By Ruth Ann Ruiz
The Post Newspaper Features Editor
Sea Lab III Pioneer Fernando Lugo had traveled from Yuma, Arizona to Galveston for a reunion with his fellow crewmates from the USS Halibut. He and his son were among the attendees at the Gaveston Naval Museum Veteran’s Day ceremony.
“I agree with what the Colonel said. We need to get the young people more involved. We need to teach them to have an attitude of respect. For example, we need to teach young people to open doors for the elderly,” Lugo said. “And it looks like the young people are turning back to the values of 40 to 50 years ago.”
Lugo had a unique position in the Navy as a member of the Man in the Sea Program from 1966 to 1968. But Lugo was not a man of the sea. He is a self-described “desert rat.” He was born near the Gila River in Yuma, Arizona, and after serving in the Navy. He returned to living in the desert of Southwest Arizona.
