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Dr. Gary Wray
President |
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Dr. Wray has
been President of FMHA since it began in 2003,
responsible for leading the organization in its goal
of preserving, protecting and defending all
aspects of Fort Miles. Dr. Wray is co-author (with
Lee Jennings, State Parks historian) of the book on
Fort Miles, published by Arcadia Press in 2005. Dr.
Wray also serves on the local Cape Henlopen School
Board, where he has been both Vice President and
President for almost two years, and is an elected
trustee of the Delaware Historical Society, the
oldest historical society in the state. Dr. Wray,
representing FMHA, was also chosen by the state of
Delaware as the State Volunteer of the Year in
2008. Dr. Wray is currently a professor at
Wilmington University, the University of Maryland,
and Delaware Technical and Community College. |
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Ted
George
Secretary |
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Ted has
been Secretary of the Fort Miles Historical
Association since its inception in December, 2003.
As Secretary he keeps a current and accurate record
and mailing list of FMHA members, takes minutes at
the monthly Board meetings, and makes any other
correspondence that might be necessary. Board
members are also asked to occasionally be present at
local arts and crafts shows where the organization’s
merchandise is sold. Ted is a retired teacher
from Capital School District where he taught
American History, Political Science, and
Constitutional Law at Dover High School for 35
years. After retirement he continued to substitute
for 5 additional years. Currently he is a volunteer
interpreter at the Delaware Agricultural Museum in
Dover. |
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Merlin
Beil
Treasurer |
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Merlin
serves on the board of directors as the treasurer
for the Fort Miles Historical Association. His
first introduction with Fort Miles was while serving
active duty with the US Army in 1957 and 1958.
Having observed the quality of life in Lewes,
Delaware, he and his family purchased their summer
home in 1976 and upon retirement became a permanent
resident of Lewes in 1993. |
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John
Roberts
Volunteer / Work Coordinator |
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A
native Delawarean, John grew up on a farm in Odessa.
He spent many summers at the beaches of Delaware and
explored Fort Miles extensively with his uncle, an
Army colonel, when it was a recreational area and
Nike Missile Master site. John attended the
University of Delaware as a chemical engineering
major. His many disciplines include mechanical
engineering and design, electrical design, and
chemical engineering. John worked for 30 years as a
senior R&D scientist for Rodel Inc in the field of
semiconductor materials and process development.
Upon retirement, he had accrued 48 patents and
nearly every semiconductor chip in the world has
been touched by several of his inventions. His
patents and inventions include, but are not limited
to, materials and processes to polish silicon wafers
and the circuits upon them to roughness levels less
than the diameter of one atom, polyurethane
development, chemomechanical polishing processes,
MOPVE and PECVD deposition processes, composite
materials, and selective etch processes.
John currently serves on the board of the FMHA
overseeing volunteer efforts and work projects for
the organization. |
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Joe
Kosaveach
Restoration |
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Joe has
been a Board member since 2006. In his former
reincarnation he was Assistant Treasurer and
Security Investigator at the Citizens Bank of
Maryland in suburban D.C. After 34 years there and
working concurrently as a Prince George's County
municipal police officer during 20 of those years,
he and his wife of 53 years, Etta, retired to Lewes,
in 1992. Although never finished, Joe has fully
restored their 1898, late Queen Anne Victorian home
on Savannah Rd. bringing that experience to the Ft.
Miles project in addition to other strengths.
Joe has restored two of the WWII underwater mines
that now rest in the south gun room of Battery 519.
The M-3 and the M-4. Along with other members he
also helped to complete the restoration on the 1942
Sperry 60” Searchlight. Joe and a crew of volunteers
are currently working to complete the restoration of
a Flak38, 20mm AA gun from U-853.
From '55 – '63, Joe was a member of the US Navy,
attaining the rank of CTPO3 and served as a
Communications Technician. He very much enjoys
donning his whites and blues and conducting the
public and private tours at Fort Miles to acquaint
everyone with the story of the Fort's place in
history. |
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Bob
Fellows
Publicity |
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Bob, who was raised and
schooled in New England, first came to Delaware as a
member of the United States Air Force and was
stationed at Dover Air Force Base in 1955.
Retirement from government service came in 1994,
while assigned to Wright Patterson Air Force Base,
Dayton, Ohio. Bob returned to Lewes, Delaware in
2004 to live closer to his family and grandchildren.
He became very interested in becoming an historical
interpreter after touring Fort Miles in 2006. Bob
received training and now volunteers in conducting
battery tours of this WWII living museum. Hobbies
include reading and studying Delaware history, metal
detecting on Delaware beaches and restoring classic
Corvettes. |
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Ray
Quillen
Fundraising |
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Ray is
a life long resident of Lewes and graduated from the
old Lewes High School in 1967. He spent seven
summers lifeguarding on the beach at Cape Henlopen
State Park and many a days exploring the bunkers,
towers, fire hall, gym, officer's club and the old
Club Oasis of Fort Miles.
