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VOL UME 1 0 5 /NUMBER 1

In this issue
Executive Directors Log

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Fostering Seafarers Resilience

Breaking Bulk
In the shipping industry, the term break bulk refers to cargo that must be loaded and unloaded individually from a vessel. Until the advent of containerization in the 1960s, most vessels carried cargo this wayin crates, boxes or barrels. Old-fashioned manpower shifted the goods in portbit by bit. Today, the term break bulk refers most often to oversized and heavyweight cargo that does not fit into intermodal containersthings like luxury yachts, construction equipment, windmill turbines and locomotive engines. These big-ticket items might seem impossible to ship, but specialized break bulk equipment can manage the most unwieldy cargo safely and efficiently. Breaking bulk makes possible the shipment of things that seem un-shippable to even the most challenging locations. People can employ break bulk principles in philanthropy to make possible contributions that, as one-time gifts, might also seem impossible. Recurring gifts split a large contribution into manageable bits and, like the heavy-lift cranes used in break bulk shipping, organizations like the Seamens Church Institute (SCI) offer specialized tools to enable a simple way of doing it. (See How to Make a Recurring Gift.) Used in parts of the globe where ports have minimal shore facilities, break bulk shipping allows the expansion of developing countries infrastructure with advances like wind farms, power plants and highways. Breaking bulk with your financial gift to SCI has the potential to do a lot of good, too. Dividing a gift into installmentsthrough automatic payments on your credit card provides a steady stream of vital income to the organization that supports mariners. Regular cash flow allows SCI to accurately plan and efficiently manage resources over the course of a fiscal year. Monthly or weekly contributions of seemingly small amounts add up. Look at what your gift, broken up into installments, can provide for mariners.

A Test of Endurance

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Positive Change

Take A Closer Look Pullout Poster

Why I Give

Founded in 1834, the Institute is a voluntary, ecumenical agency affiliated with the Episcopal Church that provides pastoral care, maritime education, and legal and advocacy services for mariners.
seamenschurch.org

How to Make a Recurring Gift


You can easily make a recurring gift to SCI right now simply by filling out a few lines of the form printed on the envelope in this newsletter. Online, SCI has made it just as easy. Just go to https://donate.seamenschurch.org/ or click the green donate button on the Institutes website. The Seamens Church Institute

A Closer Look Online


Every day, SCI staff and volunteers share their encounters with the mariners you help serve. SCIs Facebook page provides the daily scoop on activities at our Centers and on the water. Want to know the difference your donation dollars make? Like our page and take a closer look at the folks whose lives you touch.

facebook.com/ seamenschurch

Executive Directors Log


Like the tagline of Apple, Inc.Think Differentthe articles in this edition of The Lookout invite you to look at things differently. The advice says something about our usual way of operating. Often we pass through the ordinary tasks of life without taking notice of things we think we already have worked out. The danger of routinewalking the same way to work every day, proofreading a document on which we have worked closely and ordering the same dish at our favorite restaurant lies in missing the opportunity to see change. We preclude new experiences and education by sticking to our assumptions. Because we think we know something, we do not give it our full attention. But if we intently observe what we consider mundane or impossible, we could discover something interesting and full of promise. Our human brain prevents the overload of stimuli by filtering out and categorizing information based on previous experience. Many, because of an encounter with one of SCIs programs, may have categorized the Institute in the same way. To some, SCI equals knitting. To others, SCI means ship visiting. To people who see our name for the first time, SCI might be a church.
The Lookout

This year at SCI, we have chosen the theme Take a Closer Look, asking folks to survey our complex and varied workto discover things unknown and unseen, to reassess assumptions about the Institute and to find further opportunities for partnership. We as an Institute have asked for your support because it helps us remain open to sea changes. In order to provide effectively for mariners needs, SCIs chaplains, educators and attorneys must keep their ears to the ground (or the water), connected and responsive to the lives of men and women faced with challenges in the maritime workplace. I ask that you reaffirm your commitment to examine closely your connection with mariners and the Institute that serves them. I invite you into deeper collaboration and dialogue. Come to one of our centers, invite SCI to speak to your group or explore our websites news feed. As you Take a Closer Look, I hope you discover something that interests, inspires and perhaps even surprises you. Yours faithfully,

SCI SUSTAINING SPONSORS

Spring 2013 Volume 105, Number 1 Published by The Seamens Church Institute seamenschurch.org 212-349-9090 fax: 212-349-8342 sci@seamenschurch.org Richard T. du Moulin Chairman, Board of Trustees The Rev. David M. Rider President and Executive Director Editor, Oliver Brewer Assistant Editor, Susannah Skiver Barton Design & Production, Bliss Design The Lookout is printed on recycledpaper.
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The Rev. David M. Rider President & Executive Director

