Saturday, May 09, 2009
Gulf News
Dubai: A charity organisation has put service to forlorn seafarers high on its agenda and aims to raise awareness about their plight by organising an expedition to Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya.
The Angel Appeal foundation is also holding a ball on Friday for the benefit of seafarers at the Fujairah Anchorage.
"All the proceeds from the tickets [for the ball] will go to the Angel Appeal foundation which dedicates itself to providing seafarers with internet and satellite phones so that they can keep in touch with their family while they are lonely at sea," said Alexi Trenouth, a member of the Mission to Seafarers foundation.
The Mission to Seafarers has been operating a boat called the Flying Angel since April 2007. The vessel goes out to ships in the anchorage off the East Coast of the UAE every day of the week reaching an average of 75 seafarers each day.
The Flying Angel offers e-mail and telephone facilities, a welfare officer to listen to and help solve seafarers' problems, besides book and DVD libraries, a medical clinic and a place to relax and unwind.
An 18-member Mission to Seafarers team will set out to scale Mount Kilimanjaro - considered the Roof of Africa - in August to boost fundraising efforts for the cause. The team's mission provided the inspiration for the African-themed charity ball being sponsored by Al Maktoum Foundation.
"We have all agreed to raise at least Dh20,000 each from sponsors, out of which two-thirds will go towards the Angel Appeal charity while the rest will go towards funding the trek up Mount Kilimanjaro," said Trenouth.
The Jungle Fever ball will be held on May 15 at the Monarch Hotel, Dubai, and will feature an African-themed set that will resound to the beats of the Dubai Drummers. The Ambassador of Tanzania, Mohammad Maharage Juma, will attend the event.
"Fujairah has the second largest anchorage in the world, and not many people realise that 99.3 per cent of goods we use come by sea. The seafarers sacrifice their lives for us to lead privileged ones," said Teagan Rowlands, a member of the trek team.
"When seafarers are in a boat at night, they cannot see anything outside and are literally looking in pitch blackness. It is hard for them to stay away from their family, and the foundation tries its best to let them have communication facilities with the outside world."
The expedition team is currently undergoing rigorous training so that they can be physically and mentally prepared for the challenge when taking on the might of the mountain.
"We are so excited and so nervous at the same time because it is a big challenge for all of us. We run a mile at the end of each session of training, which includes swimming and general exercises with the aim to improve our stamina as much as we possibly can. Our last intense training was a few weeks ago when we went to Dibba and walked during the day for eight hours and a half. By the time it was midday, the heat was unbearable," said Inga Stevens, another team member from Finland.
Gulf News 2009. All rights reserved.
