I haven't been in touch lately but I do keep track of your website that i enjoy greatly.  I keep going back to the 1952/53 pictures as i have pretty much the same ones in my picture albums.  It brings back so many memories.  I also enjoy reading all the current news of the island and find it hard to believe the modernization that has taken place.  It is just like any little home town here in the states.  Hard to believe 61 years have gone by, I was a kid then ------ 83 now.  Looking at the pictures of the island, it is so vegetated.  Would you believe me if i told you that it may be from a job I had when I first got to the island before being billeted in a permanent job in the telephone group.  I was in charge of a working party that planted 3000 coconuts at the (what was called the Air Force end of the island) end of the runway.  When i left the island in 1953, they had grown to about 4 ft. tall. maybe that was the start of the re-growth. (my legacy to Kwaj). 

Another little story, being I worked in the telephone group, it was a manual system and we had a switchboard at the Navy end of the island (next to the Richardson) and a switchboard in the air terminal (the Air Force end of the island).  When new dependents arrived, they would ask the Navy operator for long distance call.  He (Navy personnel) would send the call on a trunk line to the Air Force switchboard who would return the call to the Navy operator.  This went on 6 times and the caller would be advised that that was the longest distance we could get....6 times up and down the island.  Then he would direct their call to the ham shack who would schedule a radio link hookup to Hawaii, then to the states.  Just a little nostalgia. anyhow, keep up the great work you do as it must take up a lot of your time.

Have a great day and good health:

Joe Reinhardt, former CB in the Navy Public Works Dept. of Kwajalein.