A Home Away from Home

WORDS KARLI FLORISSON PHOTOGRAPHY ROSIE HENDERSON

For the crew members on board the many ships that visit our port, the Esperance Seafarers Centre is a haven. With most of the seafarers spending nine months or longer working away from their homes and families, the friendly faces and great facilities at the centre provide a welcome respite from being at sea.

Fred Lochowicz has been managing the Esperance Seafarers Centre for 16 years. He works 364 days a year, with Christmas Day being the only day that the centre is closed. Fred’s role is complex. The centre exists to look after the welfare of seafarers while they are ashore, both spiritually and practically. This means that as well as being the manager of the centre, Fred also drives the bus to collect the seafarers from the port, operates The Pig and Whistle, the centre’s small bar, and acts as a tour guide to those wanting to look around town or do some shopping. It’s a big job, but Fred enjoys it. He considers himself lucky to be able to socialise with blokes from all around the world.

The Esperance Seafarers Centre began operating in the 1960s, under the umbrella of the Mission to Seafarers, an international organisation that operates 300 such centres worldwide. In 1982, Reverend Frank Roe moved to Esperance, and quickly became a passionate advocate for the centre. Originally from London, Rev Frank served in the navy before taking a position at the Mission to Seafarers in Hong Kong. He resigned in protest at the unfair treatment of some seafarers at that centre. Eventually, he answered the call to come to Australia, living first in Merredin where he was a rector at the local church, before settling in Esperance.

Alongside his work with the Anglican Church, Rev Frank has always had a passion for caring for seafarers. In 1996, he retired from his position as rector of Saint Andrews, and went to work full time for the Esperance Seafarers Centre. By this time, the old building, which was transported to Esperance in 1945, had become run down. Rev Frank travelled to London on two separate occasions to petition the International Transport Federation for funds to build a new, purpose built, centre in Esperance. He was successful, with $888,000 being awarded by the organisation. It was short of the $1 million he requested but enough to see a beautiful new facility built on the site of the original building.

In addition to raising funds for the new building, perhaps the most significant thing Rev Frank has done for the centre has been to recruit Fred as its manager. Fred spent most of his life in the maritime industry, first as a fisherman, and then working in ports and driving pilot vessels. During that time, he saw firsthand the poor treatment that seafarers often faced. As he began thinking about what he would do when he retired from the industry, he was contacted by Rev Frank, an old friend, who asked if he might be interested in assisting at the Esperance Seafarers Centre. Fred came for a visit, and after 10 minutes, he told Rev Frank, “Yep, you’ve got me.”

Both Fred and Rev Frank have seen a significant change in the industry during their involvement with the centre. The Seafarers Bill of Rights, introduced in 2006, has done a lot to combat the harsh conditions that crew on ships worldwide were facing. Improvements in technology have also made it easier for seafarers to keep in touch with loved ones back home. “The Seafarers Centre used to have six telephones, spread out throughout the main area,” Rev Frank says. “The seafarers would buy phone cards, and phone their families.” These days, the landlines are all gone, and the centre offers free wifi. The pandemic impacted the centre significantly, with seafarers not allowed off their ships. But even during those difficult years, Fred and the centre’s volunteers continued to show their care for the seafarers by delivering packages of treats and necessities to the ships that came in.

Now 92, Rev Frank leaves the dayto-day running of the centre to Fred, but he still conducts a regular Sunday service for seafarers in the building’s little chapel. It is obvious, from the beautifully maintained, peaceful facility, that both Fred and Rev Frank, as well as the small but dedicated management committee, have poured a great deal of time and attention into making the centre a welcoming place. Some of Rev Frank’s own artwork graces the walls, and the doors of the chapel feature the names of the thousands of ships that have arrived in Esperance since the very beginnings of the town’s shipping history. Over 62,000 seafarers have come through the centre since it was established. It is impossible to measure the vast impact that the centre has had over the years but, for the seafarers, it represents friendship and kindness amidst the isolation of the sea.

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Our public schools offer a range of learning environments to give young people educational opportunities to equip them with the knowledge and skills to succeed. There are specialist programs, residential boarding facilities, agricultural colleges, and a variety of learning styles and programs on offer. You can find a public school that meets the needs and aspirations of your child, and encourages their love of learning.

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