on eternal patrol memorial reef

Memorial Day 2018

The “On Eternal Patrol Memorial Reef” is the first-ever undersea memorial of its kind and will be made of 66 reef balls to honor the crews of all 66 U.S. manned submarines that never returned and remain On Eternal Patrol, and one reef ball representing the crews and boats lost in non-sinking accidents. Each reef ball will be decorated and personalized before an honor guard presents full military honors and folded flags on Memorial Day. For many of these boats and crews this will be the first time they have been recognized.

The On Eternal Patrol Memorial Reef will be dedicated in Sarasota, Florida, on Memorial Day weekend 2018, almost 50 years to the day after the U.S. nuclear submarine USS Scorpion was lost with all 99 officers and crew on 22 May 1968.  The reef balls will then be deployed to the ocean off the Sarasota coastline and forever memorialized as an Eternal Reef.