Director’s Log

2Wilkinson Retires

3Silver Bell Awards

4Construction Update

5

Piracy Roundtable

6Courses Fill Niche

7Why I Give to SCI

8

Founded in 1834, the

Institute is a voluntary,

ecumenical agency

affiliated with the

Episcopal Church that

provides pastoral care,

maritime education, and

legal and advocacy

services for mariners.

Since 1910, the newsletter

of the Seamen’s Church

Institute’s programs

for mariners

In this issue

The Seamen’s Church Institute seamenschurch.org

A Ministry of Firstsby Jennifer Koenig, Associate Director of Development

SPRING 2010 VOLUME 102/NUMBER 1

InthiseditionofThe Lookout,readaboutSCI’s‘firsts’inmaritimeministry.

It

takes a lot of effort to stay at the top of an industry. Ask Google Chief Executive

Eric Schmidt. To remain relevant and keep up with the demands of a new world, organizations have to implement new

ideas. In an interview with Bloomberg Business Week, Schmidt said, “A company’s purpose is to make a difference. What are we supposed to do, do less?”

Naturally, a company with long-term goals must strike a balance between innovation and meeting current obligations. Good leaders know that risking everything for the sake of a new endeavor can quickly devastate an otherwise successful venture. And yet, being the first to fill a void or touch a growing need in a new way makes a household name out of a providential entrepreneur.

At the Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI), our leaders have successfully nurtured opportunities for expansion. Optimistically, they have pushed for change–not in hopes of wealth or fame but in hopes for enhanced, wide-ranging services to the world’s maritime workforce.

The Institute’s innovations throughout its history have significantly contributed to the welfare of mariners, and at this year’s Silver Bell Awards Dinner, SCI’s premier event for the maritime industry, the Institute recounts some of its ‘firsts.’

• In 1899, SCI opened the Seamen’s Branch of the Legal Aid Society, making it the first agency to provide free legal aid for mariners;

• SCI ingeniously started the first maritime school on the roof of a building to simulate navigation on a real ship;

• SCI continues to operate the first and only full-time pastoral care network for the nation’s inland river mariners;

• And in 2009, SCI launched the first-ever study of psychological effects of piracy on seafarers.

In contrast to a world where only the visible majority benefit from the ‘firsts’ of ideas and opportunities, SCI gives the best of our ideas and talent to the men and women working behind the scenes of global trade commerce. These and dreams borne out of this spirit fuel our organization’s victories. Collaborating with people just like you, SCI continues to succeed, finding

ways to meet the demands of a new world.

“ I will always remember fondly the first boat I visited, the M/V Michael J. Grainger. The captain invited me to bring my wife with me and come back for Christmas. We visited the boat on Christmas Day, and started a routine of visiting a towboat on Christmas Day, which we did for the next several years. We enjoyed a wonderful meal and the fellowship of sharing it onboard. Sometimes we brought a video with us, which we watched with the crew members in the crew lounge. The response to such a movie was, ‘It is enough to make a towboater cry.’” —The Rev. James R. Wilkinson

2 • The Seamen’s Church Institute The Lookout Spring 2010

© Spring 2010 Volume 102, Number 1

Published byThe Seamen’s Church Institute241 Water StreetNew York, NY10038-2016212-349-9090fax: 212-349-8342sci@seamenschurch.org

David S. FrenchChairman, Board of Trustees

The Rev. David M. RiderPresident and Executive Director

Editor, Oliver BrewerAssistant Editor, Margaret LeeDesign & Production, Bliss Design

The Lookout is printed on recycled paper.

S C I S U S TA I N I N G S P O N S O R S

For many who are still considering a gift, hearing why you support SCI and its ministry means a great deal. Share your story—like Blair and Brett VanBrunt did—of SCI’s ministry with us and with the mariners we serve.

