|  Coastal
Valleys Detachment charter member Hugh Rafferty, was recently
recognized as 'Lay Citizen of the Year' by the local chapter
of Phi Delta Kappa for his volunteer work
as Chairman of the Santa Maria High School District School Bond
Oversight Committee. Phi Delta
Kappa is a nationwide educational foundation. The "Lay
Citizen of the Year" award is given to community volunteers
who are not part of the educational community.
Hugh and his wife, Arlene will be married 45 years
in June. They have two children and four grand-children.
From his hometown of Brooklyn, New York, Hugh set
out to join the Marine Corps before his 18th. birthday. After
enduring boot
camp at MCRD Parris Island, South Carolina Hugh served on active
duty from 1955 to 1960.
Hugh recently shared this information
about his time on active duty.
“I served on active duty from July
1955 thru April 1960, and was a Radio Relay Technician
assigned
to the 2nd Marine Air
Wing at Cherry Point, NC.
My training took me to NAS Jacksonville, FL for the Navy's Airman
Prep School, then on to the Naval Station at Memphis for electronics
training.
My first duty station was Cherry Point, from which I left for
several other electronics schools at Great Lakes, IL; USMC Recruit
Depot at San Diego, CA; and several schools (including microwave)
at Camp Geiger, NC.
As a Radio Relay Technician, I supported
several combined Navy/Marine Corps maneuvers in Vieques,
and was
positioned off the coast
of Guantanamo Bay when Castro first started making signs
of trouble. We were part of the task force around the USS
Boxer. My outfit
was aboard the USS Hermitage.”
Now retired from IBM and Lockheed-Martin, Hugh
indulges his desire to learn new things and serve his community.
Hugh
Rafferty currently serves
our community in the following positions:
• Chairman of the CoastHills Federal
Credit Union Board of Directors
• Chairman of the Santa Maria High School District School Bond
Oversight Committee
• Board member of the Santa Barbara County Taxpayers' Association.
• 2nd Vice-chairman on the board of the Committee to Improve North
(SB) County
• President of the Satellite Amateur Radio Club at VAFB.
• Board member of the Los Olivos School Bond Oversight Committee
As if these commitments to our
community are not enough to keep Hugh Rafferty busy, he now
ads his membership in the Coastal
Valleys Chapter, Marine Corps League to his list of things
to do! |
