Tag Archives: Blessing of the Fleet
Blaine, Washington: The 38th year for the Blessing of the Fleet, Sunday, May 1st
The Puget Sound commercial crab season closes by the middle of March. For me, when we get all of the gear put away for the season, it’s time to focus on preparing for the Blessing of the Fleet ceremony, which is put together and organized by the Fisherman’s Memorial Committee along with the Port of Bellingham and Blaine Chamber of Commerce. The blessing this year will be 1:30 p.m. Sunday, May 1, and like last year, we will be outside by Gate 2 at Blaine Harbor – weather permitting. If it rains, we will be inside in the conference room. >click to read< By Gary Dunster 10:58
Blessing of the Fleet: Boat blessings return to Terrebonne and Lafourche
After Dulac was ravaged by Hurricane Ida, this year’s shrimp boat blessing holds a special place for the Rev. Antonio Speedy of Holy Family Catholic Church. “Hurricane Ida has turned our community upside down,” he said. “It’s not the first time the people here have been through a hurricane, but this one was different from the rest. Many people have been left homeless, and the fishing season has started off slowly. There was debris all over the water.” After months of recovery, Speedy said blessing shrimp boats was the last thing on his mind. But as April approached, he began getting requests for the annual tradition. Photo gallery, >click to read< 12:24
Community pays tribute to commercial fishing families during annual Blessing of the Fleet
“This is a time when we come together to honor the commercial fishing industry and the lives lost in this dangerous trade,” N.C. Seafood Festival Chairperson Dale Gillikin said to open the ceremony. “I know how much this service means to you, because I know how much it means to me,” she continued. “It brings chills to my spine, 
a warmth to my heart and tears to my eyes. You see, I grew up in a commercial fishing family, so I know how hard it is to work in this industry.” Bradley Styron of Cedar Island, a member of the Carteret County Commercial Fisherman’s Association, threw the wreath, which had a blue ribbon attached. Family members of commercial fishermen who have died this year were invited to surround Mr. Styron as he threw it into the sound. 10 photos, >click to read< 09:59
Delcambre Shrimp Festival, Blessing of the Fleet Set for August 18th – 22nd
From shrimp to sugar and gumbo, Iberia Parish is getting ready for the busy fall festival season with three major festivals to be held in person this year. Shrimp rules at the Delcambre Shrimp Festival, which celebrates the town of Delcambre’s local shrimping industry with a street fair, delicious dishes and top notch entertainment. This year’s festival is set for Aug. 18-22. >click to read< For more information and the complete schedule of events, visit ShrimpFestival.net or email [email protected]
Narragansett: More than 80 boats take to the sea for Blessing of the Fleet
Fishing trawlers, pleasure yachts, Coast Guard vessels and even the Block Island ferries all received a benediction as they passed through the Galilee breachway Saturday afternoon for the annual Blessing of the Fleet. “Lady Frances, may almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and all those who sail upon you,” the Rev. Francis Kayatta, pastor at St. Mary Star of the Sea in Narragansett, intoned while making the sign of the cross as the Lady Frances passed by.,, “Proud Mary, may almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and all those who sail upon you,” he repeated. “And your little dog too,” he added to a passenger holding a small dog. The passengers yelled back, “Thank you, reverend.”>click to read< 14:32
Connecticut: Organizers focused on ‘the important things’ ahead of 68th annual Blessing of the Fleet
Stonington – In late 1989, rescue teams and U.S. Coast Guard personnel spent more than 11 days combing 10,000 square miles of ocean off the coast of Nantucket using three aircraft carriers and two cutters following the disappearance of the Heidi Marie, a 72-foot commercial lobster boat out of Stonington that went missing just before Thanksgiving. The search teams found evidence of possible distress that was believed to have killed the boat’s five occupants, Capt. Mark Middleton and crew members Arthur Banks, Kenneth Raymond Gould, Michael Lane and Ray Morris. Their bodies were never found, but their story and the stories of other local fisherman who died will not be forgotten, thanks in part to a long-rooted tradition that will return this weekend when St. Mary Church in Stonington hosts its 68th annual Blessing of the Fleet. >click to read< 22:10
The First Montauk Blessing Of The Fleet Post COVID Brings Great Joy
The message that permeated on every vessel that took part in the first Montauk Blessing of the Fleet post COVID was that it was in fact a blessing it was happening at all. A year ago, the whole country was locking down, so many traditional East End events were canceled, and there was no annual Blessing of the Fleet in Montauk.,, On the F/V Anna Mary, the boat of Captain Anthony Sosinski and Fisherman John “Johnny Loads” Aldridge, family and friends celebrated with cold beverages, pasta salads, chips and dips, and an assortment of tasty home baked cookies. Sosinski displayed his talent of navigating the boat throughout the 75 or so commercial boats of all sizes that paraded from in the Harbor out to the Block Island Sound. Aldridge and his family and friends know what it is to feel God’s mercy. Eight years ago, “Johnny Loads” fell overboard only to be recused the next day by a 
