Our Current Appeal

My name is Deacon Daniel Mulcahy, and I am the port chaplain for the Medway Ports in Dover and Kent. Christmas is always one of our busiest periods, with emotions running high from seafarers separated from their families and loved ones at such an important time.

This period can be especially challenging if you are ill. I would like to share with you the story of a seaferer I met last Christmas and explain how we as a team were so important to him.

Together with a team of dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers, I visit the Kent Ports when ships come alongside. We offer our help in any way that is required, always mindful that the ship is the crew’s home as well as their work place.  We’re concerned for the crew’s material and spiritual welfare. It’s a privilege to be invited on board where we are always warmly welcomed. Perhaps the most rewarding part of our work is being able to stand alongside seafarers when they need our emotional support. So many appear to be out to exploit the seafarer that it’s humbling to be able to assist at times when they are perhaps at their most vulnerable.

We’ve all experienced ill health or sickness. But it’s further aggravated when this takes place in a foreign country where you are a stranger. Worries about whether your overdue salary will be paid and who will meet the expense of your hospital treatment and convalescence can all play on your mind. This is an uncomfortable place to be at. This  happened to Santos (not his real name), a 29 year old seafarer, who arrived in one of our Kent ports earlier this year.                    

Santos comes from a large family. Back home he is a mechanic by trade but when his elder brother died following an accident at sea in 2010 it fell upon Santos to support the extended family. He applied to work in the galley of a ship. Although a good worker he is only slightly built and found the work  demanding. He was expected to work long hours every day, often up to 13 hours, far in excess of his contract. He had never been able to take shore leave. He was expected to carry heavy kitchen utensils, cauldrons and the like designed to be carried by two men. He soon began to feel ill. He shared a cabin with three others, one of whom was a chain smoker who refused to stop smoking in the confined space of a cabin. He later said he never complained as he didn’t want to lose his job! 

When Santos arrived in the UK he had to be taken off his ship and transported by ambulance to a local hospital where it was confirmed that he was suffering from a collapsed lung. The Doctor, when asked how many cigarettes he smoked a day, was surprised to hear that Santos had never smoked in his life. 

After a period of six days he was discharged from hospital and by sheer coincidence or divine providence he was placed in a B&B run by a Catholic family where he was well cared for. When I visited him he expressed concern about many issues, not least about the non-payment  of outstanding salary. The matter was referred to and eventually addressed by the Seafarers’ Trade Union. He was understandably concerned about his future prospects regarding being employed with his health condition. He was encouraged to focus on the concerns of the immediate future. Arrangements were made for him to “Skype” back home and communicate with his family. The reception back home was poor, on account of the weather conditions and the isolated location. Photographs were taken and emailed home to reassure his family that he was in good care.

During his time in Kent he was well looked after. He was taken to Mass and visited by a local AoS volunteer and myself. He returned to hospital as an out patient for checks ups, further x-rays and medication. The day before he left Kent we took him out for the day. He met our two local Filipino AoS ship visitors and we had a meal together and sampled the local Asian cuisine. He said later it was the happiest time he had spent in England. 

Some 10 weeks, after first falling ill in the UK, Santos was allowed to fly home to the Philippines. Although well enough to fly it will be many months before he is fully recovered. He and his family email AoS on a regular basis giving progress reports on Santos. We often remember people more for how they made us feel rather than for what they said. Santos will be forever grateful for the loving care and attention he received from the AoS.

The Christmas story highlights the experience of the Holy Family being vulnerable in a foreign land exposed to exploitation, with no place to stay until a kind act gives them some hope. In a way this is similar to the experience Santos had, and without the help of AoS it may not have ended so well. We need help to enable us to continue to be able to respond to seafarers when similar situations of need arise. On Christmas day, whilst we gather with our families, seafarers far from their loved ones will be reminded that AoS and its supporters are always alongside them. In addition throughout the Christmas season, our AoS chaplains and volunteers will be working hard to be a welcoming presence for seafarers coming into our ports. Work like this is only possible with the financial support of people like you. With your help we are able to ease the pain of isolation, separation and other hardships faced by seafarers.

AoS chaplains and volunteers recognise the huge debt we all owe seafarers. We do everything we can to make their time in our ports a welcoming experience. We would like to continue providing for seafarers and offering them Solidarity, Welfare, Hospitality and Mission. So we ask you to donate to this appeal. Support Apostleship of the Sea to enable us to continue helping seafarers.

We need your support to keep our work going.

Give £20 or whatever you can afford, which will allow us to continue our valuable work. Your gift will be used where the need is greatest. Just click on the paypal button in the Donate Today box  (paypal account not needed) for fast, easy and secure online donations.

Or alternativly you can post a cheque made payable to AoS to:

Apostleship of the Sea

Herald House

Lambs Passage

Bunhill Row

London

EC1Y 8LE

Thank you.