvied up the letters to the personnel in my division and a couple of other people have said that they would help as well, but it is very hard for us to get to every one, but please do know that we appreciate all that you are doing to support us.
The things that have been sent to us are fine. We have received a bunch of the games that were requested and at this point, I can pretty much say that we are good to go game wise. All the other items that we are requested are still being requested – toiletry items, candy, food, books and movies, etc.
Our deployment has been busy. Since deploying at the beginning of November, we were able to make two port visits on the way to our assigned operating area. We went to Palermo in Sicily, Italy and we went to Haifa, Israel. We were able to see some really amazing things.
We left our last port visit at the end of November and have been underway since then supporting the Global War on Terrorism. We have been able to do some fun stuff to break up the monotony. We have had video game tournaments, a talent show, a special dinner for Christmas and picnics on the flight deck. Before we pull into our next port (whenever that may be) we will be having a beard growing contest – we have been growing our beards since we left Haifa, so we look pretty scruffy J
I will be sure to send out a couple of pictures in the following days as soon as I can have them approved by the Public Affairs Officer.
God bless you all and thanks again for your support of the troops.
Sincerely,
Rob Dietrich
21 Nov 2007
I am sending a few pictures of our daily life from our first two weeks underway. I am going to try to get my division together to take a picture in a couple of days.
Very respectfully,
STG1(SW) Robert Dietrich
USS Oscar Austin
05 Nov 2007
Hello,
I am Surface SONAR Technician Petty Officer First Class (STG1 for short)Robert Dietrich. I am the Leading Petty Officer for CA Division aboard the USS Oscar Austin. Our ship is based out of Norfolk, VA. I have included our web site so that you can find out more about the ship and find out what the ship is up to when we deploy.
www.oscar-austin.navy.mil
We live aboard ship when deployed and we get three, sometimes four meals a day, but even though we have talented cooks, the quality of the food supplied overseas isn't the same as stateside.
We always enjoy snacks. We have a small refrigerator/freezer and have access to a microwave.
Quality of life items are big like Laundry detergent, Shampoo, Body Wash, Razors, Deodorant. If it is practical, the guys will stock up on it, it still won't be enough and the ship store will run out.
The biggest problem at sea is boredom when not on watch. There are lots of things to keep us busy, but idle time is still plenty. We are not that picky and are truly happy that people are supporting us, but the site said to be specific, so my troops have requested books, games and movies specifically:
BOOKS
-Christian Fiction (Frank Peretti, Ted Dekker and Joel C Rosenberg were specifically requested).
-Fantasy (Incarnations of Immortality by Piers Anthony specifically requested)
-Science Fiction
-Mysteries
-Westerns
GAMES
-Chess
-Risk
-Trivial Pursuit
MOVIES
There wasn't any real preference when I asked my guys, but they seem to like anything from escapist adventure movies to intelligent dramas. I guess the only condition they put on movies is that they be well made. The Christian guys asked for Christian movies, but weren't specific.
I just wanted to express again, our thanks for the volunteers who are participating in this program. We can't tell you how much it means