Grommet Reefer was laid down under Maritime Commission contract by Walter Butler Shipbuilders, Inc., Riverside Yard, Duluth, Minnesota, 1 January 1944: launched as Kenneth E. Gruennert 29 July 1944: sponsored by Mrs. Walter A. Blodsoe: and delivered to War Shipping Administration (WSA) December 1944 for use as a merchant cargo ship.

Manned by a civilian crew, she operated in the Pacific Ocean out of U.S. West Coast ports, carrying military cargo and frozen and refrigerated foodstuffs.

From January to April 1952 she made three round-trip voyages to Western Europe, and during the next 2 months she supplied American bases in Labrador and Greenland.

Grommet Reefer resumed Mediterranean duty in September and operated between North Africa and Italy before returning to New York 10 November.

Grommet Reefer’s crew was eligible for the following medal: This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.