Chart and Compass 2017 by Jane Crowley

AND

CHART COMPASS WWW.SAILORS-SOCIETY.ORG 2017 - 2018 EDITION

SAILORS’ SOCIETY’S FREE MAGAZINE

200 YEARS

OF HOPE

CONTENTS INDUSTRY NEWS

The world’s first autonomous and zero emissions ship

HERALD OF FREE ENTERPRISE

Keeping love alive thirty years on

NOT A DISNEY STORY

The ugly face of reallife pirate attacks

200 YEARS OF HOPE

Founded in 1818, the Society is approaching its bicentenary

WELLNESS Top 10 ways to look after your health

AT HOME

The heart of the Philippines is its people

IN PORT

ontrose chaplain M visits his 6,000th ship

SPIRITUAL SUPPORT

ise words from W Mark Warner

WELCOME

FROM THE EDITOR, STUART RIVERS

Our chaplains are a support network that cares for the world’s 1.6 million seafarers; a family away from home that is able to provide practical and emotional support to those they meet.

lthough Sailors’ Society has had a number of name changes in its almost 200-years, the heart of its work hasn’t wavered.

Spreading hope and supporting seafarers around the world has been crucial to the charity’s longevity, as has its dedicated support base.

The mental health of seafarers has also seen recent coverage and the charity’s commitment to improving wellness hasn’t faltered. Version three of our Wellness at Sea app is available to download for free on iOS and Android platforms and now features exercise routines and healthy recipes.

As we approach our bicentenary, we have been delving into the extensive Chart and Compass archives. We have shared extraordinary stories of seafaring bravery in our e-newsletter The Horizon and will continue to tell these fascinating tales in the coming months. The thirtieth anniversary of the Herald of Free Enterprise disaster was commemorated at our annual service in Dover. The service gives us a chance to join with survivors and families in remembrance of the loved ones they lost so suddenly and the many acts of individual heroism of both crew and passengers that evening. It was a great honour to receive the ship’s bell on behalf of Dover at the service. In recent months, piracy attacks have once again been reported in the mainstream media. Our Crisis Response Network provides rapid response trauma care and counselling services for survivors of piracy attacks and traumas at sea. If you need support you can contact the team on: crisis@sailors-society.org. Registered Charity No. 237778 A company limited by guarantee Registered in England No. 86942 Patron: Her Majesty the Queen Editor: Stuart Rivers Assistant editor: James Leslie Designed by: Adam Carley

Published by: Sailors’ Society, Seafarer House, 74 St Annes Road, Woolston, Southampton, SO19 9FF Tel: +44 (0)23 8051 5950 Email: press@sailorssociety.org

Our chaplains continue to offer support around the world and it brings me a great deal of pride to hear about how they are helping transform lives on a daily basis. Chaplains like Jasper del Rosario, who has been supporting the wife and children of Rodel, a seafarer, whose house burnt down while he was at sea. Rodel said: “In April, my family encountered a fire. I would like to thank Sailors’ Society for giving my family a donation, thank you for your kindness.” INTERNATIONAL SAILORS’ SOCIETIES Canada Secretariat: Chamber of Shipping, Suite 100, 1111 West Hastings Street, Vancouver BC, V6E 2J3, Canada

New Zealand National Secretary: Larry Robbins OBE RNZN (RTD) 42 Knights Road, Rothesay Bay, Auckland 1311, New Zealand Southern Africa CEO: Revd J D (Boet) Van Schalkwyk Suite No. 6, Second Floor, Westville Centre, 52 Norfolk Terrace

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Rodel added: “It’s very hard for a seafarer They are even willing to take on a like me to have such an incident happen challenge to raise funds, like port to my family while I’m not around. When chaplain Phil Denyer, who faced his fear I heard the news, I really didn’t know what to do. I am so grateful to my Captain and fellow officers for their support, they made me feel like I wasn’t alone. “And thank you Sailors’ Society for being there when my family is in need.”

