wfn.org | UMNS# 604-Churches offer Christmas cheer to river-bound seamen

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Churches offer Christmas cheer to river-bound seamen 

Dec. 20, 2004	 

NOTE: A UMTV report is available at www.umtv.org.

A UMNS Feature
By Jan Snider*

While many will be hearing jingle bells on Christmas Day, thousands of
mariners will hear the lonely churning of murky waters instead. 

During the holiday, river crews will travel America's inland waterways from
Pittsburgh to New Orleans and the gulf region near Houston.

"It's a different life; not everybody can do it," says river pilot Mark
Holman. "We're moving a lot of product up and down the river that people use
in their everyday lives." 

Holman is part of a network of towboat crews that haul everything from coal
to corn. "We feed America and we fuel America." 

The job doesn't stop on Christmas Day. In fact, most crewmen work a month at
a time, then take 15 days off. So a confederation of River Friendly Churches
exists to help the crewmembers share in a little holiday spirit. More than
100 churches in 11 states participate in the Seamen's Church Institute, a
year-round ministry.

"It feels good to give to somebody who won't be home for Christmas," says
Kate Johnston, a parishioner with the Broadway United Methodist Church in
Paducah, Ky. 

The church has packed boxes of hand-knitted scarves, Christmas treats and
warm clothing. Last year, River Friendly Churches distributed nearly 900
boxes to almost 7,000 seamen during the holiday season. 

"Not only do we wrap them in warmth, we really wrap them in God's love, and
it makes a huge difference to them," says Ann Mills, coordinator of special
projects for "Ministry on the River."

One seaman recently had a baby daughter and will be on the river during her
first Christmas. "This one will be especially tough for me," he explains.
When a package arrives on his ship from Broadway United Methodist, it will be
full of items intended to make the separation less painful. Christmas cards
from the children of the church never fail to get a smile.

As Holman pilots the boat, he reflects that a seaman's work is often
forgotten because it is so isolated from the rest of the town. "It lifts our
spirits on Christmas Day that there's actually somebody out there that cares
for what we're doing, respects what we're doing and understands what we're
doing."

Sheila Cook prepares meals for the men on one of the many vessels that weave
up and down the inland waterways. "We were at Paducah, Ky., taking on fuel
and food stores when the first box came on," she writes in a note to the
ministry. "I got such a kick watching the deck crew open the box and dig
through it, each one trying to find just the right color of scarf they
wanted. For a brief moment, it was like children on Christmas morning tearing
open presents." 

Cook, who tucked in a donation to the ministry, adds, "Thank you for giving
us a smile and thinking of us."

Christmas boxes are a small gesture compared to the expanse of the year-round
ministry. Because seamen are always on the water, the churches step in to
help with the families back on shore. "You need someone to share with you, to
say, 'hang in there,'" Mills explains. Those involved in the ministry
celebrate when babies are born or ships are christened. They also grieve as
they sit by hospital beds or call and offer comforting words.  

The Ministry on the River is a huge undertaking. "We have people who don't
live anywhere near water support us. We have river-friendly churches in San
Angelo, Texas, for example, that support us," Mills says.

The ministry teams up with river-industry companies and churches that have
had to adapt to heightened security measures. With the added complexity, the
planning for delivering the Christmas packages begins in July.

While parishioners at Broadway United Methodist aren't able to witness the
seamen opening the packages, they know their gestures are not forgotten. 

"A few years ago, my husband spent a long lonely Christmas on a boat in your
area," writes one mariner's spouse. "The work was hard, and the weather was
brutal and icy. The gifts you brought warmed his heart and brought some light
into his cold, lonely world."  

*Snider is a freelance producer for United Methodist News Service in
Nashville, Tenn.

News media contact: Fran Coode Walsh, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5458 or
newsdesk@umcom.org. 

********************

United Methodist News Service
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