Coast Guard helicopter as almost every commercial Montauk fishing craft was out there searching for him. >click to read< 12:25
Montauk Blessing of the Fleet – This drone footage by Joanna Steidle shows decorated vessels passing by robed clergymen, who give the boats their blessing. Onlookers can be seen gathered on the docks and shoreline. >click to watch<
Blessing of the Fleet: Riding the wave of celebration and sorrow
Losing her husband to the sea more than 20 years ago still feels like yesterday to Jude Wells, but the annual Blessing of the Fleet brings some comfort to the heartache. At the 20th anniversary of the Blessing of the Fleet held at the Sunderland Marine Pier on Saturday afternoon, hundreds turned out on the sunny Nelson autumn day to sample the $3 fish and chip trays, and take in the sights and sounds of the event. But for some, the day is more than an enjoyable afternoon out , it’s a commemoration of those lost to the sea. video >click to read< 11:18
Mount Pleasant, S.C. Blessing of the Fleet honors late founder Wayne Magwood
For 34 years, The Blessing of the Fleet has honored Lowcountry fishermen. This year’s event focused on the life and legacy of late organizer and Captain Wayne Magwood. The community and family members say they remember the years of work their father put in to the one thing he adored. “He was always wanting to mentor younger generations. He would take anyone out on his boat with him just so they could see the hard work and dedication he put into his job,” says Melissa Magwood, one of Wayne Magwood’s daughters. The event honored dozens of boats, full of fishermen for their season ahead. This years event was the first without Captain Magwood who started the event. Video, >click to read< 06:59
The Blessing of the Fleet in Lafitte returned Saturday!
The blessing of the fleet in Lafitte returned Saturday April 24, 2021, after taking a year off because of the coronavirus pandemic. A boat-blessing tradition started in the ’40s returns to Lafitte after a pandemic-year pause >click<. The Boss Man shrimp boat gets into position to be blessed by 
New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond during Lafitte’s blessing of the fleet in the Industrial Canal Saturday, April 24, 2021. The archbishop assisted Rev. Luke Nguyen, of St. Anthony Catholic Church, in blessing the fleet. “This is the first time Lafitte has an archbishop to bless the boats,” Nguyen said. lots of photos!, >click to review< 09:57
Hundreds attend the 53rd annual Blessing of the Fleet in Darien, Georgia
Sunday, hundreds of people gathered around the waterways of Darien to take part in the 53rd annual Blessing of the Fleet. The tradition celebrates the area’s biggest industry, shrimping. “This is the very heart of the community. For these men and women to know they’re supported means a tremendous amount to them,” said Bill Barton, Priest for St. Andrew’s & St. Cyprian’s Episcopalian Churches. >video, click to read< 13:09
Tilghman Island Blessing of the Fleet: Watermen, first responders honored for life-saving rescue
The watermen’s fleet has officially been blessed, along with five men who rescued a waterman earlier this year and saved his life after falling overboard into the Chesapeake Bay’s cold waters. Public officials, community and religious leaders and locals gathered at Dogwood Harbor in Tilghman Island on Sunday, April 11, to give their blessings to the watermen. The ceremony offers good graces to the seafood catchers as they prepare to fish, crab and oyster in the Bay and its tributaries this year. The annual “blessing of the fleet,” comes just after crabbing season officially began on April 1. photos, >click to read< 08:42
Back on the Bayou: Local shrimp boat blessings return after a year lost to COVID
In a decades-old tradition, Catholic churches in fishing communities throughout south Louisiana lead the blessings in hopes of a safe and prosperous shrimp season. This year, the Rev. Antonio Speedy of Holy Family Catholic Church said the Blessing of the Fleet in Bayou Grand Caillou will look more like normal but will still have to keep the pandemic in mind. “It will be mostly family units on the boats, and it’s an outdoor event, so there will be plenty of wind blowing around, but we still have to stay prudent.” >click to read< 10:02
34th Annual Blessing of the Fleet will be April 25th, craft show applications available
The Town of Mount Pleasant Blessing of the Fleet & Seafood Festival craft show applications are now available. The 34th annual festival will be April 25 at Memorial Waterfront Park. The Blessing of the Fleet & Seafood Festival aims to promote local fishermen and the town’s seafood legacy, educate the public on the importance of supporting local fishermen and shrimpers by buying wild-caught and local seafood, and to give back to the community by giving proceeds to a nonprofit that supports Mount Pleasant residents as well as the event. >click to read< 14:44
Mount Pleasant Blessing of the Fleet & Seafood Festival set for April 25