All of our new commercial ventures have the common goal of raising funds to help transform the lives seafarers.

Our chaplains and ship visitors bring hope to those they meet. Earlier this year Peter Donald, our port chaplain in Dundee and Montrose achieved an amazing feat when he made his 6,000th ship visit, you can read more about this on page 14. Sailors’ Society’s chaplains and ship visitors are a truly dedicated bunch, who are all committed to helping seafarers.

charity. We have opened new charity shops, as well as our first BySea Coffee Lounge in Southampton, launched a coffee subscription with new blends – where all the profits go to our work – and even have a Land Rover out and about serving coffee. For more information about BySea visit www. BySea.org.

Whether it’s by fundraising, volunteering, taking part in an event, subscribing to BySea or by simply sharing our message – thank you for continuing to support our vital work.

of heights to abseil and fundraise for the charity. It has been another busy year for the

INDUSTRY NEWS

SPONSORED BY DREW MARINE SIGNAL AND SAFETY UK LTD WWW.PAINSWESSEX.COM

a manned vessel, moving to remote operation in 2019 and expected to be capable of performing fully autonomous operations from 2020.

WORLD’S FIRST FULLY ELECTRIC AND AUTONOMOUS CONTAINER SHIP ANNOUNCED

he vessel Yara Birkeland will be the world’s first fully electric and autonomous container ship, with zero emissions. Operation is planned to start in the latter half of 2018, shipping products from Porsgrunn to Brevik and Larvik in Norway.

“As a leading global fertiliser company with a mission to feed the world and protect the planet, investing in this zero emission vessel to transport our crop nutrition solutions fits our strategy well. We are proud to work with Kongsberg to realise the world’s first autonomous, all-electric vessel to enter commercial operation,” said Yara’s president and chief executive officer Svein Tore Holsether.

“Every day, more than 100 diesel truck journeys are needed to transport products from Yara’s Porsgrunn plant to ports in Brevik and Larvik where we ship products to customers around the world. With this new autonomous battery-driven container vessel we move transport from road to sea Yara Birkeland will be the world’s most and thereby reduce noise and dust advanced container feeder ship and will be autonomous and 100 per cent electric. emissions, improve the safety of local roads, and reduce NOx and CO2 emissions,” he added. The company suggests the new vessel will reduce emissions and improve road “By moving container transport from safety by removing up to 40,000 truck journeys in populated urban areas. land to sea, Yara Birkeland is the start Yara Birkeland will initially operate as of a major contribution to fulfilling

national and international environmental impact goals. The new concept is also a giant step forward towards increased seaborne transportation in general,” said Kongsberg president and chief executive officer Geir Håøy. Kongsberg‘s integrated control and monitoring systems are capable of providing technology for remote and unmanned operations. “Yara Birkeland will set the benchmark for the application of innovative maritime technology for more efficient and environmentally friendly shipping,” added Håøy. Stuart Rivers, Sailors’ Society’s chief executive officer, said: “Earlier this year the world’s first remotely operated tug was tested in Copenhagen and shipowners are beginning to roll-out autonomous cargo discharging technology. “While shipping technology is moving forward and the industry is changing, it doesn’t mean an end to the need for seafarers and we will still rely upon them to transport 90 per cent of the goods we use on a daily basis.”

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HERALD OF FREE ENTERPRISE

THIRTY YEARS ON

“I’d dealt with many traumatic incidents in my role as a chaplain, but this sudden tragedy and the enormity of it put my pastoral ministry to the test.”

n Friday 6 March 1987, the Herald of Free Enterprise capsized off the coast of Zeebrugge en route to Dover. The disaster claimed 193 lives.

Thirty years on from the disaster, retired Sailors’ Society port chaplain Bill McCrea describes how he supported grieving families. “I was on duty that very sad evening in my role as chaplain to the Merchant Navy and National Sea Training College in Gravesend. “I was with a number of the young trainees as well as several crew members of the Herald who were at the college studying.” Gradually, news came through that a British ferry was in trouble.

