28 July Daily Shipmate

Tuesday, 28 July 2026

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1945 - The destroyer Callaghan (DD-792) is hit by a kamikaze off Okinawa, Japan. It becomes the last ship sunk by a kamikaze attack during World War II.

 

1968 - When his platoon comes under attack while in an open rice field in Quang Nam Province, South Vietnam, Hospital Corpsman Third Class Wayne M. Caron rushes to the aid of a wounded Marine and, though himself wounded by enemy fire, renders lifesaving care. En route to a second casualty, Caron is hit in the leg, but crawls the remaining distance to the wounded Marine. While attempting to reach yet another wounded leatherneck, the intrepid corpsman is killed by an enemy rocket round. He is posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

2004 - LtCol David Greene ’86, USMCR, was killed in action when he was struck by ground fire while piloting an attack helicopter in Anbar Province, Iraq. He was on active duty until 1997; for the three years prior to his loss he was a project manager at the BF Goodrich Aerospace plant in Vergennes, Vermont. He was survived by his wife, daughter, son, parents, brother and two sisters. Other alumni lost on this day are listed at Virtual Memorial Hall

 

Content in “Today in Navy, Marine Corps and USNA Memorial Hall History” is generously provided by our partners and fellow alumni at the Naval History and Heritage Command and the Run to Honor SIG, which supplies the USNA Memorial Hall content. We are grateful for their partnership in preserving and sharing this history, and the Daily Shipmate is proud to serve as a distribution platform. You can learn more or provide feedback through their respective websites hyperlinked above.

Academy & Graduate happenings

RADM Gavin “Deedle” Duff ’95, USN, returned to familiar territory during a recent visit to Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division Lakehurst, decades after growing up sailing the waterways of Ocean County. Duff, a graduate of Toms River High School South and the U.S. Naval Academy, visited the Lakehurst installation in July as commander of Carrier Strike Group 12. In that role, he oversees the preparation, readiness and combat operations of the group’s ships, aircraft and personnel. The group’s flagship is USS Gerald R. Ford, the lead vessel in the Navy’s newest class of aircraft carriers. The carrier uses the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System and Advanced Arresting Gear, technologies developed and supported by the Lakehurst workforce. During the visit, Duff toured laboratories and active testing facilities connected to the launch and recovery systems. He also met employees who recently provided operational support to the fleet, thanking them for their work on behalf of service members.

RADM Gavin “Deedle” Duff ’95, USN, is a native of Toms River, New Jersey. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science in Naval Architecture and earned his Wings of Gold in 1998. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School and the Navy’s Nuclear Propulsion Training program, he also holds a master’s degree from Old Dominion University. He was a 2019 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Seminar XXI fellow. Operationally, he has completed nine carrier deployments to the Western Pacific, South China Sea, Mediterranean and Middle East, supporting Operations Southern Watch, Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn, Enduring Freedom and Inherent Resolve. Assignments include the Marauders of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 82, Eagles of VFA-115 and Executive Officer of USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77).

If you haven’t had a chance to explore the 2025 Donor Report, we invite you to take a look. Discover inspiring stories, see the impact of philanthropy across the Yard, and celebrate the generous community that continues to strengthen the Naval Academy. Printed copies are arriving in mailboxes soon!

USAA National Military Monument opens today

Today, USAA will unveil a one-of-a-kind monument to honor the military service members who have defended our freedom for the last 250 years.

Government & Military News

Join the U.S. Navy Memorial tonight on Navy Memorial Plaza for a performance by the full U.S. Navy Band. Enjoy another spectacular evening with live music in a setting that brings together tradition, community and the spirit of the Sea Services.

U.S. President Donald Trump is still holding off approval of a $14 billion weapons package for Taiwan, a potential military rival to Beijing. He pulled back in May after meeting his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, who opposes U.S. military aid to Taiwan. But on 15 July the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that includes $500 million in Foreign Military Financing for Taiwan, one in a chain of Pacific Rim allies that U.S. officials have long seen as a buffer against Chinese military expansion. While the half-billion-dollar allocation in the 2027 fiscal year appropriations bill does not commit money to a particular arms package, analysts say it’s a sign that the Republican Party-dominated Congress values the defense of Taiwan in case China ever attacks with its larger armed forces, and that Washington intends to fulfill at least older arms purchase deals.

