Volunteer Days Scheduled for Spirit of South Carolina

Click on the link to the Google Calendar, in the column at right for a schedule of the Ship's events, and Volunteer activity.

You must contact the Volunteer Coordinator["Contact Us' box in right-hand column] if you plan to attend, in order to guarantee a slot. Due to social distancing discipline, attendance is limited, and walk-in's risk not being allowed on board except on a stand-by basis.

The day will be split between Ship's maintenance and Deckhand Skills Training. In event of inclement weather, It will be postponed to following weekend.

Due to current Social Distance standards, only up to six-eight volunteers at a time, can be confirmed to come aboard. It is Capt Cleveland's intent to engage as many different Volunteers as possible. So, confirmation for volunteering will be managed by the Volunteer as Follows: First to respond and confirm are-first served, with the priorities, to Volunteers who have gone longest without an opportunity to attend. This mean's that, given 9 people volunteer, the priority will go to the people who have been longest without an offer to go aboard, followed by the next earliest sign-ups.

And We're Back in the Saddle!

  Volunteers can take the deck starting , as soon as you you can!

Some interesting items came up during a meeting on deck this afternoon.  The big thing, from my perspective, was Captain Dan's "OK", in fact his enthusiastic invitation, to see Volunteers back on board, doing what they do best,,, taking care of our Schooner, and getting her ready to go sailing.  The email blast went out earlier to all active Volunteers just prior to this posting.  

Of course, the reality of COVID-19 looms large, and the norms of social-distancing, hand-sanitizing,  will be folded into our Volunteer involvement. Volunteers are welcome aboard almost any day of the week.  Weekend days have been scheduled  on the Volunteer Calendar to ensure a crew member is available to help guide  the maintenance work, and coach deckhand skills training as desired.

Our schooner's future looks hopeful if this afternoon's meeting is an indication.  Blake Scott and  Brumby McCloud of College of Charleston, brought along  a couple of colleagues including a film maker to pitch to the crew their ideas to showcase "Spirit of South Carolina" to the City of Charleston and the State by her symbolic link to Charleston's Maritime and Seafaring heritage. They have engaged the interest of National Geographic, and other organizations who might be willing to sponsor, some programs aboard, including cruises, leveraging social media, and producing a documentary around the maritime heritage theme.   In fact, the group proposed shooting footage for a trailer of the documentary on the deck, beginning as early as next week, with video of crew and volunteers at work, along with interviews. 

In the meantime,, ship's maintenance looms large, some cosmetic, some more foundational, must be completed before the ship will be ready for sea.  Her first milestone to negotiate will be her Inspection for USCG COI renewal. That will include casting off and sailing, executing drills underway.   That means a crew aboard, most likely a significant number of volunteers.   And that means,, there's training that needs to be done.

Before that happens, her Life rafts must be swayed ashore for inspection and repackaging. Her electrical systems, having recently suffered a lightning strike will require inspections and likely replacement of components. The cap rails, pin rails and belaying pins, even both masts still require prepping and refinishing with D1 oil or linseed oil. 

Tim aloft scraping the mainmast

Her hull whitesides will require some significant spot painting.