8:00 am - 12:00 pm: Battleship Alive
Watch and interact with World War II living history interpreters as they bring the Ship to life by re-enacting daily duties & drills. Location: Various areas of the Ship
9:00 am - Divine Services:
Experience how sailors attended church service on board. Location: Mess Decks
1:30 pm - 2:00 pm: Reflection Ceremony, Location: Fantail
Executive Director of the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA, Captain Terry Bragg, will speak to the community on the Past, Present and Future of the Battleship. Guest Speaker, Si Cantwell, columnist and community news editor at the Wilmington StarNews and StarNewsOnline.com will "Reflect" of the 50 years of the Battleship being moored in Wilmington.
Ceremony will include presentation of colors, National Anthem as performed by the Cape Fear Chordsmen and other medleys provided by Beach Music Barbershop Quartet, Residence of the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA .
Conclusion of the program will be commenced with a fly-by of the Spirit of North Carolina, a World War II Douglas A-26 Invader aircraft.
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm: Wilbur Jones: Book Signing: Location: Fantail
Wilbur D. Jones, Jr., a nationally known, award-winning author and military historian will be on hand for a book signing as well to discuss the history of this Ship along with World War II. He writes, lectures, and consults on history and national defense, serves as a media source, and leads worldwide tours of World War II battlefields and sites.
Jones is a retired Navy captain and served the Department of Defense for nearly 41 years, the last 12 as a professor and associate dean at the Defense Acquisition University.
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm: Cindy Horrell Ramsey: Book Signing: Location: Gift Shop
Cindy Horrell Ramsey, author of "Boys of the Battleship North Carolina", grew up just 15 miles from where the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA now lives. She was one of the school children who took change to school to help save the ship.
"Boys of the Battleship North Carolina" is the story of the BB55 as seen through the eyes of her young enlisted crew as they carried her through WWII and back home again. Cindy interviewed scores of former crewmembers in person, through email, phone calls and letters and spent countless hours in the ship's archives discovering the information she needed to recreate the lives of the "boys" and their ship.
Cindy is a member of the North Carolina Humanities Counsel Road Scholars Speakers Bureau and shares the stories of the crew and ship through her presentation, "A North Carolina Icon Brought to Life: Sea Stories of Sailors Aboard the WW II Battleship North Carolina."
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm: UNCW Jazz Band, Sponsored by Carolina Heritage Guide: Location: Fantail
The band performance will combine historical perspectives and improvisational practices in jazz from 1940 to the present. More information on their organization can be found here at facebook.com/UNCWJazz.
Babs McDance will also be conducting lessons during the performance for unforgettable dances such as The Pony, The Twist and The Mashed Potato.
3:15 pm - 3:45 pm: Techmoja: Location: Fantail
A unique performance of an excerpt from "The House that Gordy Built" a tribute to Motowns greats. Conceived by Kevin Lee-Y Green originally featured hits such as: You can't Hurry Love, My Girl, and Ain't No Mountain High Enough.
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm: The Imitations, Sponsored by: USS NORTH CAROLINA Battleshp Association and Battleship NORTH CAROLINA Living History Crew
Listen to the music of the 60's as local band The Imitations takes it back in time.
5:00 pm: Taps
A reflection of the past 50 years and a look into the next 50 years of making history for the Battleship, a solo Bugler will perform Taps to commence the anniversary date.
Day is done, gone the sun
From the lakes, from the hills, from the sky
All is well, safely rest
God is nigh.
Fading light dims the sight
And a star gems the sky, gleaming bright
From afar, drawing near
Falls the night.
Thanks and praise for our days
Neath the sun, neath the stars, neath the sky
As we go, this we know
God is nigh.
