We congratulate Paul and Jessie who gave a wonderful and vibrant presentation to the Presbyterian Church in Amanzimtoti. It was a polished performance and enjoyed by those who attended.
This occasion was held to mark the Presidential Citation to the Church for their ongoing support of the Sailors’ Society SA. Board Chairman, Mr Fred Powley accepted the citation on behalf of the Amanzimtoti Church.
Sailors’ Society Chaplain, Jessie John also did ship visiting having called on the MSC CLAUDIA and MSC REGULUS where she met Melanie [right] who is a steward from Madagascar who has been working on ships for 22 years and enjoys her work very much.
Jessie gave Melanie a ‘wife’s present” and before she left, prayed with her. Melanie was especially delighted to talk to Jessie as she had previously met Fify Ravaoharisoa the Sailors’ Society Chaplain in Madagscar and has been blessed by the chaplain’s services to seafarers
Paul and Jessie boarded the vessel MAERSK SELETAR and met Dutch Captain Douwe and his wife Lucy who also received a ‘wife’s present” courtesy Sailors’ Society. [left]
Chaplains, your visits are so appreciated as you bring joy and comfort to seafarers who are far away from home and family.
1 Ball double knitting wool
1 pair 4.25mm knitting needles (old No. 7)
If your knitting tension is very loose use No. 4 mm (old No. 8) needles
Cast on 40 stitches
Knit 14 rows of knit 1, purl 1, ribbing.
Next row Knit
Next row Knit 4, purl 32, knit last 4 stitches
Repeat last two rows 11 times – (24 rows stocking stitch in all)
Knit 6 rows of knit 1, purl 1, ribbing.
Cast off in ribbing.
From the cast on edge sew up 10.5 cms.
From the top edge sew down approximately 5 cms, leaving an opening
of approximately 4.5 cms for the thumb to go through.
Cast off.
Letter from Jenny* to Elaine*
Many thanks for your prompt reply much appreciated and thanks for the pattern, I have emailed it off to my daughter and two other friends, so hopefully we can get together and start knitting, time flies by so fast, winter will be upon us shortly.
This is a very interesting story, my husband and I have sailed all our lives and have just come back from spending 7 years sailing the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, Cuba and America’s East Coast from Key West right up to Nova Scotia and it has been an awesome experience and truly meeting the best of people along the way. One thing the sea does for you is to keep you humble, you do not take on Mother Nature especially the sea. It is a great equalizer.
While we were sailing wherever we anchored we would land up and a Seafarers Mission for a lunch or supper, what an experience to hear the stories good and bad and the wonderful work these volunteers do to make life a little easier for the sailors on these huge tankers.Christmas time was always a treat and the generosity of folk around the world is truly a blessing.
We would go along with other sailing folk we met along the way at various different achoranges.
It was wonderful to see what you are doing and I hope we can participate in a small way.
Rev Boet van Schalkwyk presented a workshop talk at this conference on 19 October 2016 at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, Durban.
The theme was “The Role of the Sailors ’Society in modern day seafaring” concentrating on the work of the Society a well as Crisis Response, as well as the scourge of piracy attacks and the traumatic consequences.
Many interested conferences goers also visited the stand for whom the work of the Society was an eye opener. We trust that we opened a new world for them and created an awareness of the valuable work.
![Chaplain Jessie John [right] with 2 crew members](http://saiss.co.za/web/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/IMG-20160521-SENTOSA-JJ-1-1024x768.jpg)
Chaplain Jessie John [right] with 2 crew members
Rev Van Schalkwyk received information from the Crewing Manager, Grindrod Maritime, that Mr Alfredo Apao the bosun on board the vessel MV ‘IVS Sentosa” had died resulting from an accident on board on 21 April when the vessel was just outside the port in Tokyo. He was approached enquiring whether he and his CRC team could provide grief counselling and debriefing for the officers and crew when the vessel berthed in the Port of Durban in May. The agents had contacted his family in the Philippines, and took good care of them.
On 19 May, Rev Van Schalkwyk and three of the CRC chaplains, Mrs Jessie John, Pastor Paul Richardson and Rev Thami Tembe boarded the ship and spoke to 22 crew members. Rev Van Schalkwyk held a committal service and Rev Tembe from the MTS offered Mass.’ [photo on the right]
It must be remembered that crews of ships live in close proximity for long periods with their ‘shipmates’ and when such a tragedy occurs, all feel it and the loss intimately. They cannot just ‘get off the ship’ to escape the pall of sadness which must prevail on board, and, perhaps in some cases, even fear.
Hence debriefing and grief counselling are so vital The Team felt privileged to have been able to help crew members through the shock and grief and next step of the grief process, thereby enabling them to cope.
The value and success of the team’s visit was aptly illustrated when one of the crew members said – ‘I now feel much lighter, more settled and relieved”.
The crew with CRC team, chaplains Pastor Paul Richardson& Jessie John, Rev Thami Tembe, Rev Boet van Schalkwyk
Well done, CRC team, that’s what it is all about, lifting the load and giving hope and healing to our fellow men and women.