As we headed out the Savannah River through the Georgia flat-lands amid working industry and cargo ships, we were glad to be moving with the river which can dish out a 3-4 knot current so it’s best to have it with you. When we finally reached the open Atlantic we set our sails to take advantage of the light wind. By 11:00pm our engine came on to ease the flogging sails and keep us in motion as the wind disappeared into the night. Both A Watch and B Watch kept us on course and by morning we had flat calm seas which eventually gave way to a new light breeze, allowing us to shut down the engine and enjoy a sunny sailing day. Several times we were joined by an energetic and happy pod of Dolphins playing in our bow wake.

By the time the afternoon rolled around, sunny skies gave way to darkening clouds and we were in for a big change. The temperature dropped, the wind shifted, and the skies built up with squall lines and clouds of all shapes and sizes. For a few hours we were pelted by rain and cold wind while we tacked back out to sea to avoid entering Charleston in a squall.

Now as the skies have cleared and sunset approaches, we are dropping our sails and readying the ship for port. We will be docked at the Charleston Maritime Center through the weekend, setting sail for Norfolk next week.

While it was a short trip, it was certainly a taste of everything for our guest crew. Tonight everyone is guaranteed to sleep well!

We came off the dock at Peanut Island in West Palm Beach, FL and headed north up the coast of Florida under full sail.  Immediately we were reminded of why we love being aboard our beautiful ship, Roseway, as we headed into 5-8 ft seas with 15-20 mph winds out of the NE, mostly sunny skies on a  beam reach and she sailed with ease!  Our new cook, Brian, had never been aboard a ship quite like Roseway and was in awe of the experience of helping raise all the sails by hand with the rest of the crew and watching her sails fill!

We spent three days and two nights of fair sailing on the ocean before arriving at the mouth of the Savannah River on April 18.  It took three hours once we entered the river to arrive in Savannah at the Westin marina dock on Hutchinson Island.  We could see the old buildings and River Street of Savannah from the other side of the river where we were docked.  The crew was anxious to get off the boat and explore the town and learn it’s history and it’s unique relationship to the river, the ocean and some of the ships that have all played a part in making Savannah the special place that it is today. We’ve been enjoying the great food, drinks and beautiful parks with all of the live oaks filled with hanging spanish moss. The Ships of the Sea Museum is fascinating and the staff there are very warm, helpful and a great resource for us concerning the history of Savannah and the long-standing relationship the town has with ships.  This was the first time Roseway has come up the Savannah River and it’s impressive to think how many ships have gone up and down this river over time.

Once arriving in Savannah we fell into regular “Anchor Watch” duties where one person is responsible for the ship at all times while the rest of the crew gets to explore the town and see the sights.  Watch detail consists of general safe keeping of the boat and cleaning duties at the end of the day.  The person on watch is the official  caretaker of the ship and also takes initiative to work on tasks that keep Roseway not only exceptionally functional;  by pumping out the bilges, doing regular boat checks, and completing small maintenance projects but also making sure she is beautiful to behold, by polishing the bell, scrubbing the soles and bowls and keeping the deck tidy.  The crew on watch also continually checks that the dock lines are secure, fenders are in correct position to prevent our 86 year old, 260 ton wooden ship from making contact with the dock.  The crew on watch monitors the current of the river, the changing tides and winds and makes adjustments accordingly to keep Roseway safe and secure.

Savannah is one of our several stops in our transit from St. Croix to Boston.  It is one of the towns hosting a Tall Ships Festival and we are proud to have been invited this year.  In preparation for the festival on May 4-6 we are working hard to make Roseway look her best.  Starting with a deep cleaning of the entire topside by Sam and Rodney while they were on watch on Sunday.  On Monday, most of the crew sanded and painted the red on the foredeck.  Today John, Simone, Sam and Rodney are reconditioning our anchor by chipping away all the rust and repainting it black.  Owen is varnishing the steps of the companionway of the galley while Matt is doing battery maintenance.

