A Brotherhood Forged at Sea
The USS Charles H. Roan (DD-853) Association was founded in 1990 by three former crew members who found each other after registering with the Tin Can Sailors Association: Richard F. Souza (SMC 58-66), Ed Semcheski (RM2 61-64), and Carl Wishart (QM2 57-60).
After advertising in various military publications, reunion papers, and related magazines, we held our first reunion in 1991 in Fall River, MA. Since then, we have gathered in Newport, RI (1993); Alexandria, VA / Washington, DC (1995); Buffalo, NY (1997); St. Augustine, FL (1999); Charleston, SC (2000); Norfolk, VA (2002); Warwick / Providence, RI (2004); Branson, MO (2006); Myrtle Beach, SC (2008); Warwick, RI (2010); Jacksonville, FL (2012); Philadelphia, PA (2014); Amarillo, TX (2016); New Orleans, LA (2018). The COVID pandemic prevented us from hosting a reunion in 2020. Our most recent reunion was held in Warwick, RI in 2023, and our next reunion is scheduled for September 2026 in Warwick (Providence), RI.
An Active Community
All of our reunions are well-attended, regularly drawing 100–125 shipmates and guests — more than most destroyer associations listed with the Tin Can Sailors.
We now have approximately 1,000 former shipmates on our roster, one of the most complete for any ship's association. We continually and actively search for former shipmates — if you served aboard the Roan, please get in touch so we can add you to our mailing list for our newsletters and other Roan-related information.