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In Remembrance of JoeParenteau
(This page is under construction, remember to stop back by.)
Although not officially a plankowner of the USS Bergall, he climbed aboard her when she was commissioned andstayed with her through the war.
After the third patrol (17February) the Bergall returned to Subic Bay. Many of it's crew took advantage oftheir chance to see how the Army operated, since at this time the Japanese stillcontrolled a large section of Manila and all of northern Luzon. They wanderedthrough the native villages and made friends, collected souvenirs, and marveledat the ubiquity of Singer sewing machines and nursing mothers. Joe Parenteau(QM3c, from Central Jersey) who designed and made all of the Bergall's battleflags lent his talents to the cause of Philippine nationalism and designed thema flag - a Singer sewing machine and several flights of four-engined Mosquitoes,in black and on white field.
An interesting side note on JoeParenteau, QM3C, was that he had chronic seasickness. As soon as #l line wasthrown off from the pier he was sick. He wanted to be on the sub so badly thathe stood every one of his watches and spent the rest of the time in the sack.Seasickness would almost guarantee that you were ineligible for submarine dutybut he fought for the privilege and won.
Here's a picture of the battleflaghe created.
It's location since the war was unknown until the spring of 2002 when WileyFaselt (Son of Joe's crewmate Robert Faselt) found it in artifacts that his dadleft to him.
click for larger view.
For a review of the great find, please click HERE.
After the Bergall he was assignedto the USS Mackerel (SS-204) in the North Atlantic and was discharged in April1946. He hated the North Atlantic!
Throughout World War II, USSMACKEREL, assigned in SubRon1 at New London, CT, participated in the trainingand improvement of the Navy's submarine force. Designed as an experimentalsubmarine, she provided support services to the Underwater Sound Laboratory andtraining services to the Submarine and the Prospective Commanding OfficersSchools at New London, in addition to training Allied surface vessels andaircraft in antisubmarine warfare.
Although most of her time wasspent in the New London area, she steamed as far north as Casco Bay and as farsouth as Chesapeake Bay to conduct antisubmarine training exercises. While inthe New London-Narragansett Bay area she often worked with TG 28.4, theantisubmarine development detachment, as well as with the Underwater SoundLaboratory; thus aiding, both tactically and technically, in the development ofsubmarine knowledge.
At the end of the war, MACKERELwas ordered to Boston, where she decommissioned 9 November 1945.
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Here's a brief review of JoeParenteau's post-war activities:
o Married Mary Ann Wilson, February 1950;
o Graduated from Syracuse University, May 1950 (BS in Civil Engineering);
o Returned to Freehold, NJ shortly thereafter;
o First son (Joseph, jr.) born, December 1950;
o Began Civil-Engineering at Union Carbide, 195?;
o After 2 more sons (Mike & Mark) and one daughter (Sue), his youngest sonwas born (John), December 1957;
o After a three month battle with cancer, died on 25 November 1964 at age 40.
He is survived by our mother,Mary Ann who still lives in Bound Brook, NJ as well as his five children. Afterthe war he attended Syracuse University where he met and married our mother. Hebecame a professional structural engineer and spent virtually all of his careerat Union Carbide in New Jersey.
Bob Faselt (who created the'Bergall Girl On A Torpedo') went to Syracuse University with our father afterthe war. Like our father he also died very young of cancer, in Bob's caseapparently of brain cancer.
I still miss him a lot, and wishhe were here to attend the reunions and fill me with war stories.
Mike Parenteau
In 2007 Joe Parenteau's granddaughter Michelle entered the USAF as a cadet at the Air Force Academy. Like her father and grandfather before her, she is studying engineering. Joe would have been proud.
His son, Joseph Parenteau can becontacted through e-mail at jparenteau@email.msn.com.
His son, John Parenteau can be contacted through e-mail at John.W.parenteau@ulalaunch.com.
His son, Mike Parenteau can be contacted through e-mail at mjp1992@aol.com.
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