European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 03, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday August 3, 1993 . The stars and stripes Page 7  Zinser the Only surviving member of pt-109 s Crew stands beside a coast guard boat at fort Myers Beach a. It. John f. Kennedy commanded pt-109, which Sank after a japanese destroyer collided with it on aug. 2,1943. R vets family gather to Mark ramming of Juk s it boat Boston a a japanese destroyer Sank pt-109 in the Pacific on a moonless night 50 years ago but the heroism of the torpedo boat s Captain it. Johnf. Kennedy has kept the memory Bright for Many americans. Although Kennedy s reputation has taken some hit sin recent years the Story of his role in saving 10 men on. Pt-109 still shines especially for Gerard Zinser the Only surviving member of the Crew. He had us All behind him 100 percent said Zinser 75, from his Naples fla., Home thursday. We though the was a great Leader. He had plenty of guts and Charisma. He just had everything.". Kennedy gathered his Crew to the floating remain of the ship then led them As they swam from Island to is land. He towed Patrick Pappy Mcmahon who had been badly burned by gripping the laces of Mcmahon Slife jacket in his Teeth. Several nights he swam for hours with a lantern hop ing to Flag Down a passing it boat. They finally were rescued after Kennedy gave a message carved on a co count to some native scouts who took it to their australian contacts. Zinser and William f. Liebenow Cap Tain of the it boat that picked up the survivors from pt-109, were to join other it boat veterans monday to Mark the 50th anniversary of the sinking. Sen. Edward m. Kennedy d-mass., the former pres ident s brother and his son Rhode Island state rep. Patrick Joseph Kennedy were expected to attend the ceremony on the decommissioned battleship Massachusetts in fall River organizer Guy a. Archambault said.pt-109 collided with the destroyer Adagiri shortly after 1 . On aug. 2, 1943. A Squadron of four it boats had gone out that night hoping to torpedo group of japanese destroyers. It was the dark of the Moon said Zinser a motor machinist mate first class. There was very Little anyone could see even their hand in front of their eyes. I was right around amidships and i heard some shouting going on ship at 2 o clock the first thing i knew the destroyer hit  the Stern of the boat exploded and Sank. Two me were killed instantly. Zinser was Flung into the water where he floated unconscious for about 20 minutes. When he came to he heard the men shouting to on another and saw Kennedy flashing a lantern. They Clung to the boat s wooden Bow some 40 Miles inside enemy territory until Dawn. They knew they had to hide if they were going to survive so Kennedy suggested they swim for a nearby Island. Mcmahon wanted to be left behind but Kennedy would t even hear of it Zinser said. The swim took four hours. But the Only food the found was Green coconuts which made them All sick. The next Day they swam another four hours to a larger Island. At night Kennedy and George Ross took turns swimming out with the lantern with no Luck. On the seventh Day they ran into some native scout working for the australians. Kennedy carved a message into a Coconut which they took to their Contact. The next night Liebenow picked them up. There was a lot of celebrating and singing. An the pharmacist was Down below passing out medical Brandy laced with torpedo juice which was medical alcohol Liebenow said. Moderate quake rocks Remote Region of Alaska from wire reports Palmer Alaska a moderate earthquakes Hook a Remote part of Alaska on sunday. The quake at 5 37 . Measured 4.8 on the Richter scale said George carte of the tsunami warning Center. It was entered about 120 Miles North of Anchorage near Denali National Park. There were no reports of damage. Golf game turns Nasty Honolulu a Golf course dispute Between two foursomes Over alleged delays on the tech escalated to gunshots police said. No on was wounded. Friday s violence at the Koolau Golf course on Oahu began when members of one foursome started complaining that golfers in the group in front of them were moving Down the course too slowly hitting three or four balls each off every tee. Police said two of the men got into a fistfight on the 18th tee. The incident then appeared to be Over As both groups went to the clubhouse. But As everyone left two men from the first foursome parked their Van just outside the course and flagged Down two men from the second foursome As they drove out police said. When one of the men from the second foursome got out of the car the passenger in the Van also got put and fired several shots from a semiautomatic pistol authorities said. Police were looking for the occupants of the Van. Children stricken by e. Coli Chicago two siblings infected with the e. Coli bacteria were hospitalized sunday a week after two other children died from the ill cos. The sources of the infections have not been pinpointed health officials said. In january at least two children died and about 500 were sickened by e. Coli bacteria in the Northwest. Most cases were traced to contaminated Jack in the Bojc hamburgers. Doctors at children s memorial Hospital in Chicago said it was unusual for four cases to appear in the same month but they Don t consider it an epidemic because the children apparently picked up the bacteria at three different locations. The siblings from Florida spent most of july in Michigan before coming Down with the disease. The Hospital refused to release additional information sunday. An e. Coli infection typically causes severe diarrhoea and painful abdominal cramps. The disease usually reaches humans through undercooked ground beef. Program lets brai Niest kids set the Pace by Mary Jordan the Washington Post Baltimore Lim haul Chye 10 years old and 4 feet tall came from Brazil to plow through a year of College science in three weeks. Jahmal Mcnair a 12-year-old from the District of Columbia is also enrolled at Johns Hopkins univer sity and the world s largest program for gifted Chil Dren. He is studying the pythagorean theorem and figuring the proofs of rational numbers. Nobody Here Calls me a Geek or nerd they just called me by my  while Many children their age Are whiling away the Idle Days of summer throwing a baseball or Cruis ing a mall More than 4,500 Young geniuses Are going to College. They landed a place Here by taking the Scholastic aptitude test sat designed for 18-year-Olds entering College and scoring five grades ahead of their  fast paced program for exceptionally Bright youngsters is bucking a National trend. Across the country Many gifted programs Are being Cut Back or dropped for financial or ideological reasons. Even in Well off areas gifted programs have had their budgets slashed in half in the last couple of years. Some of the cuts reflect poor economic times others Are based on fears that average and poor Stu dents Are shortchanged when the gifted Are singled out for special attention. If there is any special emphasis it should be on the worst students others con tend. Some worry that minorities have too often Bee excluded from fast track programs. Parents of Bright students however have different concerns. If their child s Public or private schools will not provide advanced work parents Are willing to pay hundreds even thousands of dollars for the increasing number of College programs designed for smart preteens. More than 60,000 fifth sixth and seventh grader this year took the sat for the program which Johns Hopkins runs on seven College campuses around the country. About 20 percent did Well enough to qualify for the program which costs $700 for commuters and $1,600 for those who need room and Board. It feels strange at first but you get used to it said Lim chatting matter of factly about being in col lege while others his age Are in the fifth Grade. Then he adjusts the Laboratory goggles on his tin face and continues mixing compounds discussing manometers that s one billionth of a meter and graphing the travel of Light. When lunchtime comes he flings his Blue Backpack across his slim shoulder and walks among the huge red Brick Campus Dormi tories. At 50 pounds he makes Doogie Howser look Middle aged. Every kid needs an appropriate Challenge Saiben Reynolds academic coordinator for the Center. For talented youth at Johns Hopkins. Really what we Are doing is what the one room schoolhouse did gear the instruction up or Down according to their  in the race to Best the russians in the Post sput Nik Era America spent a sizable portion of its Money and Energy on its brightest. But according to the .education department less than 1 percent of the education Money spent nationally in 1990 went specifically to High achieving youngsters. Even that sum appears to be declining said Pato Connell Ross director of the education depart ment s gifted and talented program. It s a trend and it s sort of scary said Joseph , director of the National research Center i on the gifted and talented based at the University 1 of Connecticut