Posted on April 8, 2020 by Sarah Eustace -
James Moffat has nothing but fond memories from his
time as a ship visitor for Stella Maris in his native Glasgow.
James, who is
now 80, first
got involved when he put his free-time to good use while studying at Glasgow
University.
And
the long-time supporter admits he loved every minute of helping seafarers as he
went onto visit over 1,200 ships from the 1960’s to the 1970’s.
Mr Moffat recalled:
“My Step-Mother got in touch with Isa
Steele, who helped run the Stella Maris club, and asked if I could become a
volunteer.
“Like
my father, I just liked ships so it seemed like a perfect fit for me.
“I was studying at Glasgow University at the
time but was always free on a Sunday.
“So
I would go down to the
Docks and then accompany the seafarers via tram – there were hardly any cars in those days –
to Mass in churches like St Aloysius, St
Peter’s Partick , St Anthony’s Govan, St Paul’s Whiteinch and Our Holy Redeemer
in Clydebank.
“If I couldn’t join them at Mass personally, I would give them directions.
It was something they really appreciated because
their faith was so important to them.
“There wasn’t that much to give sailors back in those days, but they were always grateful for
items such as rosary beads and miraculous medals.
“Overall,
I visited over 1,200
ships with flags from 42 different counties.
“I continued
ship visiting up until the 1970’s when the
Port in Glasgow began to diminish a bit. But I’ll
never forget welcoming seafarers from all over the world to Glasgow.”
James
is still a regular attendee of Stella Maris events such as the Glenlee ‘Tall
Ship’ reception on the banks of the River Clyde, as well as Masses in St
Andrew’s Cathedral.
He
added: “It’s great to see Stella Maris still going so strong. I wish them every
success for their Centenary and beyond.”
Posted on April 6, 2020 by Sarah Eustace -
When my wife Pat and I first became ship visitors, we were
under the direction of our Port Chaplain.
I always remember one of the first visits we made on our own
which has taught me never to make quick judgements.
Pat & I went onboard a tanker that was in dry dock in Falmouth for repairs. We were welcomed by the crew member who was on watch, who showed us to the crew’s mess. We were asked to take a seat while 2 crew members were finishing off their evening meal. They were African and kept eating without saying a word or acknowledging our presence. I recall that there was a television on which we sat in front. After what felt like a long time, Pat & I started to question each other if we should leave. Eventually, one of these men stood up and approached us. He cut a very formidable figure as he was well over 6 feet tall and very muscular. We introduced ourselves and straight away said he knew Stella Maris. He said, “You are carrying out Gods work.” He then proceeded to talk about prayer and then burst into an African Lullaby.
As we sat and listened the 2nd African came over to say hello. He was of similar stature to his other crew member. He wore a very colourful sleeveless waistcoat. Pat told him that she liked his waistcoat and in the next moment, he started to take it off as he wanted to present Pat with this garment. He had no other garment covering the upper part of his body and Pat found herself pleading with him that the waistcoat would look better on him.
2 lovely spiritual men who taught us never to spring to
conclusions.
Now 12 years later as the Port Chaplain of Falmouth &
Fowey I always remember this encounter and never make quick judgements on the
stranger I meet when carrying out a ship visit.
Posted on April 6, 2020 by Sarah Eustace -
I am a ship
visitor at Fowey, Cornwall. On 17th December 2018 I visited a general cargo ship, the
Burham Dizman-1, with my Port Chaplain John Pinhay. As we were approaching the
ship we told one of the crew that we were from the Apostleship of the Sea. By
the time we got to the top of the gangway we were delighted to be greeted by
the Chief Officer and some of the crew.
We were invited to
the galley and given a very pleasant Turkish coffee and had a chance to talk to
several crew members who were from India and Turkey. When we handed over some
Christmas packages from local supporters and Christmas cards from local primary
schools. The crew were delighted to think that local supporters and children
cared enough about them to provide the gifts and especially the cards which had
seasonal messages written by the children. Some even wanted to have their
photos taken with the cards to share with their families.
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