Retired Sailors’ Society port chaplain Bill McCrea

“When the men realised it was their ship they became deeply anxious; the only reason they weren’t on board was because they were at the college studying for their Efficient Deck Hand

(EDH) certificate.”

Later on that evening, Bill heard the devastating news that the disaster had resulted in a huge loss of life. He travelled to Dover as soon as he could and spent two weeks in the Seafarers’ Centre, meeting people affected by the disaster and providing practical and emotional support. “It was an incredible shock to my system and I was very anxious. “I have dealt with individual loss of life with seafarers’ families over the years, but it was the enormity of the situation. So many people lost their lives that night. “I wanted to do the right things but you can’t go about it in a gung-ho way.” As chaplain at two of the nautical colleges in Gravesend, Bill knew the students well. “A young fellow, who was 17, fell one night on his way over to the mission. They’d rush over to get to the phones

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first or on to the table tennis tables and on his way over he tripped and split his forehead. We took him to hospital to get stitches.”

A few weeks later, the teenager died in the disaster - his first posting as a seafarer A few weeks later, the teenager died in the disaster - his first posting as a seafarer. “He had only just finished his college course two weeks before and I knew him well.” Bill conducted the boy’s funeral service, comforting his family as he, too, struggled to come to terms with the devastating loss. “As much as I ministered to his family, they ministered to me too.” Some of the families had to wait a long time for the recovery of their loved ones’ bodies.

5 me, I was there to care for them but they reciprocated that and as a result I got to know them really well.” Bill officiated at four funeral services for the victims. “All the services I held were attended by crew who survived; it was part of their shared grief.” He also supported passengers who had survived the sinking. “I met a woman on one of my hospital visits; she lost her husband that night. She told me the only reason she survived was that a truck driver helped keep her awake by pinching her. There were a lot of heroic acts that went on that night.” Following the tragedy, Bill would continue to visit family members he had supported in Dover for many years. He even met crew members who had survived the disaster on ship visits years later.

the funeral services for the lost. “No one wants to be involved in this sort of tragedy and it was a big strain on me at the time, but supporting those I did is a great honour.” During the service, staff from the Port of Zeebrugge at the time handed over the bell recovered from the ship to Sailors’ Society CEO Stuart Rivers and Brian Gibbons, the last survivor to be pulled out alive. Daniel Lamote, who was safety officer at the Port of Zeebrugge, said the bell had been kept in an attic and he persuaded the owner to release it to him for this purpose: “Our only intention was to bring the ship’s bell where it belongs, St Mary’s Church Dover, in honour of all of the victims, survivors, family and friends.” The former Bishop of Liverpool, the Right Reverend Bishop James Jones KBE, spoke at the service and told families in his sermon: “There’s no such thing as ‘closure’, nor should there ever be, for love. The re-living and

Brian Gibbons (second from right) the last man rescued from the Zeebrugge disaster holds the ferry's bell with Sailors' Society's CEO Stuart Rivers

“One woman, whose husband I buried, had to wait six weeks before they found his body. I gave her all the support I could during that time. “Who can train you for that? Not even theological training. You depend upon the grace of God. “The families were a great support to

On the first anniversary, Bill led a memorial service at the request of the families, starting a tradition that Sailors’ Society has repeated every year since. The thirtieth anniversary service was held at St Mary’s Church Dover, home of the main memorial to the victims of the tragedy and where Bill held one of

the remembrance, the quest and the questioning keep alive the love for the one who has died and give expression to their worth. “So, here today in this service you are keeping your love alive.” James Leslie is Sailors’ Society’s marketing and communications executive and can be found tweeting @JamesL_Sailors

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NOT A DISNEY

STORY Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales hit uk cinemas earlier this year, the latest instalment in the long-running Disney franchise.

