United States Coast Guard Veteran (1981-1985) and American Legion member since 2012, Lori (Huls) Hogston of Shelby Township grew up in Benona Township, part of a large extended family with deep roots in Oceana County.
Following her service as a “coastie,” Hogston served as an Oceana County Sheriff Dispatcher from 1986 to 1991, and later as the Muskegon County Central Dispatch Supervisor from 1992 to 2011.
How Hogston came to work and serve both Oceana and Muskegon counties in these positions could quite possibly be traced back to her time with the United States Coast Guard. Hogston’s first assignment after basic training was in search and rescue at Point Allerton Station in Hull, Massachusetts (a sub-unit of Sector Boston).
Hogston explained, “In Point Allerton, crews worked from three different types of boats. The ‘buzzer boat,’ or quick response boat, was used in emergency situations, such as a boat fire, sinking boat or a medical emergency onboard a watercraft. The ‘work boats’ were used in non-emergency situations, for towing in boats that had stalled or for rescuing the local lobster fishermen who had become entangled in their lines. The third was a ‘motor lifeboat,’ a 44-foot boat used in heavy seas and designed in such a way that when it overturned in heavy seas, it would right itself in a matter of seconds.”
When asked if she had worked in any hurricanes, Hogston shared, “No hurricanes, but plenty of nor'easters. Nor’easters come with heavy rain, high waves/tides, wind and flooding. We would get mayday calls, and we had to go out no matter what.”
Motor lifeboats were manned by a minimum of four crewmen, Hogston went on. The coxswain who drove the boat, two crew members strapped into a cage directly behind the coxswain, and the engineer who rode below and was in charge of keeping the motor running. “When you felt the boat going over, you took a quick breath, and in a matter of seconds you were upright again,” she said with a smile.
On a normal day, every coast guardsman at base would take turns working different rotations and responsibilities on base. “My favorite rotation was the radio room,” said Hogston. “Everybody took a turn, but a lot of the guys didn’t care for it. We were allowed to switch out duty stations of the day, and I really liked getting to do more time in the radio room. I liked being on the boats, but in the radio room I was in charge. The radio room was always busy. It was fast-paced. It also overlooked the boathouse and what was called ‘the gut,’ a deep channel between an island and the shoreline. From there we were able to keep an eye on all the boating and shipping traffic coming and going.”
One memorable (and historical) experience Hogston was a part of during her service in Point Allerton was on Jan. 23, 1982, when World Airways Flight 30 landed at the Logan International Airport in Boston, hit black ice and ran off the end of the runway. Even though the event occurred 43 years ago, in retelling the story, Hogston was able to remember details like it was yesterday. Her love of radio room operations and her ability to organize logistics and record the time stamps, all while juggling numerous calls, came in very handy in the hours following the accident.
“I was off-duty that night when I heard the first buzzer. At the sound of the first buzzer, everyone assigned to the emergency response boat (buzzer boat) went straight to the boathouse. When the second buzzer went off, that meant another workboat was also being deployed. When the third buzzer went off, everyone knew it was a catastrophic emergency and we were all needed, whether on or off duty. Each boat needed an engineer, but the third engineer was working the radio room. That workboat couldn’t leave until he was on it, so I took over the radio room…literally in my pajamas! The phones were ringing off the hook as I was busily taking notes and writing down every who, what, when and where in the ledger. We didn’t have computers, like they do today.
“Later my CO (Commanding Officer), in reviewing everything I’d recorded during the event, told me he’d never seen such detailed notes. He ended up taking my notes to Group Boston to record the accident timeline, assist in documentation of the accident for all departments that responded, and recreate the event timeline for training purposes. Working that event really put me on the path to my future life work.
“Later that year I was promoted to 3rd class petty officer and sent to Air Station San Diego, where I was assigned to work under the current Aviation Supply Storekeeper. I was supposed to learn the job from him. However, shortly after I arrived, he needed to take a leave of absence, and I became the lead. It was the era of the Falcon Jet, and all of the parts and machinery related to construction and repair of the jets had to be inventoried and kept track of. I was able to set up a system that was efficient and easily understandable to track high-dollar parts for our aircraft. I had a natural knack for the job. It was a man’s world at the time, so it was amazing to be a woman doing this type of work; I loved it.”
For the past nine years, Hogston has been involved in the Gordon Bates Post No. 30 American Legion in Shelby. Recently she was named the post’s historian, a position responsible for recording post happenings and archiving them for posterity. Given her past organizational experience and skill, this new role should suit her well.
Along with her involvement at the Shelby American Legion, Hogston has also become involved with the Michigan Women Veterans Weekend held in Oceana County each September.
According to the group’s website, the weekend was, “...started as a pilot program by local veterans and the Western Michigan S.A.I.L. club to see if experiential activities (such as sailing) combined with artistic expression could support healing from traumatic experiences and PTSD.”
Hogston has had the honor of helping to organize the event the past two years. This year, over 30 women veterans from all over the United States traveled to West Michigan to enjoy the weekend retreat, Hogston said. Some have served stateside; others have served overseas in such places as Afghanistan, Bosnia, Granada and Vietnam. The fun and meaningful activities give the women a chance to meet or reconnect with other veterans, share stories of their work and accomplishments, as well as further process any emotional trauma they may be working through.
“Saving lives was what drew me into the Coast Guard in the first place. And helping others became a big part of my full-time work after my military service. It is still gratifying to be able to help my fellow veterans through the Legion and the Women's Veteran Retreat organization in my retirement,” Hogston concluded.
Please visit https://womenveteransweekend.o... for more information about next year’s Women’s Veterans Retreat.
In addition, any veteran, family member, friend or supporter is invited to reach out to any one of the local veterans organizations (Hart or Shelby American Legion posts, Hart or Pentwater Veteran of Foreign Wars posts, Marine Corps League in Pentwater or the Department of Veterans Affairs at the county services building in Hart) to find out how they can be more involved, support local veterans or obtain more information about the many helpful programs and services offered.
