Support seafarers with Sailors’ Society Woolly Hat Week

08.01.10 Support seafarers with Sailors’ Society Woolly Hat Week 7-13 February 2010 Beat the snow and ice, keep warm and help a charity at the same time! We have all struggled at some point over the last few weeks with the elements, and International seafaring charity, Sailors’ Society, is now asking you to don your woolly hat at work and take part in its popular annual Woolly Hat Week campaign to raise money to support seafarers throughout the world. Seafarers have to battle with the elements regularly, and the famous woolly hat is welcomed as a gift to those who arrive as strangers in ports around the world. When ships dock today they are invariably berthed in a highly mechanised environment, contained within a patrolled security zone, often far from normal human habitation. The opportunity to go ashore is constrained by the increasingly demanding routine of shipboard life. But to combat social isolation the crews still have a desire to get off the ship and refresh their mind and spirit. This is usually after weeks at sea and months away from their families and friends. Sailors’ Society operates in over 100 ports in 30 countries, offering practical and spiritual support through its network of port chaplains. The woolly hat is a practical gift as well as making them realise that someone is thinking about them, and cares. Woolly Hat Week 2010 takes place between 7th and 13th February and the charity hopes that companies and communities will get involved, as well as individuals and long-term supporters. Sailors’ Society Events Fundraiser Vicky MacLeod explained: “Woolly Hat Week has been so successful in recent years, that we receive hats, knitted by kind volunteers from all over the world, throughout the year. We always welcome woolly hats, but also encourage donations to help towards transporting the knitted hats to the seafarers who need them most. This means sending them to places such as the Ukraine and South America.” Sailors’ Society is hoping that companies will encourage their staff to take part in Woolly Hat Week by wearing hats to work in return for a small donation. The money raised will help the charity provide assistance to seafarers, as well as going towards the transportation and distribution of woolly hats to seafarers ill-prepared for colder climates. Vicky added: “We are extremely grateful to our community of knitters who continue to supply us with woolly hats. We also want to encourage involvement from others who might not be able to knit, but can still contribute and support our work. By wearing your woolly hat to work, and being sponsored or donating, we hope to raise awareness of the difficulties seafarers face and assist them with the help they require.” Sailors’ Society Ukrainian Port Chaplain Eduard Myrmyr knows that seafarers will be grateful to receive woolly hats. He said: “The gift of a woolly hat after a long journey, so far away from friends and family, is very much appreciated. Many recipients are not only very touched by the generosity, but also by the human element of appreciation; seafarers have long been the ‘invisible workforce’, and hopefully Woolly Hat Week can bring some further understanding of the part they play in our lives, as well as much-needed hats for seafarers adjusting to the cold winter months!” To find out more about Woolly Hat Week, email woollyhats@sailors-society.org or call 023 8051 5950. For more information about how the Sailors’ Society provides support for seafarers across the world, please log on to www.sailors-society.org Ends Words: 394 Jpeg: Notes to Editors: The Sailors’ Society is an international charity that provides a personal lifeline for seafarers throughout the world. Existing to enrich and enhance the well-being of the world’s 1.2 million seafarers, the charity offers practical help, emotional and spiritual support and, when in dire need, financial assistance and family liaison through our Port Chaplains and Seafarers’ Centres. Our Port Chaplains visit thousands of ships every year, directly addressing the needs of seafarers - irrespective of a person’s belief or nationality - as well as maintaining vital links within the Ports that they operate. For more information, please visit www.sailors-society.org, or contact Zoe Mitchell at Logical Creative Marketing on: 0845 345 69 69 or email: zoe@lcm.co.uk