Cool temperatures, a light breeze and slight cloud cover made for the perfect backdrop upon the USS Cobia earlier today for the 75th anniversary of the commission of the USS Rasher. A multitude of sailors that were aboard the sub during its prime were all on hand for the celebration. The The Rasher is one of 28 ships that were built in Manitowoc that went on combat missions. Mayor Justin Nickels was the first person to welcome the Navy Veterans to the city.
Retired Admiral Jerry Clusen was also on hand.
The biggest celebrity of the day was a man by the name of Ken Tate. Tate was with the Rasher from the day it was commissioned, June 8th 1943, and was aboard during four of the eight combat missions she was deployed on. The Rasher is actually responsible for the second largest amount of enemy tonnage sunk during WWII.
The ceremony ended with a reading of all the service members that, since the last reunion, have “gone out on eternal patrol”.
The man responsible for the yearly reunion of the Rasher crew, Richard Moore (aka Yogi) read off the names of all the submarines that did not return home.