Loy's Log

What are Flags of Convenience ships? These are ships that fly the flag of a country other than the country of ownership. These ships' registers have poor safety and training standards and place no restriction on the nationality of the crew. There are 28 countries that have been declared by the International Transport Workers' Federation as FOC countries.

Seafarers, because of language differences, are not able to communicate effectively with each other, putting safety and the efficient operation of the ship at risk. Once a ship is registered as a FOC, ship owners recruit the cheapest labor available, and cut costs by lowering standards of living and working conditions for the crew. Crews are underpaid and sometimes not paid for months. Many seafarers on these ships are too frightened to complain for fear of being blackballed. They endure long periods of work with insufficient rest, inadequate food and unclean drinking water.

Our port chaplains reach out to these seafarers with hearts of compassion. We network with other maritime organizations to seek help for these seafarers. Our primary focus is ministering to the seafarers.

Maritime Day is a day set aside for remembering the merchant seamen and women working in the industry today and those who have lost their lives at sea. May 19, 2005 I will offer the Invocation for the Maritime Day Celebration at the cruise terminal here in Jacksonville and on May 23, participate in the National Maritime Day Celebration in Washington, DC. Please take a few minutes and pray for those working in the maritime industry.

I will have the pleasure again this year of placing an exhibit at the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, TN, June 20-21, 2005. This is always a great opportunity to spotlight what we are doing as Southern Baptists in reaching out to the world through our ports.

Port Ministries International will be meeting in Orlando, July 24-26, 2005 for its annual convention. PMI is our Southern Baptist Organization composed of SBC Port Chaplains and other Evangelical Port Chaplains sharing our beliefs. Thank you for all you do in praying and supporting the Jacksonville Port Ministries.