Sharing Your Stories of SCI’s Ministry

DearFriends,

WE have included an article on the back page of our spring newsletter crafted largely from the words of someone not on staff at SCI. Titled “Why I Give to SCI,” it starts the ball rolling in a year of shared

stories about SCI’s ministry.

Blair VanBrunt charmed all of us here in New York when we read a letter she sent this past Christmas. She thanked SCI for giving her husband a handmade gift—a gift delivered by our staff with the help of volunteers from around the country.

When you make a gift of time and money to the Institute, you send a message of support to all of the mariners working on our nation’s waterways and on international seas. Thank you for doing your part.

For many who are still considering a gift, hearing why you support SCI and its ministry means a great deal. In the coming year, we will feature the comments of donors like you on our website and in our newsletters. We want all our supporters to know that when they give, they join SCI’s network of people who welcome and assist the world’s mariners in whatever way they can.

To help us share these stories, I hope you will share, in your own words, why you support the work of the Institute. You may send email (sci@seamenschurch.org), write, send photos, or forward a video. I look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you for all you do for SCI.

Yours faithfully,

Executive Director’s Log

The Rev. David M. Rider President & Executive Director

seamenschurch.org The Lookout Spring 2010 • 3

America’s First River ChaplainRiverministrypioneerWilkinsonretiresatendofApril

BEing the ‘first’ to do something brings with it some positives and negatives. Without any

predecessors, a new adventurer defines the way in which he or she carries out new responsibilities, establishing new protocol. As the first on a job in a new location, however, he or she must also build a new infrastructure … sometimes from scratch. “Fortunately for us,” says the Rev. David M. Rider, President and Executive Director of SCI, “Jim blazed a new trail with self-confidence, launching a ministry like none have ever seen before.”

The Rev. James (Jim) R. Wilkinson retires this year in April after over 11 years of service to the nation’s inland waterways community as their first full-time, fully-dedicated chaplain. Up until 1998, SCI only directly offered pastoral care to mariners in the Port of New York and New Jersey. Then, expanding its ministry, SCI called Wilkinson to head up a new initiative, Ministry on the River, some 700–800 miles west of its headquarters—a first-of-its-kind endeavor to river mariners and their families in the United States.

Prior to coming to SCI, Wilkinson served as a chaplain in the US Army. After retiring from the Army, Wilkinson’s bishop at that time recommended him for the newly created river chaplain position at SCI. His first ‘congregation’ of mariners spanned from Pittsburgh, PA,

where the Ohio River begins, to Greenville, MS. Before too long, however, other cities and rivers augmented his dossier, which meant quite of bit of traveling.

Two main directives fueled his travels. Wilkinson visited churches, networking with River Friendly Churches (and potential participants in the program), who partner with SCI to provide ministry to mariners. He also spent his time visiting those mariners, traveling to meet them and traveling with them as their vessels navigated the waters.

Wilkinson describes this unique process:

“ The working boats on the inland waterways do not come to port or shore. One needs to get to them by another boat or catch them when they pass through locks. Sometimes the only way to get there is for the towboat to launch its own lifeboat or skiff to fetch me from the shore. Then, I ride until there is another boat that can take me back the other way, until eventually (never sure when that may be) I can get home again.”

While away from home—or perhaps more accurately put, on his second home—on a boat, Wilkinson says he practiced a “ministry of presence,” meeting people “where they are and as they are.” At its initial stages, some met this new ministry—which meant inviting a stranger onboard a proverbial secluded island—with skepticism. Some companies had

reservations about the motives of these new visitors. Now, according to Wilkinson, companies call SCI straightaway when an emergency occurs. “I believe this is because they know we are not pushing any agenda of our own,” discloses Wilkinson, “but are first and most of all concerned for their welfare and come as servants of God.”

In his ministry as a chaplain with SCI, Wilkinson reminisces of both difficult times (like every time a crewmember was killed) and grand occasions (like the christening of a new vessel). Voyaging through significant life experiences, Wilkinson says that he received many rewards. “I will never forget the many mariners I have met and will always have as friends.”