We have had several visitors aboard since arriving including Judith and Jack, our liaisons for the festival and several Westin Savannah staff.  We also had an “Open Boat” evening event on Saturday that drew a great crowd of people who came to see Roseway and learn about the World Ocean School.  We have enjoyed having groups of students from four different local area schools that included Oglethorpe Charter School, St Andrews Academy, Chatham Academy and Rambam Day School.  We have had so much fun with these students!  Having them on board is the main motivating factor for the World Ocean School.  With all we do in taking care of Roseway; sailing up the Atlantic coast and taking pride in our ship; the thing that fuels that pride, is sharing her with the people we bring aboard and helping to cultivate new communities  with the hope that through this unique and authentic experience, students can have fun learning and experience the value of being part of a positive community.

We’ve had several great days this week working with students.  They have been able to participate as Roseway crew and learn about Buoyancy and Density, Simple Machines, learning the Life of a Sailor and even putting on a harness and Climbing the Rig!  We have been focusing each day on all of our Community Values aboard Roseway which are Communication, Teamwork, Respect, Trust and Self-Worth with a particular emphasis on Trust and how it relates to building strong communities wherever we are.

Dear Friends,

This spring marks ten years since World Ocean School began. It marks ten years of the discovery, development, and execution of ideas based around the hope that kids can learn to be responsible and productive members of the communities in which they live.

When, in the early days of the new post-9/11 world, we meekly set down our mission statement on a rainy day in mid-coast Maine, we knew only that we were making a huge leap but we weren’t sure just how it was all going to unfold. Our mission was clear but the venue was not. Five months later, the venue presented itself: Roseway sat silently, and rather sadly, at a dock just miles from our front door. If she could have spoken, she might have asked us to give her a chance, to have faith in the maritime traditions of shipbuilding that made her strong over 70 years earlier, to let her prove what she could do. She was ready for us, but were we ready for her? After careful inspection and consideration of every conceivable worst-case scenario, Roseway convinced us we were in fact ready. Despite all the possibilities, she had touched our hearts and there was no going back.

It only took eighteen months of time to restore Roseway, and only another year or so to establish the programs and the itineraries that she would host. But it took the heart and soul of a community to carefully place Roseway in the hands of World Ocean School and send her on her way. It took skilled craftsmen who brought to the shipyard the traditions of their grandfathers. It took savvy business owners who strategically balanced corporate giving with supply and demand. It took earnest and dedicated board members who creatively looked for ways to feed our growth. It took volunteers from all walks of life who joyfully contributed their backs, their talents, and their time to the shipyard and the office. It took generous donors who trusted the ideas and fortitude of the players. And it took friends who told us we were crazy but bought us dinner anyway.

Now ten years later, we’ve been able to pass on the spirit of community-building to thousands of kids and adults who have been part of the World Ocean School adventure. We’ve learned a lot about experiential education and the stewardship of a historic landmark ship. We’ve still got a lot to learn. But above all the lessons of the past ten years, what we now know for sure is that Roseway’s quiet message was right: We were ready for her.

And, more importantly, we’re ready for all that the next decade promises.

So now I invite you to join our Spring Appeal and make a contribution right here to the area in which you most feel a connection at World Ocean School: scholarships, general operation, or Roseway restoration.

Thank you for being part of our community.

Sincerely,
Abby Kidder
President and Co-Founder

Another group from Eudora Kean High School will join us tomorrow, along with students from the University of the Virgin Islands. It’s a busy week at World Ocean School here in St. Thomas.

In Memoriam: Rushworth Moulton Kidder (1944–2012)

Rushworth M. Kidder, a celebrated journalist and ethicist who devoted his life to expanding the importance and understanding of practical ethics education, died from natural causes in Florida on Monday, March 5, 2012.

Dr. Kidder was a longtime resident of Maine, where he and his wife of forty-six years, Elizabeth, raised two daughters and founded the Institute for Global Ethics, one of the world’s leading voices on corporate and educational ethics.

Widely praised as a provocative speaker and stimulating author, Kidder’s lifelong goal was to make ethics both practical and practiced, bridging the gap between moral philosophy and daily life. He spent much of his career calling for less polarization and greater cooperation — in politics, at school, within communities — by noting that many of life’s greatest challenges involve right-versus-right dilemmas between competing moral arguments.

