SAVE THE DATES!  Harbor Fest Charleston Coming in May 2020. 

Volunteers Needed!

HarborFest 2020 is coming next year to Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant, coinciding with the City of Charleston's 350's Anniversary celebration.  Spirit of South Carolina will act as the Host to visiting Tall Ships who will be invited to the festival for tours and to provide daysails.  

The event provides a great opportunity for Spirit of South Carolina's Volunteers to get involved in the ship's preparations and activities, but also the greater community effort around the Festival.  In the coming months, a Volunteer needs and schedule will be roughed out, and outreach started for help needed.  Stay tuned.

Volunteers Advance Deckhand skills and avoid the "burn", mostly

A Rolling Hitch or a Midshipman's?  The Mate
 always decides.  Bryan, Jonathan, and Chuck
wrap up the morning of line handling
 and knot-tying

Six Volunteers came aboard  this last Saturday morning  to beat the rising temperatures before noon.  Hopefully we'd get in some  learning, and coach each other in  practicing and advancing deckhand skills that will serve them and the ship, when ever she slips her lines,  whether for a day sail, a cruise off shore, or just moving to the fuel dock.  Ken Fonville, Bryan Oliver, Dan Maurin, Chuck Waring, Jonathan Shew, and Joe Gorman,, took advantage of  a web of awnings the crew had wisely rigged over the booms, to stay mostly out of the broiling sun developing. Before  starting, Bryan  recognized Ken's accomplishment of  surpassing 50 Volunteer hours aboard, with  a tradition begun in 2002, during ships' construction. Joe demonstrated a unique approach to making a bowline around a piling  from the deck.  Given the  hot weather building, we made good use of  the morning's still moderate temperature, occasional breeze, and those awnings, to work out line handling, and boat checks. 

First New Volunteer Recognized for Exceeding 50 Hours Supporting Spirit of South Carolina.

Bryan awards Ken Fonville
his "Jib Sail Volunteer" Pin 
recognizing  50 hours  supporting
 Spirit of South Carolina.

Ken Fonville had been watching the the activity around Spirit of South Carolina for some time,  
from high up in his condominium overlooking the Charleston Maritime Center. Finally, late last year he appeared at the dock offering to help the crew wherever they might need him. An experienced sailor, Sea Scout advisor, and retired executive in the Furniture industry, he knew a thing or two about wood and water. But he did raise one reservation - an acquired aversion to prepping and varnishing.  He came aboard anyway.  
At end of  this last April, Ken has logged over 67 hours of Volunteer time. That's not including the hours prior to February, when we officially began tracking Volunteer involvement. And about 20 hours of that time  has been devoted to some high quality scraping, sanding, sealing and 12-coat varnishing of hatches, coamings, and cap rail.  Irony?  Oh, fer sure. 
But there's more.   For the past few months, Ken began an active outreach supporting Spirit of South Carolina's programs.  As a "Mate" advisor to the local Sea Scouts organization , he has been building interest in involving them with Spirit of South Carolina, and  secured invitations  to the Crew to meetings at the Charleston Power and Sail Squadron, as featured speaker, in order to tell Spirit's story, and  recruit volunteers, with some great results..(talking about you , Dan M.)
To mark this 50 Hour milestone, we've resurrected the tradition begun in 2002 during the building of our Schooner, with  a custom cast pin, to be presented to each Volunteer as he/she passes the mark.. The next milestone-100 hours, will likewise be recognized with the  "Foresail Volunteer Pin.   Looking forward to seeing lots of these in public.

Boy Scout Overnight Cruise a Hit with Scouts and Leaders

Over the weekend of May 18-19, Spirit of South Carolina hosted an overnight cruise for the Coastal Carolina Council of  the Boy Scouts.  Although only four Scouts, an even distribution of girls and boys of middle school age, came on board with a parent or Scout Leader,  feedback from the Council Executive who also came on board indicated the cruise a resounding success.  
The Scouts and chaperones boarded early Saturday morning, received orientations, tours, and chose their berths.  By 10 AM, Spirit was cast off the dock, and sailed out  the Jetty's for the afternoon, by evening, she returned and dropped anchor off Castle Pinckney. for the night.  The next day was full. Weeks before, Spirit's crew, in collaboration with Scout Leaders and Parents, planned activities focused on Scout Skills and rank advancement, with some high adventure mixed in, all configured to the individual Scout's goals for the cruise.  Crew members with past Scouting experience, organized  the day, and led them thru skills ranging from first aid, safety, knots and lashing, basic campcraft (amazing, what can be practiced aboard a 19th century schooner), and finally a swim call, and  a sailing/rowing lesson, using the Schooner's Dory..  By 3 pm Sunday, Scouts, and chaperones, were safely ashore and headed home,, no-doubt with stories to tell. . which was the whole intent.
Spirit of South Carolina has the potential to provide a Scouting High Adventure experience, condensed for younger Scouts, or expanded for older (high-school-aged) Scouts, equivalent to their classic outdoor experiences at Philmont Scout Ranch  in New Mexico or Charles L Sommers Canoe Expeditions.  The success of this cruise  hopes to prove the concept, and build a new Youth program.

