Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines :: Logos Hope is given a new opportunity to visit an island she last called in only two years ago.
An opportunity arose for Logos Hope to visit an extra country over the Christmas season. A preparation team was given just over three weeks to get everything ready for the ship’s visit to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Caribbean. Two years after her last visit, Logos Hope was privileged to return to the islands.
Joel Bokelman (USA) is the preparation team’s leader. “Vincentian people love Logos Hope. Here, everyone knows and is excited about the ship.” He adds, “Being able to prepare everything in three and half weeks was an act of God: the Vincentian government endorsed our project and completely got behind it. They are inspired about educational and social development, so they are very excited for 'the book ship' to return.”
On the previous visit in late 2017, Joel was part of Logos Hope's intensive physical and spiritual development course, which had been run in Saint Vincent. “We would run up a hill to the top where there is a fort with a panoramic view of the bay. You’re exhausted but when you reach it, you have such an elevated perspective! Coming back here now, I’ve been doing that same run. It is like a full circle. God showed me He was with me then and He’s with me now,” Joel reflects.
Representing the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Minister of National Mobilisation, Frederick Stephenson, welcomed the crew and said, “In 2017, I asked the director, ‘Can a Vincentian come on this ship?’ This morning, I was told that you have had a Vincentian on the ship for more than a year now.” Cutting the ceremonial ribbon along with the Minister of Education, St. Clair Prince, the dignitaries declared the bookfair open to the public.
The addition to Logos Hope’s schedule was a happy surprise for Fiyah King (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines). “It’s an honour for me to come back to my ‘land home’ on my ‘floating home’ and be part of the ministry in my country. Now my friends and family can see what I’ve been talking about,” Fiyah says.
“Currently, I’m the only Vincentian serving on board and I’d like to see more people going into mission," she says, "Before becoming a crewmember, I didn’t know where I would raise the financial sponsorship or what my family would think… but now, hearing that somebody did this already can inspire others; it isn’t impossible.”