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hen most people think of piracy, Johnny Depp’s rumfond Captain Jack Sparrow, is probably what comes to mind for many. But for the world’s 1.6m seafarers, the reality of modern day piracy couldn’t be further from the Hollywood glamour.

“THERE WAS NO ”

HOPE

Reacting to a dramatic increase in kidnappings at sea, Sailors’ Society, launched its Crisis Response Network in Asia earlier this year to help victims of trauma at sea. According to statistics from the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB), pirates kidnapped 62 people for ransom in 15 separate incidents in 2016.

Piracy survivor Adi Manurung

and offers a round-the-clock service to survivors of piracy, kidnapping, natural disasters and other traumas at sea.

Regularly tortured, he was freed following lengthy negotiations and was lucky to survive.

Earlier this year, eight fishermen were killed by armed men who attacked their boat in a suspected pirate attack off the southern Philippines.

“I can’t describe how much they tortured us,” said Jakir.

The charity has been supporting Adi Manurung, one of the 26 Naham 3 crew released last October after being held by Somali pirates for almost five years. Adi was treated appallingly during his harrowing ordeal and ate mice and wild cats to survive. “They blindfolded all of us and tied us together,” he said. “I thought that I would die. “There was no hope.”

Kidnappings at sea by Filipino Islamic extremist group Abu Sayaaf are on the rise, and 2017 has seen a resurgence in attacks by Somali pirates.

He is now receiving help from Sailors’ Society chaplains, including financial support, accompanying him on visits to the psychiatrist and providing counselling for him and his family to help him reintegrate into his community.

Sailors’ Society, which supports seafarers around the world, has trained more than 50 of its chaplains in Asia, Africa and Ukraine in crisis response

Bangladeshi seafarer Jakir Hossain has also received support from the charity. Jakir was held captive for more than three years by pirates.

“This incident seriously affected my family and me, not just physically and financially but mentally too and I still have nightmares about what happened.” Stuart Rivers, CEO of Sailors’ Society, said: “Pirates of the Caribbean is full of fun and fantasy, but in real life seafarers live in fear of a kidnapping happening to them. “Victims of piracy and kidnappings are exposed to violence and terror, which can have a devastating impact on them and their families for years to come. “By coming alongside these survivors and their families, we can work with other agencies to help them come to terms with what has happened and give them financial, physical and psychological support to help them pick up the pieces of their lives.” James Leslie is Sailors’ Society’s marketing and communications executive and can be found tweeting @JamesL_Sailors

Sailors’ Society’s Crisis Response Network provides a rapid response trauma care and counselling service for survivors of piracy attacks as well as various disasters at sea. Email: crisis@sailors-society.org Regional contacts: Africa - Rev J.D. van Schalkwyk: 00 2731 266 0695 Asia - Gavin Lim: 0065 9222 4600

Europe - Alexander Dimitrevitch: 00380 5033 66790 India - Joseph Chacko: 0091 9925 150908 Southeast Asia - James Mabuyo: 0063 0743 839706

200 8

hen the British and Foreign Sailors’ Society was founded, men and women who had seen the HMS Victory start on her voyage to Cadiz and Trafalgar were still young. From the weather-worn cliff at Portland they had watched the Admiral’s ship go by, three tiers of guns showing as she passed them, broadside on, with all sailors set and the flag of my Lord Nelson streaming white from the fore-topmast.

They had seen the sunlight glimmer in the cabin windows astern as she turned towards the horizon. They could remember how the great spread of canvas foreshortened and diminished as she went about – until only a dim oval stood white against the blue “no larger than a dead fly’s wing in a spider’s web.” A moment later the last shred of sail had dipped below the horizon, and the Victory was gone, carrying with her the friends and kinsmen of those who stood on the grey promontory, gazing out at sea.

1818 – Port of London Society founded

YEARS www.sailors-society.org

OF HOPE

1818 - 2018 So, in our time, men stood, with prayer in their hearts watching the smoke fade into the summer sky, as the ships of the grand fleet steamed out across the North Sea, to fight and win at Jutland.