His retirement also comes with some rewards. His wife, Kay, will get to see a bit more of her well-traveled husband, and Wilkinson says he may make some new starts of new adventures. Like mature salmon, they have some new waters to explore, he says.

Wilkinson’s shoes will be difficult to fill, according to SCI’s Executive Director, who looks for his successor. This challenging work requires the right combination of personality and skill, says Rider. Wilkinson leaves an inheritance, however. Rider adds, “The inheritance—Ministry on the River’s infrastructure and its well-built reputation—empowers this original ministry for wonderful things to come.”

“ I vocalize a prayer only when I am asked to do so, but my goal and hope is to always be perceived as a man of God, that it is God that has brought me there and stays with them when I am gone.” — MOR Chaplain Jim Wilkinson

4 • The Seamen’s Church Institute The Lookout Spring 2010

S ilver Bell Awards Celebrate a Ministry of ‘Firsts’

EACH year, the Institute lauds the accomplishments and distinguished careers of individuals and organizations associated with the maritime community. Over the course of its history, SCI blazed

many new trails, launching several ‘firsts’ in the maritime world. Notably, in this past century, SCI has utilized advanced computer technology to train professional mariners; established the world’s only full-time, free legal aid program for merchant mariners; and expanded outreach to mariners on the United States’ inland rivers, making SCI the only network of full-time pastoral care ministry on the Ohio and Lower Mississippi River systems.

Great leaders have guided the Institute through these firsts. Kirby Corporation, under Berdon Lawrence’s leadership, supported SCI’s pioneering endeavor to take maritime education to the next level. The Rev. Dr. Jean R. Smith, the first woman to serve as Executive Director at SCI, shepherded growth during historic times, and VADM Vivien S. Crea (ret.), the first woman to serve as a USCG Vice Commandant, spent her career managing maritime safety, security, and stewardship for our country, while affirming a strong, supportive relationship with SCI.

This year, SCI honors these leaders in ‘firsts,’ celebrating their bravery to venture on uncharted waters.

Great leaders have guided the Institute through these firsts.

The 33rd Annual Silver Bell Awards Dinner honors

C. Berdon Lawrence Chairman of Kirby CorporationSilver Bell Award

The Rev. Dr. Jean R. Smith, former Executive Director of the Seamen’s Church InstituteSilver Bell Award

VADM Vivien S. Crea (ret.), Former Vice-Commandant of the Unites States Coast GuardLifetime Achievement Award

33rd Annual Silver Bell Awards DinnerThursday, June 10, 2010Pier Sixty at Chelsea PiersNew York City

For more information about the Silver Bell Awards Dinner, contact Jennifer Koenig, SCI’s Associate Director of Development, at (212) 349-8142 or jkoenig@seamenschurch.org

seamenschurch.org The Lookout Spring 2010 • 5

A New Encounter Every TimeEpiscopalServiceCorpsinternfuseswiththeunpredictablelifeofaseafarer

in August 2008, Milwaukee, WI native Kristin Saylor moved to New York to begin an internship with the Episcopal Service Corps,

working for a year at the Seamen’s Church Institute’s (SCI) International Seafarers’ Center in Port Newark. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Saylor said she wanted “to go out and do something

practical.” So, is she getting the experience she wanted?

Saylor’s daily routine consists of interacting with seafarers. Saylor gained her sea legs in August shadowing SCI Chaplains in Port Newark. Now, she visits ships daily in the busy international port. Saylor’s responsibilities

also include supporting SCI’s comprehensive services for mariners, working with merchant marine veterans, the Christmas at Sea volunteer knitting program, and attorneys in the Center for Seafarers’ Rights.

When asked about her routine of ship visiting, she explained that her secret is to start each encounter with enthusiasm no matter what has happened elsewhere. Saylor adds

that most people (like longshoreman or agents) climb a ship’s gangway to conduct the perfunctory and occupational drudgery of fast-paced maritime commerce. “It’s rare,” she says, “to have someone board who’s enthusiastic about seeing them. I like being that person.”

