USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr DD 850

06/04/2026

The Pikula and Houde groups were at it again; this time in First Division berthing joined by USS Basilone sailor Mike Miranda and Mike Botelho. Staff Member Declan came in on his day off to teach the crew how to lace bunk bottoms.

First Division is coming together very well but we have many more bunk bottoms to install!

06/03/2026

Christina and Liz did a lot of prepping and priming in various locations Saturday to get many of our important exhibit spaces touched up for eventual top coat. This included the Radar Transmitter Room, Chart Room, and fire equipment.

Rob Angelini and Mason helped prep Radio Central while Greg Inzenga, Tom Smith, Rich Angelini, and Rob emptied and stowed away equipment that was in the IFF Space.

This attention to detail and maintaining of our restored spaces goes along way toward preserving the history of the sailors who sailed in destroyers and in the Cold War time period.

06/02/2026

Before we were rained out late in the day last Saturday, the Pikula-Houde team did a great job of prepping and painting the 01 level supports on the main deck with fresh haze gray.

Fred Pikula and his son Fred came all the way from New Jersey to work on the ship. Fred was a machinist mate on USS Samuel B. Roberts 823.

This was the first time volunteering for the Houde group of four people with Robert Houde II, Robert Houde III, Bryan Mavel, and
Christian Boissonneault making a great impact during the day.

Looking good on both port and starboard main deck.

06/02/2026

Bob Barlow and Steve Pinkham prepped our after mast ECM antennas this past weekend with Rob and Mason Angelini painting them prior to installation.

These are now ready for mounting and will bring about an appearance for DD-850 she hasn't had since 1973.

The AN/SLA-13A is a US Navy electronic countermeasure (ECM) system used primarily on Vietnam War-era destroyers, such as the Gearing-class destroyer USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. It was a unique, limited-production system utilized for intercepting and analyzing electronic threats during that period.

06/01/2026

Did you know JPK 850 is in a video game? In the game, the mission with JPK is called the high north. Volunteer Mike Donahue provided us the tip though the game is still early access.

From the lead designer of Cold Waters, Sea Power lets you control NATO and Warsaw Pact forces in modern naval conflict campaigns. Use your advanced naval weaponry and sensors to respect rules of engagement and defeat the enemy forces in a tense fight for initiative and air/naval supremacy.

06/01/2026

Metal Work is always on the list and that was no different this Saturday as Chris Keating prepped and primed bits on the starboard side. Chris DiChiara welded the standing locker in First Division back into place after the major work in this berthing area.

Looking good guys!

05/30/2026

We had 30 volunteers aboard for the May Field Day today! Lots of work was accomplished for this historic destroyer that we will present over several days.

Our Electrical team of Alex Vaughan, Zach Reese, and Lorenzo Taylor were all over the ship today. They corrected the wiring of the SPS-29 Radar so it turns clockwise, helped re-lamp the ASROC magazine, removed modern wiring from First Division Berthing, changed out fuses, and chased down electrical problems to support work efforts throughout the ship.

05/29/2026

First day of field day on JOEY P. We painted out the primer on the fwd superstructure, refreshed the davits, the ASROC shack, and touched up the hull.

Staff led by Derek Cabral moved 35 racks from storage on the battleship to First Division berthing for installation to finalize the space. Thanks also to Steve Ponte for the support today!

05/28/2026

Did you ever have the helm of the ship in an emergency situation?

RUPE 851 shows us how it is done in this 1967 photo fighting the FORRESTAL fire.