Ray (L) with his brother and sister

On Jan. 20, 2008, a good friend and fellow Army diver, Raymond Gablinske (Gabe to his friends) passed away unexpectedly.

           Gabe devoted the last five years of his Army career to army diving.  Those years, the “Dark Period of Army Diving1975-1980”, were bleak to say the least.  The three diving sections at Fort Eustis had few people and equipment, rumors were rampant about eliminating the MOS (00B) and those who served during this time shared equipment and people just to make one safe diving operation.          

           Gabe served in the Army for eleven years and when he left, trading his skills and knowledge for a job at the Yorktown Naval Weapons Station, there was a void in the leadership of Army Diving.   For someone who experience the “Dark Period”, you might have thought he’d washed his hands of army diving and moved on to better things.  But this was not Gabe’s nature.  When he heard that several retired Army divers where going to start the “Army Diving Association,” he volunteered to help.  It could be said that Gabe was a founding father of the Army Divers Association.

Thanks Gabe for a job well done. Rest in peace.