SS Red Oak Victory
Heritage Resources Director Tom Debley will speak about his biography of Kaiser Permanente pioneering physician Sidney R. Garfield as part of the Richmond Home Front Festival this Saturday, Oct. 3, at the Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historic Park.
Debley, author of Dr. Sidney R. Garfield: the Visionary Who Turned Sick Care into Health Care, begins his talk at noon on the main deck of the SS Red Oak Victory docked at Historic Shipyard No. 3. Debley will focus on the largest civilian medical care program on the World War II Home Front, which was created in the West Coast Kaiser Shipyards.
Also on the main deck of the Red Oak Victory, Bay Area Historian Steve Gilford will discuss why the ship was named after Red Oak, Iowa. Gilford‘s talk begins at 2 p.m. The ship boarding fee is $5 general, $4 seniors and children.
The Red Oak Victory, a World War II vessel, is the only ship built in the Kaiser Shipyards to be restored and maintained as a museum. The SS Red Oak Victory was launched on November 9, 1944, and commissioned as the USS Red Oak Victory in December 1944. The ship saw service in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam and has the distinction of being the only ship operated by both military and civilian personnel during its career.
USO Dance Friday Night
Another special feature of the Home Front festival is a USO dance Friday, Oct. 2, with The Junius Courtney Big Band. They’ll be playing 1940s music on the Craneway Pavilion stage in the old Ford Assembly building at the end of Harbour Way South in the Richmond park. Tickets are $25 general, $20 for seniors at the door. Big fun in Richmond from 7 to 10 p.m. for young and old swing dancers. You can get in free if you come in period attire, wear a military uniform, or show a military ID.
Free shuttles will run at 30-minute intervals around the Rosie park throughout the day-long festival. For more information on the Home Front festival, go to: homefrontfestival.com
–Ginny McPartland
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