Saylor believes the elements of the unexpected she faces in her daily work equip her for challenges beyond this internship. She sees this hands-on experience as preparation for the types of things she sees doing in the future. “I feel like I’m really communicating with people,” Saylor discloses. From counseling to going

shopping to joining seafarers in meals, she delights in her very ‘practical’ job.

Port Newark Construction Update sEAFArErs and port workers in the

Port of New York and New Jersey will soon find they have a bit more room to stretch. Completion of Phase I construction of SCI’s International Seafarers’ Center in Port Newark will more than double the size of the current space used to welcome visitors.

The Phase I opening of SCI’s renovated center, which is scheduled for later this year, includes an Internet lounge, recreation area, chapel, chaplains’ work station, and welcome center that allows seafarers to wire money home to loved ones. “We believe it will be one of the most beautiful and comprehensive seafarers’ hospitality centers in the world,” says David M. Rider, SCI’s President & Executive Director.

SCI’s first partnership with Episcopal Service Corps volunteers

Intern Kristin Saylor stands in front of an SCI van used to transport seafarers in the Port of New York and New Jersey. Saylor works at SCI as part of a placement with the Episcopal Service Corps.

About the Episcopal Service CorpsThe Episcopal Service Corps is a national federation of young adult service programs in the United States. For more information, visit www.episcopalservicecorps.org

Want to help SCI offer hospitality in Port Newark, the largest container port in the eastern United States? Support SCI’s construction project with a financial contribution. Use the envelope in this edition of The Lookout or log on to seamenschurch.org and click DONATE today.

First

T

6 • The Seamen’s Church Institute The Lookout Spring 2010

On Tuesday, December 8, SCI convened a roundtable discussion in New York on the care of seafarers and families of seafarers affected by piracy. At its Water Street Headquarters, SCI

brought together representatives of governments and the maritime industry along with health professionals and port chaplains for the latest installment in its “thought leader” programs, providing neutral ground for discussion on current issues affecting mariners.

SCI’s Executive Director, the Rev. David M. Rider, moderated the roundtable. He used SCI’s groundbreaking clinical study on piracy’s effects on merchant mariners and its preliminary guidelines on post-piracy care as the catalyst for a discussion on responding to piracy’s effects. Rider underscored the necessity to work in partnership with maritime stakeholders in this endeavor, as the results would benefit the entire industry.

Dr. Michael Garfinkle, SCI’s Clinical Researcher and author of the guidelines on post-piracy care, emphasized the work will cover more than caring for seafarers who have been attacked by pirates. Those supporting the maritime industry also need to provide seafarers with an appropriate “mental health tool-belt,” addressing the fears of seafarers routinely sailing through high-risk areas.

The experiences shared by shipowners and management companies contributed to developing the logistics of SCI’s study and to the recommendations that can be used by nations, first responders, shipowners and others interested in ameliorating the effects of piracy on seafarers and their families.

The report published from the roundtable discussion notes an “information gap” where currently no comprehensive knowledge collection exists on the needs of seafarers and their families. SCI’s study is the first to prepare guidelines on caring for those impacted by piracy. Participants provided invaluable contributions toward developing practical and workable recommendations.

SCI Convenes

Piracy Roundtableby Douglas B. Stevenson Director of SCI’s Center

for Seafarers’ Rights

First-ever guidelines published for the care of seafarers First

“The capability of SCI’s piracy study to impact the lives of seafarers relies on the wealth of experience from people involved in the industry.”— Douglas B. Stevenson, Director of

SCI’s Center for Seafarers’ Rights.

At a December Roundtable meeting on SCI’s Top Deck, representatives of governments and the maritime industry discussed the care of seafarers and families of seafarers affected by piracy.