Spring 2013

A Test of Endurance Inspired by Mariners


Registration is open for the September SCI Mountain Challenge, a first-of-its-kind event in the United States for the maritime industry.
t most charity events, organizations invite supporters to spend a relaxing evening with good food, drinks and music, socializing in a climate-controlled setting. From September 1922, SCI, North Americas largest mariners service agency, asks partygoers to toss aside these luxuries for another kind of experience. SCI hopes inspired people will step outside their comfort zone to compete in the SCI Mountain Challenge, a test of strength and fortitude tackling some of the biggest mountains in western Maine. Each working day, mariners push themselves in a race against time and nature to deliver the worlds commerce. In SCIs charity event this fall, the Institute asks participants to join mariners in solidarity. Teams of competitors take to harsh environments to push physical limits, racing up steep summits in a fight to the finish line. Funds raised by team sponsors strengthen SCIs valuable support services to mariners. The course outlined in the SCI Mountain Challenge spans 25 miles of rugged terrain and 10,000+ feet of ascent in scenic western Maine. Hikers confront five iconic summits: Burnt Mountain (3,608 ft. / 1,100 m), Sugarloaf Mountain (4,250 ft. / 1,295 m), Spaulding Mountain (4,010 ft. / 1,222 m), Barker Mountain (2,594 ft. / 791 m) and Jordan Mountain (2,653 ft. / 809 m). Although taking place on land, the tests in the SCI Mountain Challenge parallel many of the hardships mariners confront at sea: the elements (facing northern New Englands notoriously unpredictable weather), isolation (teams work self-sufficiently on the mountain race courses) and physically demanding work (participants ascend 5,000+ feet each day). In this test of endurance, SCI awards prizes based on cumulative times and philanthropic dollars raised in support of mariners. The Institute also recognizes award winners by category from various sectors of the maritime industry, although SCI opens race participation to all kinds of corporations and individuals. Participants may choose one of two levels of involvement, which vary in physical demands, but both levels represent a serious challenge of strength and ability. Cargill underwrites the SCI Mountain Challenge as an EXPEDITION sponsor for the event. John F. Dillon & Co. LLC and Simpson, Spence & Young underwrite the event as PEAK sponsors. For other corporate sponsorship opportunities, more information about the event and to register, visit scimountainchallenge.com.

Special Events Calendar


The 36th Annual Silver Bell Awards Dinner June 6, 2013 Pier Sixty New York, NY The 10th Annual Paducah Golf Classic September 18, 2013 Drake Creek Golf Club Ledbetter, KY SCI Mountain Challenge Western Maine September 1922, 2013 SCI-Bay Area Sunset Cruise October 3, 2013 aboard a Commodore Luxury Yacht on the San Francisco Bay Maritime Training Benefit Luncheon November 2013 Houston, TX The 14th Annual River Bell Awards Luncheon December 12, 2013 The Paducah-McCracken County Convention and Expo Center Paducah, KY

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The Lookout

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SCI: Take a Closer Look


This is what you might picture when you see the word seamen ...
But most of us dont realize that the primary means of trade in the 21st century is the worlds waterways. And international commerceour entire planets economydepends on professional mariners.

You hear somebody mention church, you probably think ...


he refers to the people acting as hands and feet to carry out Jesus teachings. The work of the church happens as often outside a place of worship as it does inside. Countless faith communitiesincluding organizations like SCIdemonstrate Gods love by offering hospitality.

Take a Closer Look

While life at sea is mysterious and unknown to many, it most certainly is not a thing of the past. Today, seafaring men and women play an important part in the lives of ordinary people. The first word in SCIs namecoined over a century agorefers to people who, by any name, deserve our respect and support.

The sea conjures up a lot of images tall-masted battleships, mythical monsters, a novel by Hemingway mostly things reminiscent of days gone by. And terms like sailorfrom the time when ships were powered by sailsand seamanwhen all seafarers were mensound like old-fashioned words.

Learn about Mariner FriendlyChurches at http://smschur.ch/mfchrch

Read more about the mariners SCI serves at seamenschurch.org/iam

Did you know that most mentions of the word church in the Bible refer to faith communitiesnot physical buildings? When Paul, an early apostle, calls the church the Body of Christ,

Some folks may wonder if this is a means of recruiting new members, but SCI supports maritime workers regardless of their background or religion, taking Saint Pauls appeal

If someone talks about an institute, you might imagine a place like this ...
to heart: When Gods people are in need, be ready to help them. (Romans 12:13) SCIs name celebrates its history and unbroken service to mariners since 1834. Mariners are the backbone of global commerce, and the Seamens Church Institute proudly supports hardworking people who make our modern way of life possible. Our mission would not be possible without the help of individuals, churches, corporations and foundations that work with us to serve the needs of mariners, present and future.
Take a Closer Look Illustrations 2013 Lisa Lavoie. Design by BlissDesign.com

To some, the word institute implies a sterile laboratory, its scientists disconnected from civilization as they conduct experiments. But there is another kind of institute.

providing professional legal services free of charge. SCI understands the challenges mariners face and speaks out for their rights. Throughout its historyas well as todaySCI has helped shape legislation making the world a better place for mariners.

