City Center District To Gather Valentines For USCG

Talk about a long-term relationship: New London has been associated with the United States Coast Guard for over 100 years. With Valentine’s Day approaching, the City Center District is looking to arrange a public show of appreciation for the service over the next few weeks.

“The point of Valentine’s Day is not just cards, or flowers, or even cute sentiments. It is a time to recognize that the people and organizations that have been in your life forever, matter,” said George Dowker, City Center District president, in a press release. “The Coast Guard matters to us.”

The “NL (heart) USCG” campaign will launch on Tuesday and finish with a Valentine’s Day event at , where advocates that a proposed U.S. Coast Guard Museum should be located. The station will include Valentine’s Day and Coast Guard themed signs during the campaign.

Local businesses will have boxes where residents can drop off cards expressing appreciation for cadets and alumni, as well as Coast Guard personnel. Students at the will also write cards, which will be delivered to the Coast Guard Foundation in Stonington.

The City Center District has launched a Facebook page to be updated with Coast Guard trivia and events around New London, as well as a media campaign on local radio and public access television stations. Businesses will also offer “I (heart) Coast Guard” decals and armbands reading “USCG Heart.”

“We want the Coast Guard—and everyone who’s witnessed the longevity and strength of New London’s relationship with the Coast Guard—to know that the deeply-held positive feelings that have endured for over 100 years are still here, still strong, and will remain strong for years to come,” said Charlotte Hennegan, vice president of the City Center District. “What better way to get this message across than to wear our hearts on our sleeve?”

The Coast Guard's presence in New London has endured since 1910, when the School of Commissioned Officers of the Revenue Cutter Service—later the Coast Guard Academy—was established at Fort Trumbull. The academy moved to its current location in 1932, although a remained at the peninsula.

Since 1946, New London has also been the home of the tall ship Eagle, a 295-foot training ship taken from Germany as a prize of war. The Coast Guard station at Fort Trumbull also hosts the cutters Chinook and Morro Bay.