John Lindley, President, Treasurer
John Lindley was born on April 8, 1948, in Columbus, Ohio. He grew up in a military family with his father having retired from the U.S. Air Force after twenty-six years of service. John Lindley enlisted in the U. S. Coast Guard in September of 1968 where he served on three Coast Guard Cutters, two Coast Guard LORAN Stations and a Port Safety Station and obtained the enlisted rank of Chief Petty Officer.
After being promoted to Chief Warrant Officer he was assigned to the Marine Inspection Office in New Orleans, Louisiana where he became a Machinery/Hull Inspector and was assigned to a wide variety of vessel inspections, including the conversion of a Navy Troop Carrier to a School Ship (Massachusetts Maritime), periodic inspections on the historical river boat Delta Queen and new construction inspections on Mobile Offshore Drilling Units built in South America.
John Lindley was promoted to Lieutenant and subsequently Lieutenant Commander with assignments at the Marine Safety Detachment, in Baton Rouge, LA, and two tours at the Marine Safety Office in Portland, Oregon. His responsibilities at these units placed major emphasis on tank vessels where he was instrumental in formulating and implementing a tank barge industry accepted repair standard. He was also involved in monitoring structural repairs and implementing the critical area inspection program on the TransAlaska Pipeline Tank Ships (TAPS).
In 1995 he was assigned to the Marine Safety Office in Corpus Christi, Texas where he was the Chief of the Inspection Department. His responsibilities included overseeing and administering all vessel and facility statutory compliance and prevention activities in South Texas. After serving over thirty years in the Coast Guard, he retired as Commander in 1998.
Commander Lindley has been awarded two Coast Guard Commendation Medals, two Coast Guard Achievement Medals and thirteen other unit and service awards. He is married to his loving wife Alice, and has a wonderful son Jason.
Since 1998 he has been conducting independent vessel inspections/surveys on Tank Vessels. Survey types include pre-purchase surveys, preparation for vetting inspections, and preparation for Coast Guard Port State Control Exams.
Mr. Lindley has been at the helm of DIJ Maritime since it's inception in 2000.
Bill Kasparek, Vice President
Mr. Kasparek was born in Enid, Oklahoma on October 12, 1942. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1962. While in the Navy he served on board the USS Sproston (DD 577) for four and one-half years during which time he served three tours in Viet Nam. After completing over six years of service he was honorably discharged in 1968. Mr. Kasparek joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 1972 and served tours on board six Coast Guard Cutters, and as Engineer Officer aboard Coast Guard Cutter Mallow. He also served tours at two Training Centers and four Marine Safety Offices.
Mr. Kasparek advanced through the enlisted ranks to Chief Petty Officer before being promoted to Warrant Officer. While serving as a Coast Guard Inspector he was qualified as a "Double Ender" (both deck and engineering) and was involved in overseas inspection work in Bombay, Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong. Upon promotion through the Warrant ranks to Chief Warrant Officer (W-4), he was promoted to Lieutenant and subsequently to Lieutenant Commander. During his last two assignments he held the position as Chief, Port Operations and was responsible for oil spill response, industry/agency interaction, contingency plan review and drill design and implementation.
Lieutenant Commander Kasparek has been awarded three Coast Guard Commendation Medals, three Coast Guard Achievement Medals, the Combat Action Ribbon and 21 other unit and service awards.
During his post-military career he was responsible for the operation of a 2.9 million barrel marine terminal in South Texas. Throughput of the facility was over 40 million barrels per year. Mr. Kasparek maintained and coordinated OPA90 manuals and drills for the entire South Texas Region. He also interacted with and designed drills for Industry/agency exercises to ensure that all federal; state and local requirements were being met in preparation and training of personnel.
Mr. Kasparek is one of the original owners of DIJ maritime, Inc.
Don Goldstein, Secretary
Don Goldstein was born October 29, 1951 in Portland, Oregon, where he lived until joining the U.S. Coast Guard in 1972. While enlisted he served in California, North Carolina, and back to Portland. He attended Officer Candidate School in 1976 and received his commission as a Coast Guard Officer in December of that year.
His first assignment was at the Captain of the Port's office in New York City, where he worked in Port Security, Oil Pollution Prevention, Hazardous Materials enforcement, and Oil Spill Response. He next moved to the Marine Inspection Office in New Orleans, LA, in 1980, where he served as a Marine Inspector for 3 years. He was assigned primarily at Avondale Shipyard, working on all aspects of new construction and ship repair. In addition, he served as the Assistant Chief of the Licensing and Vessel Documentation Department.
From 1983 to 1987 he was stationed at the Marine Safety Office in Portland, Oregon. His initial assignment was as the Chief of the Licensing and Documentation Department. He then served as an Investigating Officer, and finally as the senior inspector at the Portland Ship Repair Yard. At the shipyard, he worked on all types of U.S. and foreign flag vessels, including VLCC tankers, cargo ships, chemical carriers, and dredges.
From 1987 to 1990 he was assigned to Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, DC. Upon promotion to Lieutenant Commander in 1988, he became the first Chief of the Merchant Marine Examination Branch. When he was promoted to Commander, he was assigned to the newly formed Office of Intelligence and Security within the Secretary of Transportation's staff. He served as the Maritime Security Specialist until his transfer to Corpus Christi in 1995. As the Executive Officer of the Marine Safety Office in Corpus Christi he was the second in command. He also was the Alternate Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection and Alternate Captain of the Port for that zone.
After retiring in 1996 he was the Vice President of a small oil spill cleanup contractor until that company was purchased. Following that he was the Regional Director and Senior Instructor for Sea School, teaching Coast Guard approved courses for merchant mariners.
Following the World Trade Center attack in 2001 Don was recalled from retired status and assigned as the Deputy Chief of Marine Safety and Security for the Seventh Coast Guard District in Miami, Florida, where he earned the Meritorious Service Medal.
Mr. Goldstein is one of the original owners of DIJ Maritime, Inc. He has now re-joined DIJ Maritime in Tampa, Florida.