12-18-12: Gifts for Those at Sea

Earlier this year we aired an interview with Reverend Mary H.T. Davisson, chaplain of the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center. She recently wrote to tell us about their Christmas at Sea program. Some of the crew they deal with haven’t spent Christmas at home in years, and the center gives out Christmas boxes to crews here in port in December. “We have so few hours in port that no one had time to shop,” some crew have told her, “so your gifts are all we your gifts are all we have to put under our tree.”

If you’d like to donate, below are the instructions! And if you don't get a chance to donate before the holidays, that's fine--they still accept gifts in January.

Please don’t use anything larger than a medium-sized shoebox, and wrap as carefully as possible.  Greetings or a piece of paper with the name and address of your group, or cards made by children or a note such as “with love from Mrs. Smith’s 6-year-old class” can be included and are very meaningful to a seafarer far from loved ones.   Each package should weigh less than 3 1/2 lbs.  -- we just don’t have enough space (or volunteers!) to carry heavy/oversized packages all the way from our van across a busy terminal, then up long, steep gangways!

Please include the following in each box: 
• A lightweight paperback Bible or New Testament, in a modern translation (readable by those whose first language is not English),
• Small-sized toiletries, sealed (no unwrapped soap or toothbrushes, et cetera-- and please remember that almost all our seafarers are male)
• A warm hat
• And some of the following:  pens and pads, warm socks or gloves,  or scarf, playing cards, post cards of Baltimore, et cetera

Please call 410-685-1240 to arrange a delivery.  When you deliver your packages, be sure to leave complete contact information with the volunteer on duty so that we may properly
acknowledge your donation!