Seafarers playing vital role 'risk extreme loneliness, dangerous storms and even piracy' and deserve our support, says local charity
Maritime welfare charity Sailors’ Society is asking churches in Ross-shire to remember the world’s seafarers in a special service.
Congregations from around the world will take part in Sea Sunday services in aid of Sailors’ Society in July.
Each year, the Christian charity, which celebrated its 200th birthday in 2018, asks churchgoers to pray and give thanks for the world’s 1.6m seafarers.
Sandra Welch, Sailors’ Society’s deputy CEO, said: “Whether they know it or not, the people of Ross-shire rely upon seafarers.”
Sailors’ Society’s Invergordon port chaplain, Drew Anderson, reached almost 4,000 seafarers last year.
Ms Welch added: “More than 90 per cent of everything we own comes by sea – our clothes, phones, cars – even the bricks that make up our homes.
“All of these goods are brought into the country by seafarers who risk extreme loneliness, dangerous storms and even piracy.
“Holding a Sea Sunday service for Sailors’ Society is a fantastic way of recognising the amazing work seafarers do.”
The charity has created a variety of free resources for churches, to receive a pack please email jleslie@sailors-society.org.
* Did you know?
Sailors’ Society has been bringing people together for more than 200 years, transforming the lives of seafarers and their families at home, in port and at sea through the delivery of chaplaincy, education and the relief of poverty and distress.
The charity works internationally to provide practical, emotional and spiritual welfare support to the world’s 1.6m seafarers, regardless of background or faith. Sailors’ Society chaplains and ship visitors have a presence in 95 global ports, with wider projects and services covering 30 countries.
You can explore the charity’s 200 year journey at https://www.sailors-society.org/200-years/