Whatever else has changed in the years from Trafalgar to Jutland, the old traditions, the old ideals of conduct and comradeship which made Nelson’s men “a band of brothers”, have remained. And the Society which, in the words of our King, stands today for “the great brotherhood of the sea,” may justly claim that its own work during the past hundred years has helped to maintain and strengthen those ideals among all British seamen. It has been a living link with Nelson. The British and Foreign Sailors’ Society was

1893 – 75th anniversary meeting held in London

1822 – First missionary to sailors was ordained

1943 – Society funds a sea help injured seafarers affected

1918 – King George V congratulates Society on its centenary

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founded in 1818. Its first President was Admiral Lord Gambier, who signed the historical Treaty of Ghent in 1814, establishing peace between the great American States and Great Britain. A man of strong religious principles, who had seen many years’ service in the Napoleonic and American wars, Lord Gambier was associated with a little group of reformers who had hoisted the Bethel flag on the Thames four years before. These men set themselves to combat the many evils and abuses by which the sailor’s life was then encompassed. A hundred years ago, their first meeting was held – in a tavern in the City of London. A great task lay before them. They had to create an organisation, to raise funds, to train workers. But their plans were well laid, and today the Society which they founded has spread throughout the seaports of the world. It has become a national institution, charged with an international work. In those days ships were manned through the agency of the press-gang and the crimp. Discipline was maintained by the most savage methods, fifty or even one hundred lashes being a common punishment even for trivial offences. After being herded together for weeks in a dark, insanitary forecastle, and fed on a diet of salt pork and weevily biscuits, the men who came on shore too often sought in drink a temporary relief from the hardship and squalor of their lives at sea. Drunkenness was even encouraged, because a drunken man could the more easily be drugged or beaten into insensibility and dragged off to some ship in need of hands.

ambulance to by World War II

Shortly after the foundation of the Society in 1818, the armed sloop Speedy was purchased from the British Government, and towed to her moorings in the Thames estuary, under the Bethel flag. In 1822 the first missionary to sailors was ordained, the Rev. W. H. Angas, who visited many home ports, crossed the continent, and hoisted the not well-known flag in Belgian, German and Baltic ports. Ships flying the Society’s flag also crossed the Atlantic, passed through the Straits of Magellan, and in 1826 arrived at Sydney and Melbourne. For the first fifteen years the Society had been known as the Port of London Society. But its work had already outgrown this title, and on the proposal of the Treasurer, George Fife Angas, the new and more comprehensive name of the British and Foreign Sailors’ Society was adopted in 1833, as more appropriate to the purpose and mission of a body aiming at nothing less than the social and spiritual welfare of all who follow the sea. From that day to this the British and Foreign Sailors’ Society has existed for the men of the sea, and as long as there are loyal and generous supporters to maintain its work, it will never fail of its benevolent ministry.

1993 – Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II attends the 175th anniversary service in Southampton

1986 – Charity launches a mobile seafarers’ centre, Speedy III

An excerpt from the 1918 edition of Chart and Compass.

2018 – Visit our website to keep up-to-date with our bicentenary plans

2015 – Wellness at Sea and first Crisis Response Network launch

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HOW ARE YOU?

t’s a question we ask our friends and colleagues daily, that seems simple enough to answer. And yet, if we think about it more deeply, we realise it is surprisingly complex.

Being well is more than just being fit to work. Life at sea can be incredibly rewarding, but it is not without its challenges.

EMOTIONAL

How do your emotions influence your behaviour? By recognising, accepting and taking responsibility for your feelings you will be able to deal with these emotions and help to live in harmony with yourself and others.

Being far from home comforts and loved ones, with limited communication, for months on end is tough. Throw in fast turn around times, cultural barriers, and concern of threats such as piracy, it is easy to see how fatigue, loneliness and stress can throw your well-being out of balance.

