A new U.S. Postal Service stamp will be issued on Sept. 12 to honor the 150th anniversary of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

The commemorative stamp features two photographs. One is of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy's primary training vessel since 1946 – the USCGC Eagle. The second is the USCGC Bertholf, which "is the Coast Guard's first National Security Cutter."

The photos on the stamp were taken by a pair of Coast Guardsmen. The Eagle photo was taken by Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew Thieme and the Bertholf photo was taken by Petty Officer 1st Class Steven Strohmaier.

Strohmaier said the photos combine one of the Coast Guard's oldest vessels and one of its newest.

"I think the Eagle is our oldest ship and more importantly it is the training ship for the academy. All of our officers when they are cadets train on the Eagle. It obviously has a storied history," Strohmaier said. "But the fact that it's based at the academy in New London [and] is their major training ship, that's a huge part of it. The Bertholf, the photo that I took, is one of the newer national security cutters that is in the Coast Guard's fleet … but being one of the oldest and one of the newest and they both have what we like to call a 'port bow aspect ratio.' They're both heading in the same direction."

Strohmaier, who entered the Coast Guard in 2012, said the photo on the stamp was taken from one of his past deployments in the Western Pacific in Singapore in Feb. 2024.

"On the day we departed Singapore and headed east and did some formations. I was able to get on one of the small boats from the Bertholf to get that photo," Strohmaier said in a phone interview. "I was positioned away and got pictures of the cutters that were in formation. With the swell action, you kind of got a different perspective because you would kind of go in the trough of the wave and the ship was slightly elevated. It kind of gave you a different perspective, kind of having that wave and that water in the foreground and then the ship in the background. It was a very unique opportunity. I was out there for probably two hours in the small boat and then got picked back up and then we started transiting the Singaporean straight up towards Malaysia slightly after that."

"I did not go out with the intention of getting my photo on a stamp," he added. "It was definitely a surprise, and this is such a unique and awesome experience for me and for the Coast Guard. So, I'm super stoked."

As a public affairs specialist, Strohmaier was sent out on the deployment to be a liaison between the media of those countries and the ship itself. He expected the photos just to be used for a press release or for social media. Strohmaier said he was also pleased to find out that one of his photos from the deployment was used on the Department of War website.

"It was a pretty cool experience showing our Coast Guard members are out there in the Straits of Singapore participating in joint exercises with our partner nations," Strohmaier said.

Strohmaier said he also deployed on the Eagle before in 2017. He added that he will be enlarging a photo of the stamp and will be hanging it up in his office.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy website, the Eagle is a "295-foot, three-masted barque used as a training vessel for future officers of the United States Coast Guard. Known as "America's Tall Ship," the majestic Eagle is the largest tall ship flying the Stars and Stripes and the only active square-rigger in U.S. government service."

The ship has been in New London since the end of WWII after being built in Germany in 1936.

"The ship was one of three sail-training ships operated by the pre-World War II German navy. At the close of the war, the ship was taken as a war reparation by the U.S., re-commissioned as the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Eagle and sailed to New London, Connecticut, which has been her permanent homeport ever since," according to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

The Eagle's primary mission is training cadets and officer candidates. The Eagle has hosted Presidents Kennedy, Nixon and Truman, according to the Coast Guard Academy.

The USCGC Bertholf's primary missions are "Search and Rescue and Maritime Law Enforcement," according to the Coast Guard.

The Bertholf's home port is Alameda, California. The Bertholf was built in Mississippi in 2005, and it was commissioned in 2008.

"Bertholf is one of four Coast Guard legend-class national security cutters homeported in Alameda, California. National security cutters are 418 feet long, 54 feet wide, and have a 4,600 long-ton displacement. They have a top speed of more than 28 knots, a range of 12,000 nautical miles, endurance of up to 90 days, and can hold a crew of up to 170," according to the Coast Guard website.

David Coleman, a senior public relations representative for the U.S. Postal Service said every 50 years it does a stamp for the services. "In 2023, we did three stamps all in one package for the Marine Corp, the Navy and the Army for their anniversary. Coleman said the 12 million stamps have been printed and once they are gone, they are gone. He said 12 million stamps on average will be sold out in about six months."

Coleman said the USPS starts working on stamps about three years ahead of time. There's a citizens stamp advisory committee that's selected by the postmaster general, and it's made up of historians and scholars and history buffs. They're not postal employees. This committee selects the stamps we do each year, which is between 25 and 30 a year.

The U.S. Coast Guard stamp was designed by an USPS art director Antonio Alcalá. He said it is important to honor and commemorate 150 years of the Coast Guard Academy.

"The subjects selected for commemoration on a stamp are chosen through a democratic process. A good idea often comes from public submissions and voted in by the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee. The USPS is always working to ensure the stamps issued represent all of our nation," Alcalá said in a statement.

"Stamps are one of the few ways our nation commemorates important American people, ideas, places, and accomplishments to our citizens. People like to use or collect these small images for many reasons. Sometimes it's because a stamp reflects a personal interest or believes the recipient of their mail will appreciate the image. Other times, customers just like the way a stamp looks. And, of course, they are a great way to learn about different parts of our country," he said.

A first-day-of-issue unveiling ceremony for the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Forever stamp will be held on Sept. 12 and it is free and open to the public. The event will be held at 10 a.m. at the Connecticut Maritime Heritage Festival at Custom House Pier at Waterfront Park in New London. The ceremony is expected to be about 30 minutes.

Those wishing to attend are encouraged to register online.

The stamps are available for purchase at post office locations nationwide as well as online and by phone at (844) 737-7826.