Take a closer look and discover the Seamens Church Institute. Learn more about us online or by getting in touch.

SCI engages with the world and incorporates real-life experience into its missionalways ahead of the trends that shape life on the water. SCI uses seafarer centers and trusted, one-on-one relationships with mariners to anticipate and meet their evolving needs. The many facets of SCIs institutional work include adult education tailored specifically for professional mariners and advocacy for mariners welfare,

Explore SCIs website at seamenschurch.org Send us email at sci@seamenschurch.org Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/seamenschurch Follow us on Twitter @seamenschurch
How does all that stuff get here? Watch this short video at http://smschur.ch/mcshort The Lookout Spring 2013 5

seamenschurch.org

Fostering Seafarers Resilience to Pirate Attacks


by Michael Stuart Garfinkle, PhD, Clinical Researcher, Piracy Trauma Study

SCIs Clinical Researcher discusses how seafarers respond to the experience of a pirate attack, examining how resilience may ameliorate long-term effects of trauma.
SCI has prioritized developing a cohesive assessment and treatment approach for seafarers susceptible to pirate attacks and accompanying trauma. Maritime piracy represents the single greatest risk to the seafaring communitynot because of its prevalence, but because of the potential magnitude of traumatic experience. On January 25, 2013, I presented to the Mount Sinai Hospital World Trade Center Health Program on the issue of fostering resilienceboth generally and among those affected by trauma. I presented two complementary approaches to thinking of resilience: as a trait and as a process. persons temporary weakness due to difficult experience by fostering an environment that does not pathologize suffering, but rather sees expressions of pain as opportunities to render help. Current research investigates assessment measures and psychotherapeutic approaches to enhancing resilience as well as neuroscientific models to explain resilience in the brain (cf. the work of Dennis S. Charney at Mount Sinai). At present, few standardized assessments exist, though one that has had limited success is the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC, 2003), a 25-item self-report that determines whether resilience is increasing or decreasing in an individual over time.

Resilience describes how we get through the stressors of everyday life, how we survive tragedy and how we recover from traumatic experience. If we think of traumatic During my presentation, I also discussed different therapeutic experiences as those that interrupt our ability to think, techniques. Psychotherapy and neuroscience research disturb our feelings and make us feel overwhelmed, resilience point to the potential risk of using grief-counseling models is the counterforce that minimizes the impact of trauma. indiscriminately. Sometimes the instinctual helping response As a trait, resilience allows a person to maintain equilibrium is useful and sometimes not. I highlighted one approach, Complicated Grief Treatment (Shear et al.), as a good in the face of potentially traumatizing experience, to adapt compromise of grief counseling and an approach mindful to change and to cope with and recover from disasters. of research on limiting the extent of trauma. Making good As a process, resilience is possible at the individual and community level. An individual can be supported in coping, use of available resources is a key ingredient in improving in using available help from loved ones andprofessionals and seafarer mental health. Many seafarers come from supportive families and communities, and the literature on resilience in returning to purpose in life. At and surviving traumatic experience suggests that acceptance the communal level, groups by peers improves outcomes. can bond around troubles affecting the whole group Extensive trauma, both in terms of length and intensity, or members within it. especially tests resilience. Where there are direct threats This happens when to life, outcomes tend to be worse. The more the a group accepts a maritime industry and the international mental health community can accomplish in coordinating efforts to enhance resilience, identify resources and improve access to those resources, the less likely that most seafarers will suffer long-term effects of trauma.

__________
Charney DS (2004). Psychobiological mechanisms of resilience and vulnerability: Implications for successful adaptation to extreme stress. American Journal of Psychiatry, 161, 195216. Connor KM, Davidson JRT (2003). Development of a new resilience scale: The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Depression and Anxiety, 18, 7682. Shear K, Frank E, Houck PR, Reynolds III, CF (2005). Treatment of complicated grief: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of the American Medical Association, 293(21), 26012608.