PHYSICAL

Incidents at sea are often attributed to the ‘human element’, a term that disguises a variety of underlying problems. They can be the difference between a fulfilling career and a tough working life; the difference between safe transit and a major incident. In order to fully embrace your career and stay healthy at home and at sea, it’s important to take charge of your own well-being and consider five areas of wellness: social, emotional, physical, intellectual and spiritual.

INTELLECTUAL Use the resources around you to improve your knowledge and skills, and share them with others. For example, read up on your rights and responsibilities as a seafarer and find out who you can contact if you have a problem at sea. Check out some of the free money saving and budgeting apps that are available to help relieve financial concerns. Talk to your family so that they understand your contract and know who they can contact in a crisis for welfare support and emergency funding.

SOCIAL

SPIRITUAL

Think about how you interact with others – your family, your community, your colleagues on board. By understanding you own attitude and perceptions you will be better equipped to handle conflict and enjoy positive relationships with your crewmates and loved ones.

This is not just about having a balanced diet and good exercise regime. It’s important to care for your basic medical needs such as dental check-ups as well as knowing how to protect yourself against illnesses (e.g. Ebola) as you travel the world.

Reflect on your spiritual identity, your morals and ethics. Stay true to your core values in your daily behaviour. Here are 10 simple ways you can look after these five areas of wellness:

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TOP 10 WAYS TO LOOK

AFTER YOUR HEALTH

YOUR 1 SHARE PROBLEMS

6 HAVE A REST

2 EAT HEALTHILY

YOUR 7 WATCH ALCOHOL INTAKE

IN 3 STAY TOUCH

SOMETHING 8 DO YOU ENJOY

Talking about your feelings is a positive step towards good mental health. Try to talk to people you trust about your experiences and concerns. If all else fails, try to write your emotions in a diary and keep track of previous days and your general mood.

There is a strong link between what we eat and how we feel. Make sure that you are comfortable with your diet and be on the lookout for food that triggers certain emotions.

Friends and family can make you feel included and cared for and offer you a different view. It’s sometimes difficult to keep in touch when you are at sea, so write a letter about what you are experiencing and post it in the next port. Make ‘remember notes’ on important stories you want to tell your loved ones.

BE COMFORTABLE IN YOUR OWN SKIN

Some of us make people laugh, some are good at maths, while others cook a fantastic meal. We are all different and that’s what makes each of us a unique human being.

5 KEEP FIT

Regular exercise not only keeps you physically fit but can boost your self esteem and help you concentrate, sleep, look and feel better. Many exercise programmes exist that are specifically aimed at helping you keep fit on board. Work out a routine that fits in with your shifts on board and with life at home between contracts.

A change of scene or pace is good for your mental health. It could be a five-minute pause from the task you are busy with or a half hour lunch break in a different location on the ship. A few minutes can be enough to de-stress you.

We often drink alcohol to change our mood or to deal with fear or loneliness, but the effect is only temporary and can have longterm effects on our physical and mental health.

Enjoying yourself helps beat stress and boosts your self esteem. Make sure you take an activity you like with you on board.

9 ASK FOR HELP

None of us are superhuman. We all get tired or feel overwhelmed at times. If things are getting too much for you and you feel you can’t cope, ask for help. There are many organisations that are there to help you.

OUT 10 LOOK FOR OTHERS

Caring for others is an important part of keeping up relationships. Reach out and give a helping hand where you can. Sailors’ Society’s free Wellness at Sea app gives users a range of healthy living tips, recipes and exercises to help monitor and maintain your physical and mental health. Both Android and iPhone compatible, it also holds port directories and contact details for services offered by maritime welfare organisations and enables users to track their journey using AIS data provided by MarineTraffic.