Recent Fundraiser for Spirit of South Carolina Showcases new Volunteer Program 

Volunteer Recruiting Poster

This past Wednesday evening, Spirit of South Carolina LLC, hosted a well-attended fundraiser Social at the Rice Exchange Building.  Spirit of South Caroline was motored from it's normal dock at the Maritime Center, to the Face dock at Charleston City Marina for the event. One by one, the LLC's Board members took the microphone to reinforce the value the ship represents to the community,  her potential for youth development, and the need for continued community support to make her successful.  Among the themes communicated to the invitees was the resurrection of our  Volunteer Program, and its significance to the sustainment of Spirit of South Carolina's Mission.  Along with two or three of the "recruiting posters" strategically placed around the room, the publicity netted from among the attendees, at least another three volunteer names, and several others interested in following our activities.   

Additional Volunteer Orientation and Training Days are appearing on the Calendar.

As Spirit of South Carolina's programs, both large and small gradually take shape, there also grows a need for the volunteer effort to take on a larger role.  Commensurate with that, we are focusing on improving how consistently we can schedule Volunteer events, such as New Volunteer orientations, maintenance project-days, Deckhand training, and something new.  

Well, not exactly new,, We're revisiting the  concept of Volunteers manning a Dock Watch, on occasion.  It's a program for Volunteers to relieve professional crew for time off, by taking over their responsibilities for staying with the ship, keeping her safe and secure.  Dock Watch Volunteers essentially take over the deck in shifts lasting anywhere from 2 to 24 hours, while the professional crew gets some time off ashore.  It requires an extra phase of deck hand training, in standard watch procedure.   Look for an improved schedule of Volunteer days on the calendar,, intended to help you anticipate, and schedule your time lay in with the crew to the effort. Stay tuned.

Volunteer Crew T-Shirts Soon to be Available for Purchase

We are continuing to work with a supplier in designing a Volunteer Crew T-shirt, be available for purchase at-cost, by anyone signing-on as a Volunteer. It will be a heather-gray color, with a ship's image on the back, and the logo:  Spirit of South Carolina Volunteer Crew on the front-left chest.   They will be available in standard adult sizes, currently, M to XXL.  Currently, I can only offer a price estimate of from $20-$25  depending on final cost of set-up, size of the order, etc.  The larger the order, the cheaper the shirt.  A few volunteers have already responded with interest. So, the sooner I can get a count of  volunteers interested in one, along with desired size, the better I can predict and confirm a best price.   Just send me an email to:  bryan@spiritofsc.org.  

Citadel Alumni Cruise to St. Augustine overcomes mechanical and weather challenges to create a memorable experience.

Crew, Catie, and Dannie
haul up the jumbo.

Casting off from the dock on Wednesday, May 1, but challenged by a generator malfunction, and subsequent heavy weather forming and moving up the coast, Spirit of South Carolina modified her planned cruise to St.Augustine. After returning to the dock, and discussion, and consensus from among our Citadel Alumni participants on board, Captain Dan Cleveland redirected our plan to an off-shore cruise. Taking advantage of the moderate southeasterly breezes Spirit ranged as far north as Wild Dunes,, then south, approximately 23 miles off shore rising and rolling over 4 foot swells in 10 knot breezes. Passengers helped set our reefed Fore and main sails, then shake out reefs and haul away to full sail. After some bracing exercise at the halyards and headsail sheets, they enjoyed a tranquil, engine-less schooner sailing experience under full sail, a happy hour at sundown, and a sumptuous Stir-Fry dinner.

Participants learned fast; admiring
their new Ballantine coiling skills.

Meanwhile, our crew of 6 professionals and one volunteer, organized into two watches for a 5-hour on-5-off watch schedule. Capt Cleveland led the first watch beginning at 1800, turning over the watch over to our Mate, Karin, and crew at 11 pm. We experienced a moonless, cloudless,, very starry night, with plenty of choices in the sky for steering to. and noticed a dry-lightning episode way down on the southern horizon. That was a foreboding.

By watch change at 0400, Captain and Mate, consulting weather reports forecasting not only a fast moving tropical depression moving up the coast from Florida, but a series of squall-lines marching eastward over the low-country, headed off shore. The conditions would make exciting sailing, but uncomfortable times for our participants who would likely be forced below for extended periods. It was a sufficient scenario for Spirit to reverse course to a NNW heading, back to Charleston.

By 1500 on Friday, after cruising up the Wando under sail, Spirit was again safely snugged up to her berth, even as gray overcast engulfed everything, and occasional rain-squalls formed and dissipated around us. 

Remaining Alumni participants and crew enjoying evening
 refreshments against a colorful Ravenel Bridge

Approximately half our passengers, leisurely packed and disembarked, but others were reluctant to leave and stayed aboard for dinner and cocktails passing late into the evening. The next morning, after extended good-by's, remaining passengers disembarked, and crew was released for a well-deserved weekend break. Passengers uniformly had high praise for the ship, her crew, and the overall experience, some even promising to organize a second alumni cruise.


The success of this cruise, in spite of the technical and weather obstacles, bodes well for the production of similar cruises. That in turn will be driving a need for volunteers as deck-handing, or maintaining. Stay tuned.