Spotlight on Mission to Seafarers and Stella Maris

This National Volunteer Week we’re recognising the incredible work the volunteer-driven organisations Mission to Seafarers and Stella Maris do to improve the health and wellbeing of seafarers.

Every year these incredible volunteers support more than 10,000 seafarers across our ports at Bunbury, Albany and Esperance.

Chair and Chaplain of Bunbury Mission to Seafarers, Rev’d Darryl Cotton described their service, saying “we’re their home away from home, we provide a safe place to recharge and refresh for the next leg of their voyage.”

Marilou Lomas, Manager of the Albany Stella Maris joined the organisation more than three decades ago and is still just as passionate and devoted as she was in the beginning. 

“I think it’s vital we bring more awareness to how important seafarers are to enabling trade in our regions. I am incredibly proud of the work I do and despite my age, I’m still climbing onboard the ships every day to greet the seafarers,” explained Marilou.

Fred Lochowicz, Manager of Esperance Mission to Seafarers said, “Seafarers deliver all the things we need to get by in Australia. It’s a tough job with long hours and spending months away from home. I firmly believe they should be rewarded and taken care of.”

At Southern Ports we recognise the important role of seafarers in enabling world trade and we’re proud of our long-standing partnership with Mission to Seafarers and Stella Maris.

We host regular Port Welfare Committee forums to discuss practical approaches to improving seafarers’ wellbeing; with recent funding for bus services to enable seafarers to explore our regions and access medical, welfare and chaplaincy services; and the Seafarers Connection – a wi-fi modem that can be taken onboard vessels so seafarers can contact their loved ones back home.

Colleen Donovan, Chairperson of Albany Seafarers commented, “Southern Ports has been incredibly supportive of the work that we do. Our partnership with them has been coordinated in a very open and friendly manner. We all work towards a common goal of improving seafarers’ wellbeing,”

These organisations are seeking new volunteers to join their mission.

“Pre-COVID we had 27 volunteers in Bunbury, now we are at half of those numbers. It’s heart-breaking when we’re unable to take all the crews ashore due to a lack of volunteers,” explained Reverend Darryl Cotton.

When asked what she would say to anyone with some spare time they could give, Marilou says “it’s an invaluable experience where you get to meet people from all around the world!”

To learn more visit https://www.mts.org.au/centres or https://stellamarisaustralia.org/you-can-help/.