The app forms part of Sailors’ Society’s wider Wellness at Sea programme which includes a coaching course. For more information visit: www.sailors-society.org/wellness

AT HOME

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THE HEART OF THE PHILIPPINES IS ITS PEOPLE

“THE HEART OF THE PHILIPPINES

IS ITS PEOPLE” Earlier this year, Sailors’ Society’s CEO Stuart Rivers visited some of the communities the charity has supported in the Philippines. Here he talks about his experiences.

“

ore than three years after Typhoon Haiyan devastated the Philippines, Sailors’ Society is still rebuilding communities and the lives of seafarers and their families. During a recent visit, I was encouraged by the massive hearts of the local people of Bantayan who are driving change in their own communities. The heart of the Philippines is its people. At Sulangan Integrated School on Bantayan Island, we have built a new general purpose classroom (the Noah’s Ark Building), provided computers for the IT room, and bikes for the children who travel the furthest to get to school. Sailors’ Society is now the main sponsor of the school and is pleased to be working in this seafaring community with such passionate people. Elisa Matulac is the principal and really is the heart of the school

Stuart in one of the boats the Society has provided

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- working seven days a week to make a difference in these young lives. She is the best fundraiser and has enabled the school to grow to serve more than 1000 children. And although the school needs funding to accommodate more children in this community, Elisa already has plenty of room in her heart.

day. The boats are making a huge difference by keeping the children dry and safe. The project is supported by the Barangay chiefs - local community leaders who also have big hearts. They help with fuel and maintenance of the boats, and are a great example of leading from within the community.

The school boat project now ensures that children can get to school without having to wade up to two kilometres from one of the five islets surrounding Bantayan. While I was there I saw the boats and the journey the children have to make each

Having grown the school over the past few years, Elisa always has a new idea for improvement. After providing more classrooms, boats and bikes, computers and internet access, she now wants to focus on home economics.

A seafarer, who was told he could not go to sea because he was ill, has been given an emergency welfare grant by Sailors’ Society.

Diosdado said, “My worry is that I don’t have money to pay for my medication and most specially the two stents to be inserted in my heart’s major arteries.

Diosdado Bantiad had already used his savings to fund his children’s education.

“My specialist said that the stents should eliminate the need for a heart bypass in the future.”

Having taken out a loan, which wasn’t enough to cover his medical bills, he was left with the prospect of mortgaging his family’s home.

Anxious about his and his family’s future, Diosdado sought help from chaplain Regina Borges de Paula, one of

This will include everything from cooking to cleaning, budgeting to bed-making, to give the children a rounded education of academic and practical skills. They will need help to fund the necessary equipment but the children will benefit greatly from this project. Projects that give practical skills will greatly enhance the opportunities for employment when the children leave school. Just like the sewing classes, home economics skills will be attractive to employers and build sustainability into the community for the future”. the charity’s chaplains in Rio de Janeiro. Chaplain Nic Tuban, who has been supporting Diosdado in Manila, said, “He was getting restless and felt hopeless, then he remembered chaplain Regina, who often visited their vessel in Brazil.” Having had the medical procedure, chief cook Diosdado is keen to return to sea so he can continue to support his family.

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IN PORT PETER’S SHIP VISITING MILESTONE

MONTROSE

CHAPLAIN

VISITS HIS

6,000TH SHIP

ort chaplain Peter Donald notched up a milestone this year when he visited the merchant vessel Pacific Leader in Montrose.

face in a faraway port. Having travelled enough gangplank miles to climb Ben Nevis 26 times, Peter isn’t entertaining any thoughts of slowing down anytime soon.

It took Peter’s total number of ship visits up to 6,000.

“The ships coming into the ports might have changed, but the needs of the people on them haven’t.

