Gentlemen,

The reunion of the former crew members of the USS Park County (LST-1077), the USS Litchfield County (LST-901) and the USS Sutter County (LST-1150) will take place July 9th thru July 11th of 2009, with events in Evansville and Indianapolis, Indiana. You are welcome to attend all three days, or only the day or days or events you desire.

On Thursday, July 9th, we will tour LST-325, which is located in Evansville, Indiana. We will depart Indianapolis by car pool at 8:00AM for Evansville, with others joining the group in Evansville. The trip to Evansville takes four hours, so this will be a full day event. Lunch, dinner and the cost to tour the 325 will be at your own expense. I have toured the ship and believe that you may find the visit worthwhile. Additional details regarding the 325 can be found at www.lstmemorial.org. Below is our schedule for the day.

Thursday, July 9th

• 8:00 AM:  Depart the Indianapolis Downtown Hilton Hotel, 120 West Market Street. 
• 8:30 AM:  Depart Holiday Inn Crown Plaza Hotel at the Indianapolis Airport (to meet those staying there). 
• 11:30 AM:  Lunch at Stoll's Country Inn Restaurant, Evansville, Indiana (South of the Intersection of US 41 & I-64). 
• 1:15 PM   Arrive LST 325 for tour: Cost $10.00 per person. 
• 3:45 PM   Depart LST 325 for Jasper, Indiana
• 6:00 PM   Dinner at the Schnitzelbank Restaurant, Jasper, Indiana.
• 7:15 PM   Depart Jasper for Indianapolis.
• 10:00 PM  Arrive at Holiday Inn Crown Plaza, Indianapolis 
• 10:30 PM  Arrive at Indianapolis Downtown Hilton, 120 West Market Street

For those driving to the reunion who wish to join us at Stoll's County Inn for lunch, or at LST 325 in Evansville, please feel free to do so.  The only request I have is that you let me know in advance so that I can assure the restaurants are prepared to serve our group.  Just email me at m.w.kempf@sbcglobal.net, or call me at 317 490-4229.

Friday, July 10th, 9 AM:  Reunion Hospitality Suite, Indpls Hilton 120 West Market Street, Indianapolis opens. The Hospitality Suite will be available for your use to meet and renew old friendships and to make new ones throughout the reunion. In addition to our scheduled events, Indianapolis offers a wide range of museums, a downtown shopping mall, the NCAA Headquarters, major sports venues, the Indianapolis Zoo and the Indianapolis 500 Track and Museum, to name a few. An overview of these venues can be seen at: indy-info.html.

• 9:00 AM: Registration Desk opens in the Hospitality Suite
• 4:30 PM: Jim Disney, a certified Veterans Counselor, will conduct a seminar on veteran’s benefits.
• 6:00 PM: Pizza and beer (and other liquid refreshments) Hospitality Suite. 

Saturday, July 11th, 9:00 AM: Hospitality Suite opens for the day.

• 10:00 AM: Walking Tour of downtown Indianapolis. The tour will cover the Indianapolis Soldiers and Sailors Monument, the World War II Memorial, the USS Indianapolis Memorial, the Medal of Honor Memorial, and the Indiana State Capitol.
• 2:00 PM: Walking Tour of downtown Indianapolis. The tour will cover the Indianapolis Soldiers and Sailors Monument, the World War II Memorial, the USS Indianapolis Memorial, the Medal of Honor Memorial, and the Indiana State Capitol.
• 6:00 PM: Cash Bar opens in the Dinner Banquet Room
• 7:00 PM: Dinner

So, if I plan to attend, how do I proceed?

1. Register at the ussparkcounty.com web site at: http://ussparkcounty.com/form.php. If you do not have internet access, you may register by contacting Mike Kempf at the address listed in item 4, below or by calling Mike at 317 842-1229.

2. Make your hotel reservations: hotel specific information is provided below.

3. Make your check for $60.00 per attendee payable to: USS Park Sutter & Litchfield County Reunion. This check covers the Pizza and Beer gathering on Friday evening, Saturday Dinner and other miscellaneous costs.

4. Mail your check to:

USS Park Sutter & Litchfield County Reunion
c/o Michael W. Kempf
7855 Stonehurst Drive
Indianapolis, Indiana 46256

Hotel Accommodations:

Because of other convention activity at the time of our reunion, it is imperative that you book you hotel reservation as soon as possible! This will allow me to identify additional lodging should we exceed the number of rooms currently reserved.

For those planning to participate in the Thursday, July 9th LST-325 Tour, if you do not already have a reservation at the Indianapolis Downtown Hilton Hotel, you should book lodging at the Indianapolis Airport Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza Hotel for Wednesday, July 8th and Thursday July 9th. The Airport Crown Plaza Hotel provides free ground transportation from the airport. For those renting a car, parking is free at the hotel.

You may book a reservation at the Airport Crowne Plaza Hotel by internet at:

http://www.crowneplaza.com/ind-airport

or by phone at:

877 227-6963

The room rate at the Crowne Plaza is $109.00 per night plus tax. Be sure to give the hotel the Group Number: “USS.” This will ensure that you receive the appropriate room rate.

Indianapolis Downtown Hilton Hotel

As I indicated above, the Official Reunion Hotel is the Indianapolis Downtown Hilton. There are a limited number of rooms reserved for the reunion; however, more than 50% of those rooms are already booked. Under the contract with the hotel, rooms must be booked at least 30 days prior to the reunion to ensure you receive our contracted rate. It is strongly recommended that you reserve your room a soon as possible.

The Single and Double per night rate is $129, a triple is $139 and the quad is $149.  These rates are all subject to tax, which is currently 16%.  Parking in the hotel garage includes in and out privileges and is $ 10 per day.  You will need to secure your reservation with a personal credit card.

You must book your room directly with the Indianapolis Downtown Hilton by calling:

1-800-315-1906

Identify yourself as an attendee at the USS Park, Sutter and Litchfield County Reunion

Indianapolis Downtown Alternate Hotel: The Columbia Club

In the event that rooms are not available at the Indianapolis Downtown Hilton Hotel, an alternate hotel, The Columbia Club, has set aside a block of 15 rooms for our reunion. The Columbia Club is located at 121 Monument Circle, one block east of the Hilton.

The Columbia Club is on the National Historic Register and sits across the street from the Soldier and Sailors Monument. Even if you do not stay at this facility, it is worthy of a visit. It is a smoke free facility, with the exception of the Billiards Room which is located on the second floor. Be aware that Columbia Club does not permit outside food or beverage within the facility. Also, there is a business casual dress code at the club house, with the exception being for guests entering or leaving the facility. The contracted room rate is $129.00 per night. Valet parking is available for $22.00 per night. This does include in and out privileges. Additional information on the Columbia Club is available at: www.columbiaclub.org.

To book a room at the Columbia Club, call the reservations department at 800 635-1361. Guests should request the special rate for the USS Park, Sutter & Litchfield Count Reunion. This rate is good thru June 26 of 2009, depending upon room availability.

Should you have any question or suggestions regarding the reunion, please do not hesitate to contact me.  Again, I cannot over emphasize how important it is for you to book your lodging accommodations as soon as possible. You can reach me by email at m.w.kempf@sbcglobal.net, at home at 317 842-1229 or by cell phone at 317 490-4229. I look forward to seeing you at the reunion

Best regards,

Mike Kempf
USS Park County (LST-1077) (66-67)