THE mess hall of the battleship USS Saipan will be transformed into a five-star dining facility that displays several memorabilia and other historical materials about the Northern Marianas.
The commander in chief of the U.S. Naval Forces in the Marianas, Adm. Patrick W. Dunne, said on Monday that the battleship’s dining hall will be named “Marianas Buffet” and will offer five-star dining amenities.
Gov. Juan N. Babauta on Monday donated to Dunne old photographs depicting Chamorro and Carolinian cultures, the Taga stone and native canoes.
There was also a photo of Garapan during the German and Japanese administrations.
These materials came from the CNMI Museum, and was presented to the governor by Carmen Gaskins, a member of the museum’s board of governors.
The CNMI Humanities Council and the armed force committee of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce also presented a “time line” of the Northern Marianas.
“All the memorabilia will be displayed in the mess hall,” said Mike Schadeck, the Chamber committee chairman.
Schadeck told Variety that the governor also turned over Chammorro and Carolinian artifacts that will be displayed, along with the other memorabilia, in the planned five-star dining facilities of the battleship.
There were also 15 history books of the Northern Marianas donated and signed by the author.
“This is a unique opportunity for us because the (ship) is named after our island, and yet it has never been here,” Schadeck said.
He said the memorabilia were flown yesterday to Norfolk, Virginia where the military vessel is stationed.
Community and Cultural Affairs Secretary Juan L. Babauta said they are now working with the Office of the Governor’s and with Schadeck to prepare for the possible visit of the ship.
“We are working toward that direction now and we are having close coordination (with the parties involved),” Secretary Babauta said.
CNMI Museum Board Chairman Herman T. Guerrero is also hoping that the USS Saipan would visit the Northern Marianas.
