Sailor receives tribute 38 years after mysterious submarine death
Globe Gazette
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Ames, Iowa (US):
David Stone finally received the tribute his parents had anticipated for 38 years — a military-style funeral to bring closure to a mystery that may never be solved.
Stone was among the 99 crew members aboard the Navy submarine USS Scorpion when it mysteriously sank on May 22, 1968, in the Atlantic Ocean. The Navy, hesitant to recognize the destruction of a spy vessel, never told Stone's parents why the Scorpion and their 24-year-old son never made it home.
Stone's parents only received a grave marker, which they placed in the Ames Municipal Cemetery. No body was recovered and no funeral was held.
But last week the parents got some closure when a group of submarine veterans who never knew Stone put on a full military-style memorial service.
Taps was played. An American flag was given to the family. And for a few moments, on a chilly day, their son was remembered.
``This was much more than I expected,'' said Stone's mother Sybil. ``This was really special. We never really did have any kind of closing on this.''
Stone was a 1961 graduate of Ames High School. He attended Iowa State University before enlisting in the U.S. Navy in September 1963. The machinist mate second class served three years aboard the Scorpion, a nuclear attack submarine.
May 28, 2006
Globe Gazette
__________
Ames, Iowa (US):
David Stone finally received the tribute his parents had anticipated for 38 years — a military-style funeral to bring closure to a mystery that may never be solved.
Stone was among the 99 crew members aboard the Navy submarine USS Scorpion when it mysteriously sank on May 22, 1968, in the Atlantic Ocean. The Navy, hesitant to recognize the destruction of a spy vessel, never told Stone's parents why the Scorpion and their 24-year-old son never made it home.
Stone's parents only received a grave marker, which they placed in the Ames Municipal Cemetery. No body was recovered and no funeral was held.
But last week the parents got some closure when a group of submarine veterans who never knew Stone put on a full military-style memorial service.
Taps was played. An American flag was given to the family. And for a few moments, on a chilly day, their son was remembered.
``This was much more than I expected,'' said Stone's mother Sybil. ``This was really special. We never really did have any kind of closing on this.''
Stone was a 1961 graduate of Ames High School. He attended Iowa State University before enlisting in the U.S. Navy in September 1963. The machinist mate second class served three years aboard the Scorpion, a nuclear attack submarine.
May 28, 2006
