The Mission to Seafarers

The Mission to Seafarers (formerly, The Missions to Seamen) is an international not-for-profit charity serving sailor sailors in over 230 ports around the world. It is supported entirely by donations from the public, whose generosity has funded its work for more than a century and a half. Its formal creation was in 1856 through the Church of England although the Mission had its roots in the earlier work of an Anglican priest, John Ashley who in 1835 was on the shore at Clevedon with his son who asked him how the people on Flat Holm could go to church. For the next three months Ashley voluntarily ministered to the population of the island. From there he recognised the needs of the seafarers on the four hundred sailing vessels in the Bristol Channel and created the Bristol Channel Mission. He raised funds and in 1839 a specially designed mission cutter was built with a main cabin which could be converted into a chapel for 100 people.^[1] In later years a purpose built 75 foot floating Mission was operated on the Thames and was named John Ashley in recognition of the founder. It had a large recreation area below decks which included library and cinema facilities, a chapel, and accommodation for a crew of four,Padre,Skipper,engineer, and deck boy. This vessel replaced and ex Admiralty MFV of the same name. The creation of this floating mission was the brain child of the Reverend Fred Leight, who devoted a great part of his life to the service of seamen and was awarded the MBE in recognition. This vessel served the many colliers which at that time often had to spend long periods stuck on buoys awaiting a berth. She also served a useful purpose during the seamen's strike in the 1960s when she ventured out into the estuary to assist vessels held at anchor there waiting the strike to end. On another occasion John Ashley made a fund raising showing the flag trip to Harwich, arriving in the teeth of a westerly gale. Other notable trips were one to take the then Minister of transport to see what the Thames really looked like, a party of London Bishops enjoyed a voyage along their waterside parishes, and on one occasion a stranded Trinity House pilot was rescued off a ship at Charlton Buoys, who it so happened was the brother of the then Skipper. On his retirement this vessel was for some reason replaced with a 36 foot motor yacht which soon became known as Padres private yacht, and indeed did not last long as there was little use for such a service on the Thames by then. John Ashley had two main berths on the river. The western one was alongside the Alexander tug pier at Wapping and the eastern one was in the old lock entrance at Tilbury. The latter berth was where she usually took aboard those coffins or ashes of those wishing to be buried at sea, an alternative being the Gravesend Pier opposite.

Celebrities who have supported the Mission to Seafarers' work or performed readings at its popular Christmas carol services at include historian Dan Snow, actor Julian Glover, Patricia Routledge, Oscar winner and former shipping minister Glenda Jackson, sailors Tracy Edwards and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, bestselling author Jeffrey Archer, maritime photographer Baron Greenway, painter Rolf Harris, writer and journalist Libby Purves,and frontline reporter Kate Adie.

Today's Mission to Seafarers operates all around the world, serving the global workforce of seafarers, many of whom come from the poorest, developing nations. The Mission provides seafarers' centres, ship visits, emergency assistance, family liaison, and often support and counselling for the survivors of ordeals like shipwreck or hostage-taking by pirates.

The organisation adopted a flying angel as its symbol in 1858 and it is an image now recognised by mariners all around the world.^{[citation needed]} Many crews know the Mission to Seafarers' centres as 'Flying Angel Clubs'. The name change to Mission to Seafarers occurred in 2000, reflecting the growing number of women going to sea as part of professional crews.

The Patron is HM Elizabeth II and the President is HRH The Princess Royal. The Mission's Secretary General, Revd Tom Heffer, is the Archbishop of Canterbury's official Spokesman on Maritime Affairs. The organisation's international headquarters are in the church of St Michael Paternoster Royal, College Hill, Lo London EC4 2RL. This church, founded by Sir Richard Whittington, the Dick Whittington of popular legend, was rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren, and contains carvings by Grinling Gibbons. The famous Whittington Window by John Hayward can be seen in the church, where Dick Whittington was buried in the nave. In the 1960s, the embalmed body of a mediaeval cat was disinterred from where it was buried under the bell tower. Many believe that this was the actual body of "Dick Whittington's Cat"^{[citation needed]} and a picture of the animal's body is held at the Mission to Seafarers.

See also

Anglicanism portal

• The Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fishermen
• The Marine Society
• Seamen's Church Institute of New York and New Jersey (Episcopal Seafarers' Advocacy founded in 1834)
• Centres for Seafarers

References

1. ^ Farr, Grahame (1954). Somerset Harbours. London: Christopher Johnson. p. 49. 

External links

• Official website