Seafarers' Society adds 2nd site

A 200-year-old Port of Charleston group that provides visiting mariners with ministry and, in modern times, Internet connections and rides to Walmart, raised its flag at an additional location Thursday.

The Charleston Port and Seafarers' Society opened a Columbus Street Terminal outpost where sailors can connect with loved ones an ocean away or board a bus to buy supplies.

The new site will mirror the services the group offers at the Wando Welch Terminal in Mount Pleasant, including providing Bible scripture in 28 languages and discount phone cards for calls home.

The Rev. Len Williams, chaplain and director, said the beige trailer, devoted to the sailors who "lead a lonely life," will not have water and sewer connections for another week or so.

"That's OK," he said. "The main thing is, we're here. It's certainly not completed, but our mission is not completed."

The group purchased the trailer with a $17,000 grant from the International Transport Workers' Federation, a London-based union that began representing seafarers' interests in 1896. Tony Sacco, an ITF inspector from Wilmington, N.C., attended Thursday's ceremony.

"Coming to Charleston, this is the biggest volunteer organization I've ever seen along my route on the East Coast," Sacco said.

In addition to the ITF grant, the society also turned to local churches for help in purchasing phones and Internet-capable computers. The State Ports Authority donated the terminal space.

Seafarers' Society President Bob Clauhs said the group doubted the chances of putting one trailer right on port's docks, but now boasts two.

He called it "the most expensive real estate in Charleston," and reflected upon his own days working at sea.

"First thing you want to do is get off the ship and get to a phone and call your wife, call your girlfriend, call your mama," he said.

"Second, you want to get the heck out of here."

Bishop Mark Lawrence with the South Carolina Episcopal Diocese likened Thursday's chilly wind to the tumultuous waters sailors cross before arriving in port.

"There are not nearly as many shipwrecks as there used to be, but there are shipwrecks of families," Lawrence said.

He related the importance of the Seafarers' Society by sharing a scene he witnessed in the group's trailer -- a man logging onto a computer and seeing a photo of his newborn baby for the first time.

Reach Allyson Bird at 937-5594 or abird@postandcourier.com.