Mission Statement: Dedicated to the men and women who design, build, operate, and maintain our Nation's submarines and the families and communities who support them.
. With cheers, applause and many shovelfuls of dirt, the USS Groton Sail Foundation broke ground on Oct. 9, 50 years to the day after the USS Groton (SSN 694) was launched at Electric Boat.
The USS Groton Sail Monument will honor the men and women who build, operate and maintain submarines, and the families and communities who support them. The centerpiece will be the sail and rudder of the retired submarine.
The ceremony, on Route 117 adjacent to the Groton Public Library, drew about 200 people.
After a speaking program, retired Rear Adm. John Padgett, chair of the USS Groton Sail Foundation, coordinated the ceremonial groundbreaking.
When officials had finished scooping and tossing shovelfuls of earth, Padgett invited the public to also take part. With the temperature about 70 and hardly a cloud in the sky, friends snapped pictures as people donned hardhats and dug into the mountain of dirt.
“This community embraces the military in a way that few communities do,” said Ray Gabriel, vice president of strategic operations at Electric Boat and a retired submarine captain. The monument, he said, honors that legacy.
He quoted retired Vice Adm. George Emery, one of the first commanders of the USS Groton. “Nothing beats the thrill of being the skipper of the town’s own boat.”
The sail and rudder are being refurbished at the Groton shipyard, the ship's rudder will be the first to be installed at the monument site. The rudder is projected to be mounted in mid-November 2026
“It means the world to me, growing up here,” Town Mayor Juliette Parker told the audience. She briefly choked up, saying the monument will be a lasting tribute to those in the community – including her own family members – who have served.
Steve Ricard, commander of the Groton base of the U.S. Submarine Veterans Inc., said the ceremony marked a milestone in the life of the USS Groton. “Thank you for refusing to let this piece of history slip away,” he said. Sixty-nine members of the SUBVETS base served on the Groton and 28 earned their dolphins on the boat, qualifying them in submarines.
Capt. Craig E. Litty, commander of the Naval Submarine Base in Groton, said the local community is the envy of base commanders around the world because of the strong relationships the Navy has locally. The legacy endures because of the people in the community, he said. The monument will be “a proud landmark and a welcoming beacon,” Litty said.
To Tony Joyce, president of Chelsea-Groton Bank and a major supporter of the project, the monument will be a reminder of the extraordinary things built here and the extraordinary people who live here.
State Sen. Heather Somers, speaking for the local legislative delegation – Sen. Cathy Osten, Rep. Dan Gaiewski and Rep. Aundre Bumgardner – said she couldn’t think of a more appropriate tribute to the community. Somers’ father was a submariner.
The crews take on missions the rest of the world never knows about, Somers said. “They do it to keep us safe.” And EB workers know that the quality of their craftsmanship means the difference between life and death.
“The community came together to make this happen,” Somers said. Their effort shows that Groton understands and appreciates the history of the submarine force and the contributions of those who are part of it.
U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney highlighted the work being done locally to develop a new generation of shipyard workers. The synergy that the region is known for will continue for years to come, he said.
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal remarked that the world has changed a lot since the USS Groton was launched in 1976. At that time two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, dominated the world. The Groton was built to help ensure that America stayed strong, he said.
“Today we live in a world that is still dangerous, in fact maybe more so,” Blumenthal said. He said the new Columbia-class submarines being built in part by EB are a marvel. But more important than the hardware and the weapons are the people who bring it all together, he added. He said the service and sacrifice of the people in this region make it extraordinary
To view a video of the ceremony, click this link: Ceremony Video
(L-R, foreground) CO Naval Submarine Base NLON Capt. Craig E. Litty, USSVI Groton Base Commander Steve Ricard, Electric Boat VP Ray Gabriel, U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Groton Town Mayor Juliette Parker, USS Groton Sail Foundation Chair RADM(Ret) John Padgett, Chelsea-Groton Bank Pres. Tony Joyce.
Article credits: Barbara Nagy, Ceremony video credits: Shawn Greeley, Photo credits: Pat Doyle and Shawn Greeley
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