The U.S. Navy is looking outside the military to address its need for temporary housing as it renovates barracks and vacates service members who previously lived in them. The service published a Request for Information on Friday asking industry partners to help provide solutions for how to address a shortage of several thousand beds and build unaccompanied housing for sailors who will need a place to stay while their living quarters are modernized. “Improving living conditions is a top priority for the Navy, but comprehensive upgrades require significant structural work,” the service said in an emailed statement. “Utilizing temporary housing, which are often referred to as swing space, is a critical step. It allows the Navy to proceed with massive construction projects on schedule while ensuring Sailors are not displaced into subpar accommodations during the transition.”

Local, Education & other academy news

Nimitz Library is hiring 2 college students for a year-round, part-time, in-person position. The position works 16-hours/week and the role must be filled by a person currently enrolled in higher education. The position typically works a schedule that could include Sunday-Friday evenings, typically in 4 hour shifts. As part-time federal employees, students in this role accrue pro-rated annual and sick leave. Applications must be received via USAJobs by the application deadline listed in the link below.

By Emily Lucht

USNA AA&F Communications

 

A crowd of Orioles fans stood and applauded, but this Saturday night wasn't just about baseball. It was about military appreciation and honoring the women whose courage and determination transformed America's service academies 50 years ago.

 

At Camden Yards, the Baltimore Orioles and Maryland 250 shined a spotlight on the women whose determination helped rewrite the story of America's service academies. From the pioneering Class of 1980 to today's graduates, the evening honored the courage, resilience and leadership that transformed opportunity into legacy and paved the way for generations of future officers to serve and lead.

 

Among those honored was Janice Buxbaum '80, a member of the first class of women to graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy. Joined by fellow academy graduates spanning nearly five decades, she represented a journey that began with uncertainty and challenge but helped redefine what service and leadership could look like.

 

Read how a night at Camden Yards honored the women who changed Naval Academy history—and continue to shape its future.

West Point law professor sues military academy over Trump-era speech restrictions.

Tim Bakken, the longest-serving civilian law professor in West Point’s history, has filed a lawsuit challenging sweeping restrictions on faculty speech imposed after a 2025 presidential executive order. The restrictions stem from President Trump’s January 2025 executive order titled “Restoring America’s Fighting Force,” which reshaped governance across the federal service academies. West Point responded by implementing what it called an “Academic Engagement Policy,” requiring civilian faculty to seek approval before publishing papers or delivering public speeches. Bakken confronted the policy openly at a faculty meeting in March 2025, telling dozens of colleagues that no professor should be compelled to seek prior authorization before writing or speaking. “This violates the First Amendment,” Bakken said at the meeting, predicting an end to West Point’s longstanding tolerance for dissenting academic viewpoints.

Naval Academy Athletics News

Stanford football players have formed a campus chapter of the College Football Players Association, making the Cardinal the first team to partner with the organization, which aims to eventually unionize college athletes. The players are not yet petitioning to form a union or be deemed employees, but their announcement Monday marks a first step toward building a structure for college athletes to collectively bargain like professional athletes, a once-verboten idea that has gained popularity in recent years as high-level college sports become more professionalized. The CFBPA hopes to establish bargaining units on a conference-by-conference basis, according to Stanford chapter leaders Fisher Anderson and Ernest Cooper, who play center and linebacker, respectively, for the Cardinal. If and when the organization has signed up the majority of players at every school in a conference, it plans to take steps to formally unionize.

In a statement posted on the program's social media channels, UNLV coach Josh Pastner on Monday clarified comments he made last week referring to the athletic department seeking an "owner" for the Rebels men's basketball team. In an interview last week with KTNV in Las Vegas, Pastner, the former Memphis and Georgia Tech coach who is in his second season at UNLV, announced he was seeking out an investor who could help the Rebels compete in the NIL era. Using the potential for the city of Las Vegas to someday land an NBA franchise as his launching-off point, Pastner offered a more economical solution. "I have told people, why buy the NBA team? Buy the college basketball team. You can be the owner of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels men's basketball team," he said. "And it's a lot less expensive." On Monday, Pastner clarified his stance, announcing that "the Runnin' Rebels are not for sale, and my reference to an 'owner' was meant to highlight the level of resources, sponsorships, and overall support needed to compete in today's evolving college athletics landscape -- not to suggest that anyone could own the program."

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