Lolita HarperAsking children to willingly add two...

Lolita Harper

Asking children to willingly add two hours to their normal school day

is a risky endeavor, but officials at the nautical museum knew

Tuesday it would be worth their while.

Officials from the Defense of Freedom Foundation and the Newport

Harbor Nautical Museum offered free museum tours and complimentary

sails aboard the 1812 privateer schooner, Lynx, for the children of

those Marines fighting overseas.

When asked if the tour and sailing was better than a day at

school, 12-year-old Jody Kehoe’s eyes grew wide and she nodded

vehemently.

Kiki Diaz agreed, more vocally.

“We had lots of fun,” Kiki said. “We were falling all over each

other as a group while we were trying to ship off. And we got to

shoot the cannon. We were lucky they picked us because we got a good

break from class.”

Sixth-graders from Mary Fay Pendleton School checked in on campus

two hours early in time to get organized and make the drive to

Newport Beach by 7 a.m. Today, the fifth-graders will come for the

same treat, officials said.

Katie Bean, whose father is overseas, was a bit more reserved but

totally agreed with her friends. Katie said it was fun seeing the

difference between the modern military facilities at Camp Pendleton

and the historic amenities on the Lynx. Her father has been gone

since Jan. 28, but because he is in communications, Katie can e-mail

him frequently.

Mother Penny Bean is a teacher at Mary Fay Pendleton School, and

joined her daughter on the field trip. Penny Bean is holding down the

fort with Katie and two other children while her husband is away.

“We’re hanging in there,” Bean said. “We’ve been in 23 years. They

are over there to do their jobs, get it done and come home.”

Woodson K. Woods, the director of the Defense of Freedom

Foundation, said he is proud to share the Lynx with the children from

Camp Pendleton. The 78-foot schooner is consistently used to teach

people of America’s first struggle for independence in 1812, he said.

“It is the mission of our ship and crew to teach the lessons of

America’s first defense of freedom,” Woods said. “We are particularly

honored to now serve the children of those men and women who boldly

defend our freedom today.”

Woodson said he took great pleasure in watching the children get

involved with the various hands-on tasks.

Each cruise on the Lynx carried 30 children, who divided their

attention into three watches. At each station, the sixth-graders grew

enthralled with the different guns on the ship, the history of the

privateers and the lives of the sailors.

Privateers were private men of war -- as the title suggests --

officials explained. They were not paid a salary but divided the

shares of the ships they captured. Privateer ships became an

effective maritime force, Woods said, as some 500 ships captured

about 2,000 enemy ships. This at a time when there were only 13 ships

in the Navy, he said.

Glenn Zagoren, president and chief executive of the museum, said

it is the venue’s responsibility to support the families of those

fighting overseas and is more than happy to provide tours to the

children.

“It is the least we can do,” Zagoren said.

Marine officials were also appreciative of the gesture. Major Sean

T. Moore, a retired Marine and the Marine liaison for the foundation,

said the children appreciate the break from the norm and the

opportunity to escape from the stress on the base.