The 34th annual Town of Mount Pleasant Blessing of the Fleet & Seafood Festival is slated to be held on April 25. After 2020’s event was canceled due to COVID-19, organizers are hoping to hold the yearly ceremony this time around. Applications are now open for the event’s craft show, with the deadline set for Feb. 26. “The Blessing of the Fleet & Seafood Festival aims to promote local fishermen and the town’s seafood legacy, educate the public on the importance of supporting local fishermen and shrimpers by buying wild-caught and local seafood,,, >click to read< 13:04
Yes, the fleet will be blessed on Friday
They did not summon a queen and they did not call for a king, because the contagion had wafted across the land. The Florida Seafood Festival, which would usually be flooding the county with visitors this upcoming weekend, instead had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. But the board of directors has made sure that one important aspect of the festival, the blessing of the fleet, will not be abandoned, and leading it will be an honorary King Retsyo. “Everybody needs a blessing at some point,” said board member Tress Dameron. >click to read< 08:12
Boats are blessed on the bayou during the annual St. Bernard Blessing of the Fleet
Shrimp, crab and fishing boats adorned in flags lined up for the annual Blessing of the Fleet in Saint Bernard Parish. Each boat was blessed with holy water by Archbishop Gregory Aymond in front of Robin Seafood Co. The Charlito donates money to the church during the annual St. Bernard Blessing 
of the Fleet in St. Bernard, La., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Decorated shrimp, crab and fishing boats lined up to be blessed by Archbishop Gregory Aymond. The Ellie Margaret shrimp boat travels down the bayou fore the annual St. Bernard Blessing of the Fleet in St. Bernard, La. More photo’s, >click here< 22:36
The Blessing of the Fleet in Stonington, Connecticut
The tradition of the annual Blessing of the Fleet in Stonington continued this year, albeit with a much smaller crowd and scaled-back ceremonies. The blessing remembers local fishermen who have died at sea and honors the vessels — along with their captains, owners, crews and families — that will go out to sea in the year ahead. The gathering took place July 26 after a Fishermen’s Mass in St. Mary Church in Stonington Borough. >click to read<, and >click here for a photo gallery< 11:28
Stonington 67th Annual Blessing of the Fleet will go on despite Coronavirus pandemic
The 67th annual Blessing of the Fleet with not be a casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike other traditional events across the region that have been canceled due to the virus, organizers of the Blessing will hold a scaled back event Sunday morning in the borough that is designed to preserve its most meaningful parts. “It will be short but we want to make sure we honor the fishermen especially since we lost one fishermen this year,” said Mike Crowley of the Blessing of the Fleet Committee. “This is why we do this.” The Blessing prays for the success and safety of local fishermen over the coming year and remembers Town Dock fleet members who have died at sea. Their names are listed on the memorial at the dock. This year’s event will be even more solemn than usual because it was just in April that fisherman Charles Lathrop, 50, of Westerly, died after falling overboard from the local scallop boat F/V Invictus off the coast of New Jersey. >click to read< 11:49
“This community is very resilient” – Coronavirus doesn’t stop 91st annual Blessing of the Fleet in Biloxi
It’s going to take more than a tropical storm and a worldwide pandemic to stop the Blessing of the Fleet in Biloxi. On Sunday, the 91st annual event took place with a few changes, including one that brought back a tradition to the tradition. Normally, the holy water comes from a much bigger boat, but this year because of COVID-19 concerns, it was launched from the stern of the Terri Lynn – the shrimp boat of this year’s Shrimp King Eddie Rhodes. “It’s a big honor to have everybody on it,” he said. “This doesn’t usually happen.” >click to read< 08:29
Provincetown Portuguese Festival will host Blessing of the Fleet, virtual activities
Organizers of the annual Portuguese Festival have released information about how they plan to celebrate this year amidst the coronavirus outbreak. While many of the in-person celebrations have been cancelled, the 73rd Blessing of The Fleet will still occur, which is held on the last Sunday in June, June 28. However, the event will be downsized and limited so as to not promote big crowds, which is similar to the original Blessing of the Fleet in 1948, according to a press release from event organizers. The time has yet to be determined for the blessing, but it will essentially be the only festival “event” occurring this year. >click to read< 08:34
The 30th annual Blessing of the Fleet has been done differently this year in Juneau
Instead of the annual ceremony at the Fishermen’s Memorial on Saturday, the Alaska Commercial Fishermen’s Memorial Board posted videos online you can view from their website. President Carl Brodersen said four new names will be engraved on the memorial this year, James Lewis, Bob Bennett, Philip Daniel, and James Beaton. The 2019 names now engraved include Michael Walker, Ross Soboleff, Larry Painter, Lester Cole, William Larsen, John Pasquan, Robert Savikko, Joseph Hyde, Robert Becker, and Patrick Peterson. >click to read< with a link to watch the 2020 Video Ceremony @ http://www.akcfmemorial.org/12:37