Ray graduated from Wesley College and Lynchburg
College and worked for Family Court of the State of
Delaware for 35 years retiring as Director of
Operations in Kent County Family Court in December
of 2007. Ray's father, John, was in the US
Coast Guard stationed for much of his 27 year career
at the Lewes Coast Guard Station, but during WWII he
was a Chief Petty Officer assigned to a Navy LST #16
in the Pacific Theater. Ray's mother, Helen,
was active in the local USO office while working for
the phone company in Lewes. Ray's older brother,
Scotty, was one of the Lewes school children that
got to board and tour the captured German U-boat
U-858 that surrendered off the coast of Fort Miles
at the end of the war. Ray's brother is also a
member of the Fort Miles Historical Association and
just retired from 46 years teaching and resides in
Florida. |
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Bev
Dalecki
Board Member |
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A
native Delawarean, Bev grew up in North Wilmington
and retired from DuPont International Marketing in
Textile Fibers after 38 years of service. Bev moved
to Fenwick with her husband after retirement.
She was an "army brat" at Fort miles from 1942 to
1946, as her father was an officer stationed there
after serving from 1940 to 1942 at Fort DuPont.
Her father was also involved with the design of the
fire control towers at Fort Miles. She became
an FMHA board member shortly after the founding of
the organization. Her family was involved in
the clean-up of the barracks, officers building, and
the bunker. She regularly attends the re-enactor
weekends, craft shows, Coast Day and open houses.
Beverly is also FMHA representative at the DE
Seashore Preservation Board for the restoration of
Tower #3 at Dewey Beach. |
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Brian
Lindsay
Board Member |
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Brian
has served on the FMHA board for over 4 years. He
was born in 1938 in Ross, California. He was
educated in the San Francisco Bay area and
Washington D.C. area and attended the University of
Maryland and Montgomery College. His 45 year
career included retail, broadcasting and
pharmaceutical research. Brian is also a past
president of the Suffern (New York) Historical
Society and past chair of the Suffern Recycling
Committee. He has been married for 20 years to
Roberta Williams and currently lives in Lewes, DE. |
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Bob
Fredrick
Board Member |
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Bob has been actively
involved in both the public and private sectors in
Delaware for over 20 years. He was elected Mayor and
Police Commissioner in Dewey Beach. During his eight
year term as Mayor, Bob was elected by the Mayors of
other Sussex County Towns as President of both the
Sussex County Association of Towns (SCAT) and the
Association of Coastal Towns (ACT). Mayor Bob
co-founded the Fort Miles Historical Association. He
has also been appointed and elected to numerous
Boards. Currently he is serving on the Community
Involvement Advisory Council, as appointed by the
Governor. Bob is the past president and a current
Board of Directors member of the Dewey Beach Lions
Club. He served on the Board of Director of the
Beebe Medical Centers 2005 Vision Campaign,
resulting in the building of the new out-patient
center. Bob also holds professional licenses in
Health, Life, Property & Casualty Insurance and is a
Delaware licensed realtor. Bob has been married for
20 years and has a daughter who is currently
attending the University of Delaware. |
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Joe
Johnson
Board Member |
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Joe
Johnson joined the FMHA in 2006 and toured Battery
519. Seeing that the structure had no power and
lanterns being used for light, he took it upon
himself to get the lights on. Thanks to Joe's hard
work and donation of materials the lights were on
within two years, paving the way for additional
restoration work to begin. Joe began working
for Shore Electric in 1986, eventually purchasing
the business in 1997 with his wife Karla by his side
to keep him properly motivated. He currently holds a
master electrician's license in the state of
Delaware and in Cecil, Montgomery, and Anne Arundel
Counties in Maryland. Moving from Claymont, DE, in
1979 to Lewes, Joe has always had an interest in the
Cape Henlopen State Park and the fort. Through
the years he did a great deal of exploring the
remnants of Fort Miles. He currently lives in
Milton, DE with his wife of 9 years. Joe looks
forward to the day when Battery 519 is opened as a
museum. |
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Dan
Lyons
Board Member |
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Dan Lyons is a native of
Washington DC. When young his family moved to
Silver Spring, MD which he calls his home town.
He attended the University of Maryland and was
commissioned as an officer in the US Air Force upon
graduation. After 2 years of active duty and
11 years reserve service he is now a USAF Retired
Reserve member.
Dan has lived in Middlesex Beach with his wife Peggy
since 1982. He has been an active volunteer
firefighter for over 50 years and is currently an
active member of the Bethany Beach Volunteer Fire
Department where he serves on numerous committees.
He is also a board member for the Oyster Recovery
Partnership (ORP) and the Chesapeake Bay Seafood
Industries Association. ORP is dedicated to
developing improved habitats for planting and
growing oysters for the reduction of pollution in
the Chesapeake Bay. Retiring 5 years ago after
the sale of his packaging business, Dan now spends
his time actively supporting the organizations of
which he is a member. |
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Jack
Goins
Board Member |
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Jack
attended the University of Akron and served in the
U.S. Navy where he met his wife. He became a park
ranger in Ohio where he was Park Manager of the
third largest park in the state. In 1970 Jack moved
to Delaware to manage and run White Clay Creek State
Park and Fort Delaware. He eventually became
the park superintendent of Cape Henlopen State Park,
serving in that position for 13 years until becoming
administrator of Cultural and Recreational Services
(CARS) until his retirement 15 years later. |
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