This morning – the second Sunday of July – will see unusual activity at a historic church, virtually hidden amidst Colombo’s commercial hub. At 11 a.m., St Peter’s Church, Fort will host the annual National Sea and Air Farers Sunday service, traditionally celebrated with solemn ceremony.

A former garrison church used by the military in colonial times, St. Peter’s was for many recent years virtually out of bounds to the public due to security concerns given its proximity to the Port of Colombo. Now there are no barriers as you head past the Grand Oriental Hotel down a colonnaded walkway that leads to the church, which as many travel websites attest, is a true jewel. Within its dimly lit, high vaulted interiors are many artefacts of interest. But the focus today in this service of prayer and thanksgiving is the vital role seafarers’ and air personnel play in people’s lives.

The service is organised by the Mission to Seafarers, a largely unsung organisation that renders an immense service of supporting seafarers who arrive at the Colombo Port, many of them from distant lands and new to the country. Only a modest board indicates the Seafarers Mission office in the St. Peter’s Church premises but stepping through its wooden doors, seafarers find a welcoming refuge to relax, enjoy some recreation, use the internet and even spend precious time with their families.

States their international website: The Mission to Seafarers provides help and support to the 1.89 million crewmen and women who face danger every day to keep our global economy afloat. Responsible for transporting over 90% of the world’s goods and fuels, these men and women of all nationalities, spend up to nine months at sea, far from families, friends and loved ones.”

Former archdeacon of Colombo, Ven. Perry Brohier, the Port Chaplain, is often at the Mission office. The Port Chaplain is seconded by the Diocese of Colombo of the Church of Ceylon, to the Mission. Ven. Brohier took over in 2021 when the previous Chaplain Rev. Chandran Chrispus passed away suddenly. “I told the staff we need to be here and be accessible – the harbour never closes, the ships keep coming and ship visiting must go on and they have embraced that.”

By the first week of July this year, the Mission to Seafarers had notched up an impressive 1,000 ship visits. Ven. Brohier and his team keep track of visiting vessels and promptly go on board to meet the crew and offer any assistance they may need on shore.

The Mission for Seafarers is run by a committee of shipping professionals. Chairman Capt. Ravi Jayewickreme has been at the helm for some years now and the representation is wide-ranging: the Harbour Master is required to be on the committee, also the Port Chaplain, and a representative from the Ceylon Association of Shipping Agents (CASA) among others.

“The role of the Mission has changed in recent times,” says Capt. Jayawickreme, explaining that unlike earlier when ships would be in Port for many days, the stays are short and the seafarers have very limited time in Port. “This is where the Mission comes in, transporting them to the centre which is a home away from home for them and seeing to their needs.” It’s a lonely job, he says, adding that today’s seafarers are not the rough and tumble individuals of past perception.

Recognising that theirs is a hazardous and mentally taxing profession, the Mission’s aims are simply to provide emotional and practical support to seafarers. Recently, the Mission supported the crew of an Indian vessel the MV Sai Arambh who were stranded in the Colombo Port due to a snarled-up litigation process with regular visits and food provided for over two years. At other times, if crew members of visiting ships are hospitalized, the Chaplain visits them. They see to their physical and mental wellbeing, Capt. Jayewickreme says.

The office opens by 9 and the staff have a handy app to monitor the vessels coming in and going out.  Arriving at the Port and boarding the ship, they are usually met by the Duty Officer and the routine is that they go the ship’s office, sometimes meet the captain and chat briefly with the crew making them aware of the facilities they can use on shore. The leaflet they hand over has the contact details of the centre and even the chaplains in the region to whom they can reach out,  Sri Lankan being part of the Middle Eastern and South Asian region network of the Mission to Seafarers.

“Sometimes they call later and say they want to come and use the centre so we go and pick them up and bring them here,” Ven. Brohier says. “They first sign the book upstairs, and then spend their time, relaxing – playing billiards or table tennis, reading, checking the Internet or just having some refreshments. Often we go and drop them back at the vessel – on occasions, we have had to locate visitors who have got a little lost while exploring Pettah.”

Though now an almost daily occurrence, the ship’s visits are still navigated with care for the ladders and gangways they have to climb, can be anything from 25 steps to 100 steps. “From the top of the gangway, the 40-foot containers look like matchboxes,”  Ven. Brohier smiles, adding wryly that he confronts his two biggest fears every day – “water (‘because I can’t swim’) and my fear of heights.” For safety reasons, his customary priest’s cassock is put aside, only the clerical collar indicating that he is clergy.

There is generous support for the voluntary work of the Mission from local shipping circles. When the Family Centre was to be opened, Young Ship – an organisation of shipping professionals under 45 undertook the refurbishment. The Baltic Exchange, an umbrella body that works with shipping worldwide, donated and continues to fund the vehicle the Mission uses. Leading shipping companies, CASA and terminal operaters such as the South Asia Gateway Terminal, the Ministry of Shipping, Sri Lanka Ports Authority and many more, all lend a helping hand.

In a message for National Sea Sunday, the CASA noted that the Mission in Sri Lanka has grown and strengthened its focus to welcome all seafarers to the Mission’s refurbished and upgraded facility. “The mental health of the Seafarer receives paramount attention from the Mission in Colombo while they discharge this invaluable service to seafarers from all over the world who spend a few hours of their port stay in Colombo. CASA, on behalf of our members, is most grateful to the Mission to Seafarers Colombo for these humane services they perform in the Port of Colombo and wish them well in their future endeavours.”

The Colombo Mission  has gained recognition within the international network of some 200 centres in 50 countries around the world, Ven. Brohier says, applauding the dedicated team: Ravin Gunasekara who has served 25 years, Samantha Manjula,  Stanley Wijesuriya (all Ship Welfare Visitors), along with Nadarajah Sachithananda and Peter Alles. This year for the first time, the Mission has received a message of greeting for the International Day of Seafarers from President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Closed only on Poya days and public holidays, last month on Poson Poya too the team  was busy. The street in front of the Grand Oriental Hotel was taken up by a long line of people awaiting their serving of manioc, some 400 kgs being prepared for about 1,000 people. The dansal was an enthusiastic community effort by the staff, two neighbourhood three-wheeler drivers Hussain and Dilshan, and the GOH.

On January 12 this year, the Colombo Mission to Seafarers had a Royal visit when Britain’s Princess Anne, President of the International Mission came to declare open the Family Centre, the first of its kind for seafarers’ missions across the world, offering a quiet private space for families to meet. It was here that a young seaman was recently able to see his newborn for the first time, Ven. Brohier tells us.

The calendar ahead is looking busy. In the process of transitioning the Colombo centre to a green and socially responsible space with the installation of solar panels, their vision for the future is well charted with hopes of expansion on the horizon.

The beginnings The entrance just past St. Peter’s Church Affiliated to the Anglican Church, the Mission to Seafarers was set up to care for the spiritual and practical welfare of all seafarers, regardless of nationality or faith, initially inspired by a young Anglican priest Revd. John Ashley who while holidaying near the Bristol Channel in 1835 realised the need for reaching out to seafarers. The Bristol Channel Mission he founded was joined by other similar bodies and the Mission to Seamen founded in 1856, their emblem – a flying angel. In Colombo, the Mission’s official records date back to 1948, but Port Chaplain Ven. Perry Brohier says the Excise Department has files dating back to 1941.

 

 

For more information, see www.https://www.missiontoseafarers.org/colombo
Email: mtscolombo@hotmail.com
Face Book: Mission To Seafarers Colombo

 

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