Orlando Navy Captain Donates Dress Blues to UCF Theatre

It takes approximately 60 hours to construct a military dress uniform, with 58 of those hours dedicated to the jacket alone. This specific garment, a set of U.S. Navy dress blues, recently left a closet in Orlando for the costume shop at the University of Central Florida.

Richard Sloane, a 27-year Navy veteran, served from 1964 to 1991. His career included a tour with the River Patrol Force during the Vietnam War. In 1988, he was stationed at the Naval Training Center, which is now the Baldwin Park neighborhood. He remained in Orlando after retiring from military service in 1991.

Sloane joined UCF in 1991 as a community relations specialist for the College of Community Innovation and Education. He worked in that role for 18 years until his retirement in 2018. He has remained active on campus through LIFE at UCF, a lifelong learning group for adults over 50. At a Tuesday meeting, he discussed university events with Heather Gibson, the director of marketing communications for the College of Arts and Humanities.

Sloane decided to donate the uniform to the School of Performing Arts shortly before Veterans Day in 2026. He brought the jacket and hat to the costume shop to meet Tim Brown, an associate professor of scenery and projection design, and Allison Rexrode, the costume shop manager.

Rexrode will use the uniform to teach students about suit construction. The real garment features specific hand stitches and trims with real metal, which differ from stage replicas. The weight of the authentic fabric provides a tangible reference for students learning to replicate military attire.

Brown stated that the department asked Sloane about the buttons, stripes, and character associations to ensure they honored the garment. The uniform will appear in on-stage productions and serve as a research tool for costume design.

Sloane, born in Queens, New York, in 1943, followed his older brother into the Navy after graduating from Boston University in 1964. He rose to the rank of captain. He said he donated the uniform because he wanted to bring pride to the community and honor his service.