February 1997 Proceedings

February 1997 Proceedings  
(See Wertheim. p. 94. December 1996 Proceedings)  

Captain James R. Kelly, U.S. Coast Guard (Retired)  
The brief history of the destroyer escort Vance (DE-387) omitted one period of that grand old ship's service-i.e., as a Coast Guard cutter.  
The Vance was one of 12 destroyer escorts recommissioned and placed in service as Coast Guard cutters during the Korean War. She was taken from the mothball fleet in Green Cove Springs, Florida, refitted at the Philadelphia Navy Yard and was placed in commission in early 1952 as the Coast Guard Cutter Vance (WDE-487), under the command of Lieutenant Commander James C. Waters. U.S. Coast Guard.  

The Vance arrived in Honolulu in November 1952 and for the ensuing year or so served as a search-and-rescue standby ship at Sangley Point, Republic of the Philippines, and later as an ocean station (weather patrol) ship in the North Pacific Ocean. After the Korean War the Vance returned to San Diego, California, where, in early 1954, she was once again decommissioned.  
The Vance was my first assignment as an ensign following graduation from the Coast Guard Academy in 1952. I have many fond memories of her and the officers and men who served in her during that period of her history. 
 

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