We invite you to click this link - VFP-62 Webmaster to email a question, comment, correction, or contribution to this page.
Updated 3/9/18
Greg Engler: Here are the pictures I said I would make showing the contents in their present condition in the wooden boxes. In one you can see the two rubber bands that were around the procedures. These papers are in two boxes and survived best because they were in a thick packet and were bound with the rubber bands. The pages are separated into small groups of pages that range from one sheet up to about 10 pages. These multiple pages can in most cases be further separated but the extreme edges would probably need to be cut off as they, again, in some cases, are curled together making separation almost impossible without tearing the sheets somewhere else. Not an expert here by any means. Its possible, but not tried, that wetting the edges might loosen them as well making separation easier. I'll leave that to someone else in the future.
Photos by Greg Engler Click photos to enlarge
Left photo: Looking closer to the pages of the manual you can see that the pages or pretty legible so that is good news, if you want to read procedures that is. Middle Photo: The trophy and two latches along with the patch and the round pin that was in a glass is in another box. Right Photo: Fourteen intact drink glasses of which 12 are fruit juice glasses with a bulged ring around them and two thinner fruit juice glasses are shown on the table along with several pieces of about 6 - 8 broken ones.
Left Photo: You can see the two rubber bands that were around the procedures. These papers are in two boxes and survived best because they were in a thick packet and were bound with the rubber bands. Middle photo: If you remember, pictures of squadron commanding officers were in a show case. This one indicates CO Winford O. Moore ???? 1949 May 1950. Folks He was the first VFP-62 CO!! Right photo: Pile of what looks like Newsletters.
Tributes and Comments by Squadron Members
Greg! You and fellow searchers/diggers deserve very large medals as well as the gratitude of all us armchair supporters. ZZZZZZZZZZ
Very well done indeed!
Mo Hayes [webmaster: Captain Hayes was our last CO]
VFP-62 Time Capsule Returns Home to Cecil Field For Public Display of Navy Memorablia
UPDATE (5/31/15)
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
Attended:
L to R - Harrison Conyers - Veteran and Community Outreach Manager, Jack Banning VT Group, Cdr. Norm Green VFP-62 pilot, Gary Sutton VT Group, Greg Engler AT2 VFP-62, Robann Koenig, Jimmy Koenig, James Jelsma, Jeannie Engler took pictures as she did at digs
The VFP-62 Time Capsule was handed over to the authorities at the Jacksonville Aviation Complex (former NAS Cecil Field) on May 29, 2015 and will be placed in a display at the VT Group (They were instrumental to the capsule being found by doing the bush hogging and other things for us. They are housed in the old chapel next to the memorial.) offices located adjacent to the MIA/POW memorial. The building is the old theater where we had the reunion. James Jelsma will send pictures when its all complete. He is making the entryway area for VFP-62 so that when you come in the door there you will see the capsule, contents, the book Blue Moon Over Cuba, the VFP-62 Cuban Missile Crisis squadron binder and a bunch of really nice pictures that are printing.
From everything James said he was going to do I believe its going to be quite an impressive display. The conference room is used quite a bit so it seems there will be a lot of traffic. We also left a guest book for guests and visitors to sign. We all did this morning. If anyone visits and would like to see it, all they have to do is go across the street to the VT Group's offices and ask. They are in the old chapel. --- Greg Engler
(L-R) The entrance to the conference center (former movie theater); the display case; outside of conference center
The capsule was finally cleaned up last week by a scrubbing with a metal scrub brush, soap and water. A lot of material flaked off during this cleaning. In places the capsule is heavily pitted. I discovered that there were dates stenciled on the cover, the dates the squadron was activated and the date it was disestablished.
The capsule represents what is left of the fabled squadron and its former members and should hold an important place in history for many. It belongs back at the former base, not here at my home in a storage building.
