About 30 crew members of the infamous aircraft carrier, the USS Intrepid, met at The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club in Naples, Florida for their annual reunion.
The Intrepid, now a museum at Pier 86 in New York, was launched in 1943, and is referred to by many naval historians as “a hard luck ship.” It holds the distinction of being the only US naval vessel hit more times by enemy fire than any other during World War II. It withstood at least eight Japanese kamikaze hits and several air bombings.
Dick Steppling, a retired Naples High School history teacher, organized the reunion, bringing crew members and their families from as close as Lee County, Florida, and as far away as Washington State.