This philosophical framework became the foundation for his nonprofit Institute for Global Ethics, which began as a second-story walk-up in the coastal Maine village of Camden. The Institute later opened offices in New York City and London, England, becoming a worldwide resource for practical ethics education and consultation. The Institute carries on Kidder’s work through regular seminars and workshops, a Center for Corporate Ethics in New York, and publication of Ethics Newsline®, the world’s first weekly, internet-based ethics digest, for which he wrote a weekly column for more than 14 years.

Rush was a family man, first and foremost, cherishing the time spent with his surviving family — his wife Anne Elizabeth Davidson Kidder; his daughters Abby Kidder of Boston, Massachusetts, and Sgt. Heather Kidder of Miami, Florida; and godson Dwight Deckelmann of Cumberland, Maine. Rush’s faith and church community served as a grounding force in his life. He will be greatly missed and fondly remembered for his maritime adventures, his ready wit, and his gift for making the piano sing.

Prior to founding the Institute for Global Ethics, Kidder served as a longtime journalist for The Christian Science Monitor, based in Boston, Massachusetts. He began his career at the newspaper in 1979 as London correspondent, eventually taking over weekly commentary duties on the Boston area as well as social trend and issues. Two of his essays appeared in the American Society of Newspaper Editors’ Best Newspaper Writing, 1983. As the Monitor‘s feature editor from 1983 to 1985, he was part of the six-person team running the newspaper, ultimately serving as senior columnist until 1990. The New York Times has described Kidder as one of the Monitor‘s “most celebrated journalists.”

Kidder won widespread acclaim for his 1994 book Shared Values for a Troubled World: Conversations with Men and Women of Conscience, which chronicled his efforts to identify a global code of ethics. Journalist and commentator Bill Moyers hailed the book’s interviews with 24 opinion makers from 16 countries, noting that “only Rush Kidder would have made this odyssey, and only Rush Kidder could have returned with such a valuable cargo of insights.”

Kidder later wrote How Good People Make Tough Choices: Resolving the Dilemmas of Ethical Living, which was praised by President Jimmy Carter as “a thought-provoking guide to enlightened and progressive personal behavior.” Over the course of nearly forty years, he authored twelve books, including:

-Good Kids, Tough Choices: How Parents Can Help Their Children Do the Right Thing (2010)
- The Ethics Recession: Reflections on the Moral Underpinnings of the Current Economic Crisis (2009)
- Moral Courage: Taking Action When Your Values are Put to the Test (2005)
- How Good People Make Tough Choices: Resolving the Dilemmas of Ethical Living (1995)
- Shared Values for a Troubled World: Conversations with Men and Women of Conscience (1994)
- Heartland Ethics: Voices from the American Midwest (as editor) (1992)
- In the Backyards of Our Lives and Other Essays (1992)
- Global Ethics: A Quartet of Interviews (1992)
- Reinventing the Future: Global Goals for the 21st Century (1989)
- An Agenda for the Twenty-First Century (1987)
- E.E. Cummings: An Introduction to the Poetry (Columbia Introductions to Twentieth-Century American Poetry) (1979)
- Dylan Thomas: The Country of the Spirit (1973)

Rushworth Moulton Kidder was born in 1944 and raised in Amherst, Massachusetts, one of three children born to Dr. George Kidder, a biochemistry professor at Amherst College, and his wife and lab assistant Ruth. He was an honors graduate of Amherst College (1965) and earned a Ph.D. from Columbia University in English and Comparative Literature (1969). Dr. Kidder taught English for ten years at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas. In 1980, he won the Explicator Literary Foundation Award for his book on the poetry of E.E. Cummings, whose writings and paintings remained a passion throughout his life.

A committed philanthropist, Kidder was one of the longest standing trustees of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation in Flint, Michigan. He was instrumental in the founding and development of the World Ocean School in 2001 and was an active member of its Board of Directors. He also served on the advisory council of the Character Education Partnership, the research council for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, The Conference Board Working Group on Global Business Ethics Principles, and the advisory board of “Religion & Ethics Newsweekly” on public television.

In accord with his wishes, there will be a private family service held in Florida He also requested that donations be made in his honor to the Institute for Global Ethics in Rockport, Maine; the World Ocean School in Camden, Maine; and Daystar Inc, a Christian Science Nursing Facility in Davie, Florida.