Shem Creek blessing
On Tuesday, April 14 there was a downscaled version of the Blessing of the Fleet ceremony without the Seafood Festival and the large crowds. A more private family gathering took place on the Shem Creek Park side of the creek with several shrimping trawlers docked and ready for the start of the provisional season on Wednesday, April 15. Chaplain Jeff Wallace of Charleston Port and Seafarers Society blessed each vessel with holy water and prayed that each would have a bountiful season for a bountiful season for each. Boats included: Winds of Fortune, Eleanor Paige, Miss Bridget, The Family Thing and the Lady J were all blessed at the ceremony. 20 photo’s, >click to read< 15:13
Blessing of the Fleet honors Trinidad’s fishing community
Hundreds gathered on the bluffs above Trinidad’s bay on a clear and crisp Thursday morning for the annual Blessing of the Fleet. As people walked to the site where the ceremony was held at the intersection of Trinity and Edwards streets, lively tunes were pumped through the speaker system.,, “We are so grateful for this glorious, crisp, dry fall day,” she said, “for the opportunity to gather together as a community to celebrate, honor and give thanks for the bounty of the oceans and for those whose livelihoods provide us with its nourishment.” >Photo’s, >click to read< 11:26
Blessing of the Fleet: Ceremony honors industry, heritage
The fishermen’s willingness to risk their lives on the open water to make a living providing fresh seafood is why the Blessing of the Fleet ceremony weighs heavily on the community’s heart. This year’s ceremony was held Sunday at the N.C. State Port of Morehead City. It marks the 21st annual event after last year’s Blessing was canceled due to Hurricane Florence’s lasting impact on the county in mid-September 2018, especially to the fishing community. >click to read< 50 Photos: Blessing of the Fleet in Moorehead City, North Carolina >click to review< 08:45
50 Photos: Blessing of the Fleet in Moorehead City, North Carolina
The annual Blessing of the Fleet asks for God’s blessing on the commercial fishermen, and it honors the men and women – both past and present – of the fishing industry. The 21st Annual Blessing of the Fleet took place Saturday at the North Carolina State Port in Morehead City. Here are 50 photo’s of the Laying of the Wreaths, and the boat procession. >Click to read< 17:35
Blessing of the Fleet ceremony enters 21st year
A popular part of the N.C. Seafood Festival is remembering and recognition of the commercial fishing industry. The Blessing of the Fleet ceremony honors those who work on the water.,,, Kenny Rustick has been a commercial fisherman since he was a small child, fishing with members of his family.,, “It’s got a lot of meaning. It’s a time of year that the fishermen and their families come together and the communities all come together to memorialize the ones that’ve left us,”,,, Mr. Rustick and Mr. Grant were fishing aboard the Mad Lady II last July when the vessel overturned in Pamlico Sound. The men were lost at sea for 14 hours. >click to read< 07:49
Connecticut’s last commercial seaport — Stonington — shines in Mystic shadow
It’s a hodgepodge of a parade for sure, but one that holds the same significance year after year in this Connecticut fishing village. Upon completing their lap around the square, the pirates, pipers and hot rods, along with the spectators, move en masse the short distance to the Town Dock for the annual Blessing of the Fleet.,,, The blessing and its reason for being, too, have evolved. What once was a way of life for this little village has literally sailed out to sea. “We don’t have enough fish coming through the door,” said Mike Gambardella, whose family owns one of the last packing facilities and wholesale fish houses in Connecticut. >click to read<12:34
Blessing of the Fleet is May 5 in Newport
The Newport Fishermen’s Wives will once again be sponsoring an event that has become a strong tradition in Newport’s fishing community called the Blessing of the Fleet.,,, This year’s blessing will be on Sunday, May 5, in conjunction with Newport Loyalty Day & Sea Fair Festival. The Newport Fishermen’s Wives are focusing this year’s events on the importance of safety. Fishing is the most dangerous occupation in the United States. The fisherman safety and survival training is essential to ensure fishermen can respond to emergencies while at sea and save lives. >click to read<12:52
Sneads Ferry fishing community honored at annual Blessing of the Fleet
Reading from II Chronicles, Pastor Dane Yates of Covenant Church urged the fishing and shrimping families of Sneads Ferry to keep strong and not lose hope for there was a reward for their hard work. “Today we’re here to bless our fishing community,” he said in a booming voice that made up for the sounds of the gust and the drone overhead. “They work tirelessly through the winds and the rain and the cold and the heat … they do it day in and day out because they love our community and they love what they do.” Photo’s, >click to read<18:41
