U.S. Navy Beach Jumpers Association (727) 4-USNBJA
Copyright 1996-2024 All rights reserved                                                                                                                                                                      US Navy Beach Jumpers Assoc.                                          ®beachjumpers.com, beachjumpers.org, usnavybeachjumpers.org
Website by R-Havekost
BJ-MEMORIALS BJ-MEMORIALS BJ-MEMORIALS BJ-MEMORIALS
Beach Jumpers reunite in 2003
 
The unit has evolved for almost eight decades.
BJA Reunion 2008 San Diego, CA
Carl Kilhoffer, on behalf of the Executive Board, presents Roy with an appeciation award for his lone efforts in bringing together the Navy Beach Jumpers Association 2003-2008
Turbo Vestri Hostilis’
more association history to follow…
ABOUT THE BEACH JUMPERS ASSOCIATION In October 1968 I, EM3 Roy Havekost, was stationed at the Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base in Virginia, and was being released from active duty from Beach Jumper Unit 2. After returning to my home state of New Jersey and in early 1969 I would begin a 26+ year career in law enforcement retiring from the police department as Captain of Detectives. After my retirement in 1995, I was very interested in computers and intrigued by the world wide web and I created an internet website with the intention of locating anyone who served in the Navy as a Beach Jumper. I was looking for former shipmates with whom I served so we could rekindle our friendships after all these years. The response within the next several weeks, months and years was amazing. I created a database of former Beach Jumpers and the information was shared with those who had responded thus far. Many old friendships were rekindled between all of these shipmates who had previously served together in Beach Jumper units. These friendships went as far back as WWII and Korea as well as the more recent Vietnam Era. Through the next several years the database would grow into hundreds of names of former Beach Jumpers. In 2002 a public information officer assigned to Fleet Information Warfare Command (FIWC), under the command of Captain Robert Stuart, contacted me (via this website) to discuss some of the history of Navy Beach Jumpers. His goal was to trace back FIWC’s history of origin which was leading him back to the Beach Jumpers involvement during WWII.  I arranged for some former Beach Jumpers who lived in the Norfolk VA vicinity to meet with FIWC personnel to further discuss some of the history. The discussions resulted in FIWC sponsoring a reunion of former Beach Jumpers in August 2003 on the Little Creek Amphibious Base at the FIWC Unit where the BJU-2 unit once existed. During that gathering in 2003, Roy Havekost BJU2, Carl Kilhoffer BJU1, John McLeod BJU1, Wayne Miller BJU2 and Vince Piscitelli BJU2 compiled Articles of Association for the U.S. Navy Beach Jumpers and the Association was formed. By-Laws would also be compiled and approved at the 2004 reunion of members. Throughout the following years the association membership would grow to more than 500 members and over 100 associate members.