with only his name to go on the back of one photo I was able to research him and found the following.
vintage US Navy photo from sailor Rethmeier, Fred W. Jr. large Hawaii photo album. Most photos (except for some family snapshots) are high quality official ship's Navy photos. Fred's US Navy Service Number 371 93 88 enlisted June 10th 1935 and from Denver, onboard the USS Wright 5/10/36 still on board till end of May 1939 Discharged June 9 1939.. ..
Most photos is this album are from 1937 in Panama, CZ and then the fleet goes to Hawaii on 18 April 1937 in company with the aircraft carrier USS Langley for fleet problems that stretched to the Hawaiian Islands. Following her return to San Diego on 3 June 1937, I believe he had multiple albums this being the first.
Fred, after Pearl Harbor attack relisted Jan 21, 1942 in Denver Colo. Sept 4th, 1942 was onboard USS Asterion AK100 as a CM1c till Jan 1944. cool info on Asterion, it was a Q-Ship, armed decoy ship for U-boats. After not getting sunk by a U-boat he next on Jan 18, 1944 is was on Muster roll of the USS ATR 98.
USS ATR-98 was a ATR-1 Class Rescue Tug laid down in late 1943 and commissioned into US Navy service in early 1944. Assigned to the US Atlantic Fleet the ATR-98 steamed in convoy to the Azores, where she joined the Auxiliary force providing assistance to merchant and warships operating in the area.
Responding to a distress call for a disabled merchant ship North of the Azores, the ATR-98 and her crew fought through heavy seas to reach the stricken vessel, and then placed her under tow. The 165ft ATR-98 labored to maintain headway in the swell while towing the large merchantman and was soon ordered to pass the tow to the larger Fleet Ocean Tug USS Abnaki (ATF-96) which arrived on scene on the morning of April 12th.
As the two tugs drew close to pass the towing bridle between the ships, an effort made difficult by the high sea state, both came into contact with each other with the ATR-98 coming across the bow of the Abnaki. The wooden hull of the ATR-98 received fatal damage in the collision from the Abnaki's reinforced steel prow and after the ships separated the ATR-98 began quickly settling by the Stern and listing to Port. With the heavy seas threatening to roll the ship at any moment, the order was passed to abandon the ATR-98 shortly before noon and within 20 minutes all crew had taken to life rafts.
After surviving the sinking of his ship is on the USS Moffett DL 362 April 44 muster roll as a Passenger Survivor.
that's as far as I went so far
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