Christmas with the Seafarers

December 17, SCI celebrated Christmas with crewmembers from around the world.  Volunteers, Board Members, Church friends and staff brought dinner and delicious treats to welcome the seafarers from several ships. 

     Nearly 95% of all the goods that sustain our economy move by ship.  Since July the region’s retailers have been receiving all manner of goods to help us celebrate this wonderful season.  Yet, we are so busy shopping and preparing for the holidays, it’s hard for us to see and understand the importance of the seafarers’ labor in making it all possible.  Try to imagine our world without these merchant mariners… our standard of living would be greatly diminished. 

     We exchanged stories of family, Christmas and holiday traditions from around the world.  A seafarer from the “Lombok Strait” was excited that he would be home on December 27th to see his two year old son for the first time in 9 months.  The men created their own ornaments and helped decorate our tree while Christmas Carols and a visit from Santa Claus were the highlight of the evening.  As each man left our Center, they were given a hearty assortment of homemade cookies baked by friends from Gloria Dei Church to bring back to the ships with them.  We wish a safe voyage to our seafarers who returned to their jobs on board the many ships that will bring them to their next foreign destination.

     We wish you all a Happy, Healthy New Year and thank you for your continued support to our mission of hospitality.  


 

A special thanks to the elves from the vessels Snow Bird and Luzon Strait who helped decorate the seafarer center

 

Volunteer Appreciation Night

 

                                   

On September 20th SCI had the privilege of celebrating one of our favorite traditions… Volunteer Appreciation Night.  We had a wonderful mix of volunteers, board members,SCI staff, and their spouses as we enjoyed a delicious Chinese dinner at the Joy Tsin Lau Restaurant.  Some of our past excursions have included a Night at the Camden River Sharks Ballpark and a Polynesian Night with a scavenger hunt.  This year our volunteer coordinator, John Szelagowski, planned an exciting evening for us in the heart of Chinatown.

 

After an amazing banquet Father Jim Von Dreele presented our volunteers with a Triple Good Luck Bamboo plant.  He reminded us of how very lucky we are to have such dedicated volunteers helping to fulfill our daily mission of hospitality to the seafarers we serve along the Delaware River. 

Ronnie Barlow

A Seafarer's Reunion

We often speak of the lonely life of seafarers and the hardships they endure.  Last week, SCI had the privilege of helping three brothers come together for a long overdue reunion.

The Sarsoza Family was born and raised in Laguna, Philippines.  Felix, the oldest, had just received a promotion in the Laguna Police Department and was sent to Los Angeles, CA for training.  While in the USA he arranged to visit his brother Dennis who lives in Charlotte, NC.  As luck would have it, they received a message from their seafaring brother, Dandy, who was aboard the oil tanker “Meltemi” that would be calling on the Ports of Philadelphia but would remain in port for only one day before sailing on to West Africa.

 Felix and Dennis just couldn’t pass up this opportunity to see their brother, so they hopped into Dennis’s car and made the 540 mile trip to Philadelphia.  En route from North Carolina they made calls to everyone they could think of who might possibly help them find out where the vessel would dock.  Due to heightened security restrictions, they were not given any information as to how or where to find Dandy.  Dennis used to be a first engineer and a seafarer himself years ago and remembered the Seamen’s Church Institute.  They tracked us down and spoke to our night supervisor, David McNeal, who found out the vessel would be arriving here in Philadelphia early in the morning.  David gave them directions to our Center and told them we would take care of the details.  Early the next morning, our host transporter, Troy Harley, picked up five crew members from the “Meltemi” and brought them to the Center as planned.

After driving all night Dennis and Felix were here in Philadelphia before the Center opened, anticipating the possibility of finally seeing Dandy and being all together for the first time in fourteen years.  When the van pulled up and the doors opened the brothers hugged and cried at finally being reunited.  Although the crew was only given a three hour window because of the quick turn around of the ship, the brothers said it was fine….just to finally be able to see each other.  This was their first time together since loosing both parents years ago and it gave them a chance to finally grieve together and pray.  After sharing a meal, they asked Father Jim for a prayer before Dandy had to be back on board.

I wish you could have shared the beautiful sight of Father and the three brothers huddled together, arms around each other and heads bowed as Father Jim thanked God for this wonderful reunion and asked for His blessings and safety as they each parted to go their separate ways in life.  It made me realize how precious family is and how much we have to be thankful for every day.  It typifies our mission of hospitality serving the human needs of seafarers in the Ports of the Delaware River.

 Ronnie Barlow

A Note of Thanks:

Hi Ronnie:

Thank you very much for the assistance given to us by the SCI and all your staff are very helpful and provided all the help we needed.

What happens to me and my brothers during that day was a manifestation that how great our loving God give the blessings to us. Our reunion after 14 years did not happen in any corner of Philadelphia but right inside the entrance door of SCI. You know what it means... your place really serves the purpose of making the life of any seafarer being always served and blessed! 

My family will not forgot this blessings we received during that day. We will always pray for you.

Thanks and God Bless!

Dennis Sarsozo, MBA, Six Sigma BB

The Sarsoza Brothers at SCI