Based on feedback from this and other discussions with maritime

industry stakeholders, SCI recently published Preliminary Guidelines: Post-Piracy Care for Seafarers. This publication represents SCI’s latest efforts to provide practical guidelines to the maritime industry, based on cutting-edge mental health research and ongoing discussions. Read more about SCI’s Post-Piracy Trauma Assessment and Treatment study and view/download the Preliminary Guidelines at seamenschurch.org.

Because the success of this project depends on tapping the aggregate knowledge and experience of industry members and seafarers, SCI encourages interested parties to email SCI’s clinical researcher Michael Garfinkle at mgarfinkle@seamenschurch.org or telephone +1-212-349-9090 x240.

First of discussions allowing stakeholders to share views First

seamenschurch.org The Lookout Spring 2010 • 7

SCI continually invites maritime companies to provide feedback as to how SCI can best serve training needs in the industry. For more information about SCI’s maritime education course offerings, email cme@seamenschurch.org

Fleeting/Harbor Courses Fill Training NicheSCIoffersnewclassesbasedonindustryfeedback

sCi updates its maritime education course offerings each year. Mariners—both new and veteran—receive top-notch training from experienced teachers who dexterously adapt to growth and change in the industry. Based on feedback from these professionals, SCI designs and redesigns its courses to

make sure that mariners are prepared for the real rigors of work on America’s waterways.

Recently, SCI’s maritime education leaders began exploring the opportunity for training workers in the Harbor and Fleeting Boat community, operators who work in and around the multitude of barge fleets up and down the United States’ rivers. SCI believed its simulator technology and first-rate curriculum could fulfill the educational needs of these captains and pilots.

On February 4, SCI held an Open House at its Center for Maritime Education in Paducah, KY. Participants discussed the capabilities of SCI’s facility, including SCI’s upgraded simulator and the potential curriculum for courses pertaining to Harbor and Fleeting vessels.

Thanks to input from the Open House, SCI made simulation training available for Fleeting/Harbor boat captains and pilots in 2010.

“We believe we can offer quality training that is practical and relevant to this segment of the inland industry,” said Eric Larsson, Director of SCI’s Center for Maritime Education. He says that from class size to course length, SCI has adapted these classes to meet the needs of the industry. “Mariners will leave SCI with the experience they want,” said Larsson, “and employers, because they’ve been so instrumental in developing these courses, will get training specifically designed for them.”

First-of-its-kind training offered at SCI’s Center for Maritime Education

First

Blair and Brett VanBrunt cherish moments together as newlyweds.

SCI The Seamen’s Church Institute241 Water StreetNew York, NY 10038

seamenschurch.org

SCI The Seamen’s Church Institute241 Water StreetNew York, NY 10038

seamenschurch.org

SCI CenterS: Port newark, Paducah, Houston, Oakland

Non-ProfitU.S.Postage

PAIDNewtown,CTPermitNo.100

8 • The Seamen’s Church Institute The Lookout Spring 2010

T H E S E A M E N ’ S C H U R C H I N S T I T U T E

Why I give to SCIMeetBlairandBrettVanBruntfromGarner,NC

in 2009, just after celebrating their first wedding anniversary, Brett set sail for the Gulf of Mexico. The

couple spent one of their first newlywed Christmases separated by miles of water. “[Christmas] is the most depressing time to be at sea,” said Blair. “You miss so much family and fun.”

As part of SCI’s Christmas at Sea volunteer gift giving program, Brett received a handknit hat this year. Although Brett would rather have been home for the holidays, Blair said that the gift made the challenging days a little less lonesome. “And,” she said, “it couldn’t have come at a better time. The Gulf was experiencing a really cold spell, and the crew needed those knitted goods! And we knew someone made that gift. We felt the love in it.”

Recounting their own experiences of SCI’s outreach over the years (Brett, working since age 18 on the water), Blair affirms why she and her family support SCI, “When no one else was there, SCI was … taking care of the sailors.”

Want to share your story of SCI’s ministry? Email us at sci@seamenschurch.org

Your support makes a difference in the lives of the mariners we serve.