September 12, 2007

Local Purdue students create Web site for war ship's veterans

The Web site, https://www.ussmarsh.com, was created for the veterans of the USS Marsh, which was used in the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Pacific during World War II, as well as in the Korean and Vietnam wars.

Students of Gary Randolph, an associate professor of computer and information technology at the Purdue location and project coordinator, worked on the Web site during the fall 2006 and spring 2007 semesters.

"The best class projects are those that give our students real-world, resume-building experience," Randolph said. "This one is special because it serves these veterans who so valiantly served us. It's a great example of how we incorporate service learning into projects that make a positive impact on the community."

The Web site tells the history of the USS Marsh and contains links for a photo gallery, event and reunion information, and crew and captain list. There also is a "Contact Us" link that allows people to submit questions or captain, crew or event information.

Randolph's students worked on the basic design of the Web site, coding the text for the history section and creating tabs where additional information can be added in the future.

Jon Koons, a sophomore in computer and information technology at Anderson, was one of the students who worked on the site.

"The work was fairly simple because I and others in the class had done some Web work before, but it's great to know that the time we spent creating the site will have such a big impact on so many veterans," he said.

Creating the Web site was the idea of DeWayne Mortenson of Kingsport, Tenn., who met David Dennis, a retired College of Technology at Anderson professor, at USS Marsh reunions over the years.

Mortenson served on the USS Marsh in 1961-62, when he was sent to Vietnam to help train Navy sailors. Dennis, who is a retired professor of electrical engineering technology, served on the USS Marsh during peacetime from 1956-59.

Mortenson heard Dennis talk about the capabilities of the Purdue students and how they were interested in taking on service-learning projects and worked through him to contact Randolph.

Mortenson said he had wanted to start a Web site for the veterans of the ship because he had seen other veterans groups start similar sites as a tool to communicate and record history.

"Our veterans are aging and more are dying every year, so it's very important for us to chronicle this history and their memories while we still can," Mortenson said. "What we're finding is the veterans' kids and grandkids are starting to ask questions and want to know more about the role the ship played in history. This Web site is an excellent way to record history and encourage other veterans to submit their memories and flesh out the story of the USS Marsh."

The USS Marsh is named for Ensign Benjamin Marsh, who was killed at Pearl Harbor. Mortenson said there are hundreds of veterans who served on the ship during from 1944 to 1969. The ship was decommissioned in 1958, but remained in service as an antisubmarine training ship. It was recommissioned from 1961-62, then placed in service reserve. It was reassigned as a Naval Reserve training ship until 1969.

Purdue's College of Technology at Anderson in August moved into the Anderson University Flagship Center at 2705 Enterprise Drive at Interstate 69 and Pendleton Avenue. The Anderson location offers bachelor's degrees in both industrial technology and organizational leadership and supervision, and associate's degrees in computer and information technology, electrical engineering technology, and organizational leadership and supervision.

Writer: Kim Medaris, (765) 494-6998, kmedaris@purdue.edu

Sources: Gary Randolph, (765) 648-2906, gbrandolph@purdue.edu

DeWayne Mortenson, (423) 288-7583, dewaynemortenson@netscape.net

David Dennis, (765) 644-7178, dsdennis1@earthlink.net

Jon Koons, (765) 621-0092, jkoons@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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