The ocean is a beautiful wonder they say,
And I have to agree as I sail on the Roseway.

The powerful wind, and mystical sea,
This is the life for me.

————-

The great water a-splashing,
The great wind a-blowing,
The great sight I’m seeing,
And sentiments I’m feeling.

Though coming from different schools and spanning different grades, these students had a lot in common. They were blown away that they could raise the sails that actually power Roseway. They not only learned about the physics of lift and how we sail but also began to understand simple machines and the mechanical advantage utilized throughout the boat.

Some students climbed the rig and ventured out on the bowsprit, while others explored the compartments of the boat. All of them were terrific at asking questions and eager to help with everything aboard. In fact, these kids were so excited about everything we may have to look out for stowaways!

Stay tuned for more from Ricardo Richards and St. Croix Christian Academy next week!

- “The importance of looking past any differences that you might have with someone in order to get things done.”

- “Get out of your comfort zone!”

-” The importance of community!”

- “The relationships I have formed and the complexity of the sea and her mysteries.”

-”A lot about being comfortable with myself as well as living simply.”

-”Stepping out of my comfort zone.  Doing things I don’t normally do with people I don’t really know.  Trying and enjoying new things and experiences.”

- “How important it is to know people, because they will often surprise you.”

- “How to live closely with others. We all live separate lives that are very egocentric, and it is great to have that stripped away to be more group centralized.”

-”Teamwork!”

-”I am more confident then when put in a situation that is completely new, with the help of others I can succeed.”

-”I’m a happier person when I open myself up to meeting new people and have much more fun when I don’t care what others think about me.”

-” The spirit of the crew: I really admire the whole crew who are so brave and passionate about their job and dreams – this spirit encourages me to fight for my dreams.”

- “Just do it! Don’t think that there is anything you can’t do and let that stop you from trying something new or different.”

-”Try everything at least once and don’t be afraid to push your comfort zone.”

- “How to better socialize and communicate, becoming friends with complete strangers.”

While our Luther College crew is on the way back to Iowa, we are now switching gears in anticipation to Rock the Dock Saturday night.

Sadly, today was our last day onboard the Roseway.  We woke up at the usual time, had breakfast, and did our chores.  After battling with an unusual rain storm for a couple hours we prepared for the Deckhand Olympics.  Each watch group has worked hard over the last ten days preparing for the games.  The groups competed in knot tying, rope coiling, and identifying all of the rigging and lines on the ship.  Watch group A was victorious.  After the Olympics we got ready for the last adventure of our trip.  We got into groups of four and hopped into off-road Jeeps.  We embarked on a 3 hour trip across the entire island of St. Croix.  The journey included stops at beaches, the jungle, and mountain tops.  We had quite the experience as the Jeeps flew along unpaved roads, through large pools of water, and along steep cliffs.  After finishing our ride we had a couple hours to explore the St. Croix boardwalk and check out the town’s shops, bars, and restaurants.  Once back on the Roseway we had our last meal as a group and were surprised with ice cream by the crew.  After tonight’s closing ceremonies we will pack up our bags in preparation for our long journey back to Decorah tomorrow!

This morning we woke up at 7:30 and had bacon and egg sandwiches for breakfast.  As always they were delicious.  After taking a group picture/video of us on the Roseway we set sail for St. Croix and our final destination of our trip.  The sail took about 5 hours and we spent most of our time practicing for the deck hand olypmics that are taking place tomorrow.  When we arrived in St. Croix we had the afternoon to work on some more seamanship skills and also climb the rigging (thats what holds the masts up).  It was an amazing view!  After that we had some free time to go snorkeling and swimming or just chill on the boat.  While snorkeling a group saw some spotted eagle rays, sting rays, blow fish, lion fish, a baby baracuda, and a washing machine fish (also known as a washing machine on the bottom of the ocean).  We then had a delicious dinner of pot roast and like every other night enjoyed doing our evening chores.  Tonight we will be performing “The Tempest” for the crew and the rest of the class when they aren’t on stage.  Later tonight we will be enjoying an anchor watch free night, which will hopefully lead to an undisturbed night’s sleep.  We are looking forward to seeing everyone in a couple of days but we will all be sad to leave.  Good night from the Roseway.