Photo taken 9/18/2002 during the Montauk Park Opening Ceremony. Park Commissioner Bernadette Castro gives her speech. She and Radomes Friend & Montauk point man Don Bender to the right of the sign.

Don Bender give his speech. Ms. Castro to Don`s right, another park official to his left.

Bud writes:
The dedication ceremony held 18 Sept. 2002 at Camp Hero State Park was a big success in my book. I would say about 150 people were in attendance, with a number of them school children from the local grammar school. The event was covered by lots of media people from the newspapers and TV stations. Matter of fact, I was interviewed by TV channel 12, and was pleased to see myself on the evening news. I had my white Radomes hat on, so we had a little more publicity. I talked to a lot of people, mostly news and state officials, and made sure they knew they were talking to a Radomes member. State Parks Commissioner Bernadette Castro was very pleased to have some Radomes members present, and she mentioned this over and over in her speech.

I met Henry Brand, a member, who lives on Long Island. Don Bender gave a nice speech about the site and the FPS-35. I had a nice talk with him also, and can say he`s a very interesting person to talk to. I`ve read a lot of his articles, so it was nice to meet him. Commissioner Castro read a nice letter from retired Major Martin, the last CO of the 773rd.

Although we didn`t get the chance to go all around the site, about 13 of us made the trip, via the dark stairway, to the top deck of the FPS-35 tower. It was quite a sight, and something I hadn`t planned on doing. I never thought I`d ever have the chance to go up on that tower, so it really put the icing on the cake.

I`ll be going out to the site again soon, and will plan on spending the day taking pictures and trying to find out what`s happening in the future. I think I struck up a good relationship with Dominic Jacangelo, so I`ll keep in touch with him. They all seemed to be quite excited about the whole venture, and I tried to impress on people, including my interview with TV12, that it was all about remembering the men and women who served during the Cold War, and I hoped it would someday be turned into some sort of museum/learning center for our children and grandchildren so the memory would not be forgotten. I only hope I`m still around to see it happen. I told the Commissioner that I`m available to help wherever I can, and the price is right. SATISFACTION.

Dear Commissioner Castro,

The purpose of this letter is to thank you for the efforts of the New York State Park Service in opening the Montauk Radar site as a part of your outstanding Park Service activity at Montauk Point. I was the last Commander at Montauk Air Force Station, and I truly enjoyed the park while I was stationed there. I am proud to be a member of the Radomes Internet group that has been supporting the efforts to restore the FPS-35 tower at Montauk Point. Many Air Force veterans who have served there and at other radar sites are very happy to see that the efforts they spent in support of our country are not going unnoticed. Also, they are happy that some of the facilities are being preserved.

The citizens of the Town of Montauk and Montauk`s Air Force members were a close community during my term as Commander. The mission of our unit at Montauk was to protect the City of New York from air attack, and the events of September 11, 2001 were just such attacks. While we could not have prevented the type of attack that occurred, our training and mission to protect the City were so intense that we felt a personal sense of failure at the tragedies of that day.

Most of the radar sites that protected our country from intruders have been demolished. In making the site at Montauk a part of your park, you have preserved a unique link with history that began with the Spanish American War, served a special role during World War II and continued through the Cold War. It is my hope that future visitors to the radar site will be touched by it`s history and will understand the intense allegiance of those who have served to protect our Nation from intruders.

Yours truly,

Miles Martin
Major, USAF Retired
Last Commander Montauk Air Force Station