Chief Petty Officer Bernard C. Webber was born in Milton, MA in 1928, the son of Rev. A. Bernard Webber and Annie Knight Webber.
At age 16, he joined the Merchant Marine. After World War II ended, he joined the U. S. Coast Guard, eventually working his way up through the ranks to Senior Chief Petty Officer, his rank at retirement, on September 1, 1966.
During a fierce nor'easter on the night of February 18, 1952 Chief Webber was the leader of a daring and heroic rescue effort that is often called the greatest small boat rescue in Coast Guard history.
After receiving reports of a ship in distress off of Chatham, MA, where they were stationed, he and three crewmen took a 36' lifeboat out into the storm, found the stern half of the ship and rescued 32 of the 33 seamen stranded on it. He then managed to guide the boat back into shore during the height of the storm, with no further loss of life. For their heroism that night, all four crewman were awarded the coveted USCG Gold Lifesaving Medal, one of the highest honors a U. S. Coast Guardsman can receive. (For a full and excellent account of the details of that terrible night, see "The Pendleton Disaster Off Cape Cod: The Greatest Small Boat Rescue in Coast Guard History, A True Story," by Theresa Mitchell Barbo)
On July 16, 1950, Chief Webber married Miriam Pentinen, his wife of 59 years, in Milton, MA.
Chief Webber enjoyed many years of retirement with his wife, spending their time between their home in Melbourne, Florida in the winter and summers on their beloved Cape Cod in Massachusetts.
He is interred at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Wellfleet, MA.
At age 16, he joined the Merchant Marine. After World War II ended, he joined the U. S. Coast Guard, eventually working his way up through the ranks to Senior Chief Petty Officer, his rank at retirement, on September 1, 1966.
During a fierce nor'easter on the night of February 18, 1952 Chief Webber was the leader of a daring and heroic rescue effort that is often called the greatest small boat rescue in Coast Guard history.
After receiving reports of a ship in distress off of Chatham, MA, where they were stationed, he and three crewmen took a 36' lifeboat out into the storm, found the stern half of the ship and rescued 32 of the 33 seamen stranded on it. He then managed to guide the boat back into shore during the height of the storm, with no further loss of life. For their heroism that night, all four crewman were awarded the coveted USCG Gold Lifesaving Medal, one of the highest honors a U. S. Coast Guardsman can receive. (For a full and excellent account of the details of that terrible night, see "The Pendleton Disaster Off Cape Cod: The Greatest Small Boat Rescue in Coast Guard History, A True Story," by Theresa Mitchell Barbo)
On July 16, 1950, Chief Webber married Miriam Pentinen, his wife of 59 years, in Milton, MA.
Chief Webber enjoyed many years of retirement with his wife, spending their time between their home in Melbourne, Florida in the winter and summers on their beloved Cape Cod in Massachusetts.
He is interred at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Wellfleet, MA.
Chief Petty Officer Bernard C. Webber was born in Milton, MA in 1928, the son of Rev. A. Bernard Webber and Annie Knight Webber.
At age 16, he joined the Merchant Marine. After World War II ended, he joined the U. S. Coast Guard, eventually working his way up through the ranks to Senior Chief Petty Officer, his rank at retirement, on September 1, 1966.
During a fierce nor'easter on the night of February 18, 1952 Chief Webber was the leader of a daring and heroic rescue effort that is often called the greatest small boat rescue in Coast Guard history.
After receiving reports of a ship in distress off of Chatham, MA, where they were stationed, he and three crewmen took a 36' lifeboat out into the storm, found the stern half of the ship and rescued 32 of the 33 seamen stranded on it. He then managed to guide the boat back into shore during the height of the storm, with no further loss of life. For their heroism that night, all four crewman were awarded the coveted USCG Gold Lifesaving Medal, one of the highest honors a U. S. Coast Guardsman can receive. (For a full and excellent account of the details of that terrible night, see "The Pendleton Disaster Off Cape Cod: The Greatest Small Boat Rescue in Coast Guard History, A True Story," by Theresa Mitchell Barbo)
On July 16, 1950, Chief Webber married Miriam Pentinen, his wife of 59 years, in Milton, MA.
Chief Webber enjoyed many years of retirement with his wife, spending their time between their home in Melbourne, Florida in the winter and summers on their beloved Cape Cod in Massachusetts.
He is interred at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Wellfleet, MA.
At age 16, he joined the Merchant Marine. After World War II ended, he joined the U. S. Coast Guard, eventually working his way up through the ranks to Senior Chief Petty Officer, his rank at retirement, on September 1, 1966.
During a fierce nor'easter on the night of February 18, 1952 Chief Webber was the leader of a daring and heroic rescue effort that is often called the greatest small boat rescue in Coast Guard history.
After receiving reports of a ship in distress off of Chatham, MA, where they were stationed, he and three crewmen took a 36' lifeboat out into the storm, found the stern half of the ship and rescued 32 of the 33 seamen stranded on it. He then managed to guide the boat back into shore during the height of the storm, with no further loss of life. For their heroism that night, all four crewman were awarded the coveted USCG Gold Lifesaving Medal, one of the highest honors a U. S. Coast Guardsman can receive. (For a full and excellent account of the details of that terrible night, see "The Pendleton Disaster Off Cape Cod: The Greatest Small Boat Rescue in Coast Guard History, A True Story," by Theresa Mitchell Barbo)
On July 16, 1950, Chief Webber married Miriam Pentinen, his wife of 59 years, in Milton, MA.
Chief Webber enjoyed many years of retirement with his wife, spending their time between their home in Melbourne, Florida in the winter and summers on their beloved Cape Cod in Massachusetts.
He is interred at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Wellfleet, MA.
