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Seafarers participate in Memorial Day events (6/1)

On May 29 a number of SIU members took part in Memorial Day observances at sea and ashore. Those events included the National Memorial Day Parade in Washington, D.C. and shipboard ceremonies conducted for the National Moment of Remembrance. (Please scroll down for photos.) Aboard the Freedom, while the RO/RO vessel was at sea headed for New York City, Unlicensed Apprentice Timothy Dougherty read a tribute he had penned on behalf of the entire crew. In part, he stated, “Today, we honor those heroes (our family members – fathers, brothers, uncles, sisters) fallen and present who have given us the freedom we take for granted today…. As multi-tasking Americans we need days like this one to bring us back to reality. Our busy schedules don’t give us that time, but we have it today and this bell ceremony with each ringing can remind us that we can strive to behave like those servicemen and women with virtues that are instilled during intense periods of military training from the very beginning of their service careers.” Freedom Captain Shawn M. Hagerty thanked Dougherty for sharing his sentiments with the crew. On the hopper dredge Wheeler (SIU Government Services Division) in New Orleans, crew members gathered around the ship’s bell. After a moment of remembrance, a statement from the U.S. Maritime Administration was read, along with a reading of names of Wheeler mariners who have passed on since commissioning of the dredge in 1982. Additionally, aboard the hydrographic survey ship USNS John McDonnell, crew members met at the ship’s bell. They also rang eight bells and observed a moment of silence. “We shared a few words about those we were remembering from all branches of the armed services, the merchant marine, and the civilians who gave their lives throughout the nation’s history,” noted McDonnell Master Bob Mattsen. “We spoke of those who are continuing to make the ultimate sacrifice for our nation.” Other SIU-crewed vessels also participated in the National Moment of Remembrance. In the nation’s capital, students from the SIU-affiliated Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education helped represent the U.S. Merchant Marine in the National Memorial Day Parade. The annual event is organized by a coalition of military, veteran and civic groups in association with the White House Commission on Remembrance.