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The Lookout

Spring 2013

America Has a Chance for Positive Change


by Douglas B. Stevenson Director, Center for Seafarers Rights s the United States seeks consensus on comprehensive immigration reform, it has a great opportunity to enhance maritime security domestically and in other countries, to bring the country into compliance with its international obligations and to improve seafarers livesupon whose labors our lives and prosperity depend. The United States can accomplish this by eliminating crewmember D-1 visas or waiving them for seafarers who have valid ILO-185 Seafarer Identity Documents. In response to the United States initiatives following the September 11, 2001, attacks, the International Labour Organization adopted the Seafarers Identity Documents Convention (Revised), 2003, commonly known as ILO185. The conventions authors designed this international agreement to enhance maritime security worldwide by establishing a reliable international system for positively identifying professional seafarers and providing them with trustworthy biometric identification documents. ILO-185 also simplifies shipowners and seafarers red tape for shore leave by eliminating the need for seafarers with ILO-185 identification documents to also have United States D-1 visas. Unfortunately, the United States has not ratified ILO-185. It remains one of the few countries in the world that still requires seafarers to have a visa before they can go on shore leave. This requirement also puts the United States in conflict with its international obligations under the Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (FAL). The FAL Convention prohibits the United States and other signatory nations from requiring seafarers to have a visa for shore leave. United States ratification of ILO-185 would provide a great incentive for other maritime nations to do likewise, thereby vastly increasing the number of seafarers holding biometric identity documents. All seafarerswhether they have a visa or notundergo background checks each time their vessel enters the United States. The pre-arrival background checks are equivalent to those given visa applicants. Background checks depend on positively verifying the checked persons identity. ILO-185 identification documents would positively identify all of the crewmembers on a ship. Relying on visas, on the other hand, would not. Not all seafarers on ships in United States ports need to have a visa. Visas are required only for those seafarers applying for shore leave. Seafarers who do not have visas or trustworthy biometric identification documents, like ILO-185 identity documents, can find it difficult to establish their identity as professional seafarers. Please urge President Obama and Congress to enhance maritime security and improve seafarers lives by removing the United States obstacle to ratifying ILO-185. Eliminating the crewmember D-1 visa or waiving the visa requirement for seafarers holding ILO-185 can do this. You can write to President Obama at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/submit-questions-and-comments You can write to your Senator at: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm You can write to you Representative in Congress at: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
The Lookout

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The Lookout

Spring 2013

why I give to SCI

Professional photographer Ethel Jimenez named SCI to receive part of the proceeds from the sale of her photographs at a special two-week show in San Francisco. SCIBay Area Director Adrienne Yee met with Ethel in February at the International Maritime Center and learned why she gives to SCI.

change, though, Ethel continues to affirm her connection to the sea. Ethel says, I give [to SCI] because my father spoke in glowing terms of the Institute and what its services mean to mariners. She continues the family tradition of caring for Sea fever runs deep. mariners, knowing that her Ethel Jimenezs grandmother visited ships. So did her mother. donation provides services for a new generation. All of this time working with mariners led Ethels mom to meet Ethels dad, Victor A. Jimenez. Want to share your story of As a marine engineer, Ethels dad was called away on voyages SCIs ministry? Email us at sci@seamenschurch.org Your for weeks at a time. The family missed him, and he missed support makes a difference in thema familiar refrain for mariners. Later, he switched to the lives of the mariners we serve. working aboard ships in port. This allowed him to stay on land to be with his family while continuing to use his skills and devotion to the sea. Growing up in Brooklyn, Ethel remembers the former SCI location nearthe South Street Seaport. Twelve years ago, Ethel moved west, seduced by San Francisco. Through that

share your story

Etelvina U. Jimenez and Victor A. Jimenez, Ethel Jimenezs parents

Ways to Give to SCI

U  se the envelope in this edition of The Lookout or mail Support the people who deliver the your check to TheSeamens goods that make our modern way Church Institute, 74 Trinity of life possible. Place, Suite 1414, New York, NY 10006.

Volunteer
SCI offers many ways volunteers can contribute to the work of the Institute. Call one of our centers or email volunteer@ seamenschurch.org.

Follow
Go to http://facebook.com/ seamenschurch and clicklike. Follow @seamenschurch on Twitter  Check out our photos at http://www.flickr.com/ photos/seamenschurch/  And, watch videos from our work at http://vimeo.com/ channels/scitv Remember SCI in your estate plans. Email legacygiving@ seamenschurch.org for more information.

Donate

 Donate online at donate.seamenschurch.org or scan this QR code into your mobiledevice

 Call 212-349-9090 and make a contribution over the phone with your credit card.

Collect
In addition to handknit scarves and hats, SCIs Christmastime gift to mariners includes items found at most ordinary supermarkets donated by people like you. To find out more, contact cas@ seamenschurch.org or visit ourwebsite.

Sponsor
SCI provides prominent recognition to its underwriters. Become a corporate sponsor and link your companys philanthropy with North Americas largest and most comprehensive mariners serviceagency.

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