It seems that dolphins found their way onto non-Navy uniforms in greater abundance than what one would imagine. Here are a couple of additions coming from those who appreciated Bulletin 50.

Frank C. Kenyon's grandfather was a Second World War submarine veteran and when Frank was old enough he joined the Navy. He was assigned to sonar school then went on to New London's Submarine School. Reporting aboard the USS Sea Owl (SS-405) he got to know diesel submarining in the traditional Navy. It didn't take him long to qualify in submarines. When the Sea Owl was decommissioned in 1969 Frank went to the George Washington Carver (SSBN-656) wearing his dolphins.

A hearing loss disqualified him from submarines and he was assigned to the submarine tender Canopus (AS 34) where he served for three years. Not taking to the surface Navy he got out and went back to civilian life, but after a year and a half out of uniform he knew he had to get back into the military. The Army beckoned and he served for thirteen years in the Hundred First Airborne, the Third Infantry and the Second Armored divisions.

All the time in the Army Frank wore his dolphins. He says, "Lots of Army personnel didn't have a clue as to what dolphins meant. Some were offended because I wore them above my Air Assault Badge. Others got to know me and a little about submariners. My Army uniform was generally a topic of conversation, especially during full dress inspections. Obviously confused officers and NCOs gave a variety of responses. Some acted as though they recognized the significance and some challenged my right to wear them. In every circumstance Army regulations, a good chain of command and fellow soldiers supported me."

Paul Bouchard Jr. writes, "After serving four years in the submarine service, I left the Navy and pursued a career in teaching. After 9/11 I joined the New Jersey National Guard. When I received my sets of BDUs I went out and had a set of dolphins sewn on each shirt. My first drill day I had everyone asking what the hell that insignia was. After I told them one of the officers wanted to see if I was authorized to wear the emblem. He complained to the commanding officer that I might be wearing an unauthorized patch on my uniform. Knowing that I was authorized to wear my fish I refused to remove them. By the end of the drill weekend the First Lieutenant who was stressed out about my dolphins approached me and was about to bitch at me again. I handed him a copy of a page right out of Army uniform regulations that proved I was in the right. One soldier asked why I made such a big deal about it and that I should just remove it because now I was in the Army. I told him that once you're a submariner you're always a submariner."

Tom Carney remembers a husky E-5 sonarman on the Clamagor (SS-343) who had been with the Eighty-second Airborne Division in the Army. He qualified, but couldn't get used to the fact that an E-5 was just another crew member. He thought all submariners were a little crazy so when it came time re-enlist he went back to the Army. Carney wonders if he took his dolphins with him. Maybe the Army taught him to fly helicopters. That way he could wear his dolphins, jump badge, combat infantry badge and wings all on one uniform.

Bob Stamper writes that he once saw a line of cadets at the Citadel Military Academy in Charleston, South Carolina wearing dolphins. When he asked them what they had done to deserve wearing the emblem they told him that they had gone on a submarine cruise. Having traced out system lines, completed a qualification notebook and taken a difficult examination Stamper was less than impressed.

Wives of submariners proudly wear their husbands' dolphins as miniatures. They certainly have earned the right to do so. On the other hand a weekend submarine orientation cruise doesn't even qualify to flush an after battery head. Kids will wear anything and perhaps the Citadel told them the facts of life.

What about the opposite of all this dolphin stuff? Has anyone ever seen a submariner wearing an Army or Air Force emblem on his blues? Sound doubtful.