People
of the Port: Reverend Jean
Smith, Seamen’s Church
Institute
Tucked in among the huge
cranes, the Star Trek- like
straddle carriers, the acres
of shiny new cars and the
computerized gate systems,
the Port of New York and
New Jersey is home to a very
different kind of facility:
The Seamen’s Church
Institute (SCI). And guiding
the SCI in its mission to
provide hospitality for seafarers
is Reverend Jean Smith.
Reverend
Jean, as she is known to
all, has served
as executive director of
SCI for the past 14 years.
Prior to that, she led
an Episcopal parish in
New Jersey
for ten years. Reverend
Jean’s
own experience living in
Japan and France lead her
to understand and appreciate
the idea of welcoming strangers,
a concept that has become
the cornerstone of her
work at SCI. Whether its
offering
prayer, the use of a cell
phone, or just a chance
for companionship, Rev.
Jean
and her staff at facilities
in Port Newark and lower
Manhattan are there for
the seafaring “strangers” who
pay a brief visit to the
port while their ships
are docked there.
The seafaring
life is quite
rigorous and sometimes
lonely. While American
shipping companies
often have tours of duty
that last four months,
the mariners on foreign
ships
can be at sea for 12 to
14 months. This means they
are
away from family and friends,
often surrounded by multiple
languages and with few
opportunities to have a
conversation or
share photos of their kids.
SCI is there to bridge
that gap. From ship visits
to
internet instruction to
shopping trips for needed
items, SCI
is the seafarer’s
friend and companion for
the six
or eight hours that the
ship is in port.
“
Our goal is to have a pastoral
presence…to take
the person where they want
to
be, whether it is providing
Holy Communion, helping
them buy a gift to take
home or
doing research about a
child’s
sickness,” notes
Rev. Jean. “Sometimes
they just want to meet
people,
so we bring in community
organizations or maybe
a choir so they can hear
a
song in their native tongue.”
In
addition to these social
services, SCI provides
maritime education under
contract
with shipping companies.
They are also known for
maritime advocacy and have
championed
the rights of seafarers
in many a difficult situation.
One instance of this advocacy
occurred when a Ukrainian
crew was held hostage for
14 months in Nigeria. SCI
worked with the wives of
the crew during this difficult
time and after the crew
was
released, the Institute’s
Mariners Assistance Fund
was used to repatriate
the crew and help them
catch
up with their unpaid bills.
That same fund was used
in the wake of Hurricane
Katrina
when the Port of New Orleans
was decimated. “When
you work with people, you
care for them, whether
it is a truck farm in Port
Newark
or a barge in New Orleans,” Rev.
Jean explained.
SCI is
the oldest (172 years old)
and largest
such organization
in the United States, but
Rev. Jean is quick to point
out hospitality services
are offered to seafarers
in virtually every port,
even if it means a band
of volunteers with a coffee
pot greeting an arriving
ship. SCI is often called
upon to help other similar
organizations and they
partner
with organizations around
the world.
The SCI
welcomes volunteers who
can give
time or financial
support. Their mission
is to continue finding
ways
to “say thank you
to the people who are delivering
the goods…the cars…the
orange juice….the
Holland bulbs.”
For additional
information on upcoming
events at SCI
and how you can help,
visit their website: sci@seamen’schurch.org.
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