Peter has been a familiar face in the ports of Dundee, Montrose and Perth since he joined Sailors’ Society in 2005 as a port chaplain, visiting seafarers on board the ships to offer practical, emotional and spiritual support. His role combines a number of his passions. Peter said: “I felt that becoming a port chaplain for Sailors’ Society was my destiny, as it took me back to my roots and combines my love of God, the sea and people. “The Pacific Leader’s crew came from many nationalities, which epitomises the work we are doing.” Peter has always had an affinity with the sea. He attended Leith Nautical College before going to sea and then spent most of his working life as an auctioneer in the fishing industry in Newhaven and Arbroath. To the world’s 1.6 million seafarers, who can spend up to nine months away from home, Peter represents a friendly

“Seafarers still face isolation and loneliness and the need for chaplaincy support is as present today as it was when I made my first visits.” Although Peter has supported thousands of people, he doesn’t always hear about how the seafarers have fared.

shoulders when I told him my colleagues in the Philippines were supporting his family to get back on their feet. It meant the world to him.

That wasn’t the case in 2013 when Peter helped a Filipino seafarer traumatised by the devastation of Typhoon Haiyan.

“We care for people and are able to help and this was one of the occasions where I knew there was a happy ending.”

Peter explained: “His house had been flattened but he had to leave his family to make ends meet and provide for them.”

During his 12 years with Sailors’ Society, Peter has visited more than 100,000 seafarers and was integral in setting up the Montrose Seafarers’ Centre.

Sensing how upset the man was, Peter contacted his colleagues on the other side of the world, who were able to support. Sailors’ Society gave the family an emergency welfare grant and arranged for their house to be rebuilt. “It took a great weight off his

He has received a great deal of local support, for which he is grateful. “Whether it has been knitting a woolly hat for a seafarer or through prayer or practical support, the local community has been terrific,” he said.

www.sailors-society.org

SPIRITUAL SUPPORT

FAITH IS BOTH A COMFORT AND PROTECTION FOR THOSE AT HOME AND AWAY AT SEA

HOPE IN ADVERSITY

ometimes our world seems to pass through seasons when we feel normality is lost in the confusion of shocking events. In those moments, human nature can give vent to its best or worst - expressions. We can summon the best of our reserves to bring relief and justice into a situation, or we can vent desires for revenge, blame and narrow self-interest. As a Christian charity, Sailors’ Society is, of course, committed to the former as it seeks to bring hope in adversity to seafarers worldwide. Over recent years you’ve read in Chart and Compass about the practical assistance we bring in situations such as rebuilding Filipino homes, schools and communities in the aftermath of the devastating typhoon Haiyan of 2013; you’ve read of our counselling services for those who have been incarcerated by pirates - some for many years; you know of the work our chaplains do to alleviate the loss caused by the severe hazards of life at sea. But it is not only in the major incidents. Hope in adversity is a theme that plays out through our individual chaplains worldwide as they are welcomed aboard ships internationally, bringing God’s presence to one of our planet’s most

isolated and forgotten workforces. The hope we bring is not dependent on better conditions (though we work hard for improvement). The hope we bring is the sure and certain hope that is possible because God, in Christ, has come to into our world and fully shares with us in the lows as well as the highs of life. To those who don’t yet realise his presence, our chaplains act as his representatives - as messengers of hope.

On Sea Sunday a few years ago, the well-known Christian author, Adrian Plass, recorded for us his version of the Shipping Forecast, which is available on the Society’s YouTube channel. The closing words are still absolutely relevant to what we seek to do to bring Christ’s hope to those in a sea of adversity: “Sailors’ Society will veer west and north and east and south ensuring good-to-excellent visibility; fresh rain of forgiveness, love and peace; thundering justice; gale-force hospitality and rippling waves of acceptance, warmth and love from the source of all goodness, the heart of God. This is the Shipping Forecast for every single day of the year.” May God bless you in knowing that hope.

Revd Mark Ashton Warner is one of Sailors’ Society’s public engagement officers and can be contacted via email at: mwarner@sailors-society.org

PRAYER Scripture quotations taken from New Living Translation

Praise be to our God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead… 1 Peter 1:3 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. Hebrews 6:19a And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. Romans 5:5

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