Ministry helps visiting seafarers celebrate Christmas

By Glenn Fairley
For The Catholic Week
Through the generosity of several local parishes, schools and one community of our Protestant brethren, the local Catholic Maritime Ministry (known globally as Stella Maris) helped seafarers from around the world celebrate Christmas while away from home.  At the time of writing this article, the ministry is awaiting the arrival of a regular visitor to our port from Airbus that is enroute from France.  A voyage to Europe can take more than 21 days, while voyages to Africa and Asia can take 45 days or longer.  Due to the amount of time the ships spend at sea, the giving season extends beyond what is traditionally observed as Advent and Christmas.  At the conclusion of the Christmas season, a total of 380 gifts will be given to the crews of 19 ships.
The gifts were received with tremendous gratitude.  The captain of the Taurus sent a response to Stella Maris via Whatsap from the Gulf of Mexico: "Thank you very much for the gifts.  We really appreciate it, and they will make our Christmas celebration a special one."  Handmade Christmas cards from local students were included with each gift bag, as available.  A crew member of the MV Saga Wind said, "Thank you so much for the Christmas bags, we really appreciate it. The card was really special, it really touched my heart. The card is on the wall of my room!” Other crews forwarded pictures from their onboard Christmas Day celebrations.
All of the seafarers and those involved with the Stella Maris ministry would like to express gratitude to all donors.  In addition to donations from several individuals and affiliated organizations, generous donations were received from 13 parishes. Parishioners from Christ the King provided beautiful caps and scarfs, Christ the King Catholic School in Daphne (third year participating), St. Ignatius Catholic School (first year participating), and Christ United Church.
— If you are interested in participating in the ministry or helping make Christmas 2024 special for more seafarers, please email Deacon John Archer at [email protected].