WHITE ELEPHANT MANAGEMENT Caretakers of Maritime History The white elephant of Hindu tradition was given to a prince by a rival head of state. Impossible to refuse, the sacred elephant was received with veneration and trepidation alike, for the care and adornment of such an animal was no small drain on the state budget. Stewardship of an historic vessel is also both an honor and a challenging responsibility. If it is not to become an impossible burden on its owner, it must be carefully managed. That is what we do. THE RESTORATION OF SHIPS is an aggregation of many skills , both traditional and technical. Some are readily available and some nearly forgotten. White Elephant is a management core with a network of contacts developed over the years among people involved in maritime preservation. W e can research and design for restoration , provide on-site supervision of the work, owners' representation for shipyard jobs , and experienced craftspeople on a contract basis for jobs requiring traditional skills. We can get the job done in a style which does credit to the builders whose work we preserve. PLANNING, in the long and short term , with accurate budgets , and specified intermediate objectives, is the key to successful restoration. The White Elephant administrative staff is well exp erienced both in the nitty-gritty realities of the modern marine-service industry , and the problems of cash flow and credibility peculiar to private non-profit organizations. We offer consultation , from initial evaluation of objectives and options, through detailed surveys , production p lanning and hard estimates of costs. FUNDRAISING expertise of the White Elephant team has been responsible for millions of dollars in foundation , corporate, governmental and private support to maritime projec ts. Never more than today have Americans been willing to Well-conceived and well-planned lea rn from the past. undertakings on our field can receive the funds they need . We can help. PUBLIC RELATIONS, when purposeful and planned, is more than a timely press release . It must function as an in tegral part of fundraising , establishing the indentity , goals and credibility of a project to its community. It presents the project as process as well as product, and as such can further its educational goals.
INTERPRETATION: No ship stands mute -- she has much to say of craftsmanship and courage, commerce and conflict; of Nature's wild waters and those who spend their lives upon them . But to make her message accessible to most of her visitors requires an appropriate " interpretation" pro . gram. White Elephant has the experience in research , writing, graphic techniques , audio-visual media and film to make history live . MAINTENANCE: Even after a sound initial restoration , a ship on the water requires constant care and renewal. It must have both daily maintenance and periodic attention from a variety of craftspeople . White Elephant can design and manage cyclical maintenance as well as day-to -day upkeep. We can undertake total maintenance on contract, or advise and train your own staff. MANAGEMENT, finally is what we are about. In restoration , from a dory to a battleship; in events, from a shipboard wedding to a gathering of tall ships; in program, from operating a hundred -year-old schooner as a passenger vessel for hire to crew training and the thousand details needed to sail a square-rigger : White Elephant represents the sound management approach which can see the job through . DOES ANY OF THIS APPLY TO YOUR PROJECT? If so , please contact us . We would enjoy discussing the possibilities .
2104 Strand, P .O. Box 1049, Galveston, Texas 77553
(713) 762-8555
WHITE ELEPHANT MANAGEMENT