GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — The U.S. Coast Guard Cutters Neah Bay and Buckthorn and the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Samuel Risley are scheduled to make their official entrance into the Grand River Aug. 2, marking the beginning of a busy and exciting week at the 2010 Coast Guard Festival.

The parade of ships will begin Aug. 2 at 1 p.m. The ships will moor at designated spots along Escanaba Park, adjacent to the Coast Guard Station in Grand Haven.

Media wishing to get underway on a Coast Guard cutter for the parade should contact Chief Petty Officer Dustin Allman in advance at (616) 850-2552.

Each of the ships will be available for public tours at a variety of times from Aug. 2 through Aug. 7, with crewmembers available to answer questions.

The Coast Guard is committed to making the public’s experience on board these cutters a pleasant one, and asks for everyone’s cooperation and patience with these simple safety/security requirements:

• Though the tour will show off many spaces, some spaces will be off-limits.
• No, backpacks, coolers or bags of any type, nor open food or drink will be permitted on board. Searches may be conducted.

Additionally, specialized Coast Guard units may be on display at Kids Day Aug. 3 from 10 a.m., to 2 p.m., at Mulligan’s Hollow and other times and locations. Visit Coast Guard Sector Field Office Grand Haven at 650 South Harbor Drive for current status.

Background information about the three cutters is provided below.

Arriving from Cleveland, Cutter Neah Bay is a 140-foot icebreaking tug. Its primary duty is facilitating the movement and commerce in the ice-choked waterways of the Great Lakes from November to May. Additional missions include search and rescue, public relations and law enforcement. Neah Bay is specially designed for icebreaking missions such as establishing and maintaining tracks and assisting beset vessels. Its 2,500 shaft horsepower propulsion system and hull design are its greatest assets in breaking through restrictive ice formations. Neah Bay can continuously break through 18-30 inches of ice and 3-8 feet while backing and ramming.

Arriving from Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., Cutter Buckthorn is a 100-foot inland buoy tender, the only cutter of its class. Its shallow draft allows the ship to service aids to navigation in waters that are not navigable by deeper draft vessels. The twin-screw configuration makes the ship highly maneuverable, which is vital for working around shoals and obstructions in placing navigational buoys. Buckthorn's primary mission is aids-to-navigation on the St. Mary’s River, one of the Great Lakes most critical waterways. The crew is responsible for maintaining 270 buoys, 3 lighthouses, 16 ranges, 71 shore side lights and 39 Canadian buoys as part of an international agreement. Buckthorn also performs light construction work throughout the Great Lakes.

Arriving from Parry Sound, Ontario, Canadian Coast Guard Ship Samuel Risley is a 229-foot Light Icebreaker and Medium Navigation Aids Tender. The ship is named after the first chairman of the Board of Steamship Inspection, and was the first Type 1050 vessel commissioned by the Canadian Coast Guard. The vessel is powerful with 8840 horsepower in four main engines and highly maneuverable as it is equipped with controllable pitch propellers, bow and stern thrusters and twin rudders. During the primary navigation season, from late March to late December, the ship tends aids to navigation in the Canadian waters of the Great Lakes. During the winter months, the ship breaks ice in Canadian and U.S. waters from Port Colborne, Ontario to Thunder Bay, Ontario. The vessel can move steadily through ice up to 36 inches thick.

USCGC Hollyhock is unable to attend as previously advertised.

The Neah Bay, Buckthorn and Risley will each be available for public tours at the following times, although times are subject to change.

As part of National Safe Boating Week, U.S. Coast Guard boarding officers, Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel examiners from Flotilla 095-31-05 and members of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Dept. will be present at Coast Guard Station Grand Haven, from noon to 4 p.m., May 22, 2010.

Auxiliary members will be conducting free vessel examinations to ensure that all attendees are in compliance with safety laws and regulations and boarding officers and law enforcement personell will answer questions that members of the public may have prior to the boating season.

 WHO:        Station Grand Haven personnel, AUX flotilla 095-31-05 and Ottawa County Sheriff's Department.

WHAT:       Vessel Safety Checks and Boater Education

WHEN:       Saturday, May 22 2010

WHERE:     Station Grand Haven Boat Basin 

For more information contact Petty Officer 1st Class Sean Long at (616) 850-2552.

The family of U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Thomas J.E. Crotty, a World War II veteran, is scheduled to accept posthumous Bronze Star and Purple Heart Medals honoring Crotty's service, Thursday, at approximately 12:30 p.m.

Crotty served in the Pacific Theater during World War II and gave his life in 1942 in defense of the United States.

The ceremony will take place as part of the 50th annual Western New York Armed Forces Week. The presentation is scheduled to occur after the Armed Forces Luncheon at the Connecticut Street Armory in Buffalo, N.Y.  Rear Adm. Michael Parks, commander, Ninth Coast Guard District, will present the medals.

Interested parties should contact Lt. Brian Sadler, Coast Guard Sector Buffalo public affairs officer at (716) 553-4779

The Western New York Armed Forces Week Opening Ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, May 2, 2010 at 12:45 p.m. at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park. Hosted by the U.S. Coast Guard and sponsored by the Western New York Armed Forces Week Committee in cooperation with Military, Industrial, Civic and Verterans' Organizations, Armed Forces Week is a tribute to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces.

What: Armed Forces Week Opening Ceremony, featuring Military Color Guards and the American Legion Band of the Tonawandas', Post 264.

When: Sunday, May 2, 2010, at 12:45 p.m.

Where: Buffalo and Erie Naval and Military Park; One Naval Cove, Buffalo, NY 14202.

Cost: FREE admission to the Opening Ceremony.

Any media interested in attending should contact Lt. Brian Sadler, Coast Guard Sector Buffalo public affairs officer at (716) 553-4779

The U.S. Coast Guard Brass Quintet is scheduled to perform a free concert at the Cleveland Museum of Art's Gartner Auditorium, at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 17, 2010. The performance is part of the Gartner Auditorium's Opening Nights Festival.

 WHO: U.S. Coast Guard Brass Quintet, a division of the U.S. Coast Guard Band, based in New London, CT.

WHAT: Performing at the Cleveland Museum of Art's Gartner Auditorium as part of the Gartner Auditorium's opening Nights Festival.

WHEN: Performance begins at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 17, 2010.

WHERE: Cleveland Museum of Art, Gartner Auditorium, 11150 East Blvd., Cleveland, 44106.

COST: Tickets are FREE. Tickets are available on show days or in advance at the museum box office in person, or by phone: (216) 421-7350 or 1-800-CMA-0033. In the event of a sold out performance, stand-by tickets will be issued at the door.

For further information contact the Ninth Coast Guard District Public Affairs Office at (216) 902-6020.

CLEVELAND—The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Neah Bay, a 140-foot ice-breaking tug homeported here, is scheduled to escort the Canadian commercial vessel AlgoCanada into Cleveland Harbor at approximately 1:30 p.m., Feb.12, 2010.

The AlgoCanada is being held up outside of Cleveland Harbor by thick ice. Neah Bay will use its ice-breaking capabilities to provide a safe and navigable track for AlgoCanada as it transits into Cleveland Harbor.

For further information or media inquiries, contact the Ninth Coast Guard District Public Affairs Office at 216-902-6020.

WHO: U.S. Coast Guard Station Cleveland Harbor and Cleveland Fire Dept.

WHAT: Will be conducting joint ice-rescue training

WHERE: Cleveland Moorings, 1055 East Ninth Street, Cleveland, Ohio 44114

WHEN: Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010. Scheduled for 9:30 a.m.

Media interested in attending should contact the Ninth District Public Affairs Office at (216) 902-6020