“I see the funnels! Right there! That’s the United States! That’s the funnels! Oh my gosh! Look at it! I’m seeing it with my own eyes! I’m so happy!

You can tell from this video that the moment I saw the funnels come up over the interstate, I lost it. I was giddy. Screaming like an excited kid. I’ve waited so long for this—just to lay eyes on her.

I’m from Lafayette, Louisiana. We drove four hours to be here. My goal was to see her in person and maybe go aboard her someday. At least I got to achieve one of those.

My obsession with ocean liners started in 2009 when I came across the story of the Titanic. That was the gateway drug. I already loved steam engines and locomotives, but the Titanic opened the door to something deeper. I have a whole collection of painted model ocean liners: the RMS Carpathia, the Empress of Ireland, Lusitania, Olympic, Titanic, Britannic, the Normandie—and now, the United States.

In 2015, I first became aware of her when I saw on the news that the SS United States needed help to avoid being scrapped, and I started researching. She was an incredible piece of the 1950s, one of my favorite eras. They were trying to turn her into a floating casino, a hotel, a museum. Years went by, and I kinda forgot about her after I saw they achieved their goal of keeping her from the breakers. I looked her up again–they were still trying to save her.

When I heard Okaloosa County wanted her, I thought, Oh no. We know how this story ends. Another relic from a bygone era, gone. That’s when I made it my goal to see her before it was too late. I took the day off from work, and my mom drove me to Mobile.

I currently work as a mascot performer and greeter at Chuck E. Cheese. I’ve been doing it for almost a year. It’s not what I want out of life, but it’s all I’ve got at the moment. I’m a very energetic person. I love to entertain people, make them smile, and help them have a better day. I hope someday I can make a career out of that and my hobbies.

I love history and ocean liners. The United States is a part of that. Photos don’t do her justice, you really have to see her in person. I wish I could live on her and restore her myself if I had the money. I’m still hopeful that she’ll be saved by the New York Collation group and with help from Oregon. Or, it’d be awesome if she’d stay a permanent attraction in Mobile. She’s already an attention getter for folks traveling on the interstate…imagine how much the city could make from tours aboard her.

If nothing comes to fruition though, it’s going to be a sad day when the funnels are gone, and they tow her away, and she’s sent to the bottom. I wish more people cared about this incredible piece of not only maritime history but our nation’s history. She’s the last of her kind and the holder of Blue Ribbon for the fastest Atlantic crossing. It’s a pity she’s most likely going to end up like her older sister the SS America. Just another wreck to be forgotten to time. Fair winds and falling seas, United States. I wish the odds were stacked more in your preservation than destruction.”