The Seamen’s Church Institute Appoints New Ohio River Chaplain
The Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) has appointed the Rev. Kempton D. Baldridge to serve as its new Ministry on the River (MOR) chaplain, serving the Ohio River region, effective June 1.
Based from SCI’s Paducah, KY Center for Maritime Education, Chaplain Baldridge will serve mariners along the Ohio River plus river regions surrounding Nashville, St. Louis, and Memphis. In addition to his direct care for mariners and their shore-side counterparts, Chaplain Baldridge strengthens a network of River Friendly Churches who partner with SCI to provide ministry to mariners.
With more than 20 years of ordained experience, Chaplain Baldridge brings a wealth of ministry experience to river chaplaincy. An Active and Reserve US Navy Chaplain, Baldridge completed many domestic and overseas assignments between 1988-1998, including Operation Desert Storm. Chaplain Baldridge also engaged in campus ministry at the University of Delaware from 1993-1999. Since 1999, he has served as rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Waterloo, Belgium.
As a young man, Chaplain Baldridge served his country in the US Coast Guard as Petty Officer (QM3). He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in history at The Citadel in Charleston, SC and his Master of Divinity degree (M.Div.) from Yale Divinity School. In addition to his extensive military and academic chaplaincy training, Baldridge holds a certification in Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM).
SCI’s MOR serves mariners along more than 2000 miles of inland waterways. The Rev. Mike Hammett, a former U.S. Air Force chaplain and ordained Methodist minister, serves as SCI’s chaplain along the lower Mississippi River, Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, and Houston ship channel. Ms. Ann Mills served on the MOR team, recently completing her ministry in January. The Rev. James R. Wilkinson has served more than a decade as MOR chaplain based in Louisville, KY. Chaplain Wilkinson, a retired US Army chaplain, will retire from SCI service on April 30, 2010.
About SCI’s Ministry on the River
Established in 1998, SCI’s Ministry on the River is the nation's only full-time pastoral care ministry on the Ohio and Lower Mississippi River systems. From Pittsburgh, PA to Houston, TX and points in between and beyond, a network of clergy and lay volunteers on the inland rivers serves as a resource to mariners and their families. The program, operating 365 days a year, includes boat visits, counseling services, fellowship, and collecting and distributing gifts for Christmas and Easter.
About SCI
Founded in 1834 and affiliated with the Episcopal Church, though nondenominational in terms of its trustees, staff and service to mariners, the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York & New Jersey (SCI) is the largest, most comprehensive mariners’ agency in North America. Annually, its chaplains visit thousands of vessels in the Port of New York and New Jersey, the Port of Oakland, and along 2,200 miles of America’s inland waterways. SCI’s maritime education facilities provide navigational training to nearly 1,600 mariners each year through simulator-based facilities located in Houston, TX and Paducah, KY. The Institute and its maritime attorneys are recognized as leading advocates for merchant mariners by the United States Government, including the US Congress, the US Coast Guard, and the Department of Homeland Security, as well as the United Nations, the International Maritime Organization, the International Labor Organization and maritime trade associations.
Based from SCI’s Paducah, KY Center for Maritime Education, Chaplain Baldridge will serve mariners along the Ohio River plus river regions surrounding Nashville, St. Louis, and Memphis. In addition to his direct care for mariners and their shore-side counterparts, Chaplain Baldridge strengthens a network of River Friendly Churches who partner with SCI to provide ministry to mariners.
With more than 20 years of ordained experience, Chaplain Baldridge brings a wealth of ministry experience to river chaplaincy. An Active and Reserve US Navy Chaplain, Baldridge completed many domestic and overseas assignments between 1988-1998, including Operation Desert Storm. Chaplain Baldridge also engaged in campus ministry at the University of Delaware from 1993-1999. Since 1999, he has served as rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Waterloo, Belgium.
As a young man, Chaplain Baldridge served his country in the US Coast Guard as Petty Officer (QM3). He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in history at The Citadel in Charleston, SC and his Master of Divinity degree (M.Div.) from Yale Divinity School. In addition to his extensive military and academic chaplaincy training, Baldridge holds a certification in Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM).
SCI’s MOR serves mariners along more than 2000 miles of inland waterways. The Rev. Mike Hammett, a former U.S. Air Force chaplain and ordained Methodist minister, serves as SCI’s chaplain along the lower Mississippi River, Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, and Houston ship channel. Ms. Ann Mills served on the MOR team, recently completing her ministry in January. The Rev. James R. Wilkinson has served more than a decade as MOR chaplain based in Louisville, KY. Chaplain Wilkinson, a retired US Army chaplain, will retire from SCI service on April 30, 2010.
About SCI’s Ministry on the River
Established in 1998, SCI’s Ministry on the River is the nation's only full-time pastoral care ministry on the Ohio and Lower Mississippi River systems. From Pittsburgh, PA to Houston, TX and points in between and beyond, a network of clergy and lay volunteers on the inland rivers serves as a resource to mariners and their families. The program, operating 365 days a year, includes boat visits, counseling services, fellowship, and collecting and distributing gifts for Christmas and Easter.
About SCI
Founded in 1834 and affiliated with the Episcopal Church, though nondenominational in terms of its trustees, staff and service to mariners, the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York & New Jersey (SCI) is the largest, most comprehensive mariners’ agency in North America. Annually, its chaplains visit thousands of vessels in the Port of New York and New Jersey, the Port of Oakland, and along 2,200 miles of America’s inland waterways. SCI’s maritime education facilities provide navigational training to nearly 1,600 mariners each year through simulator-based facilities located in Houston, TX and Paducah, KY. The Institute and its maritime attorneys are recognized as leading advocates for merchant mariners by the United States Government, including the US Congress, the US Coast Guard, and the Department of Homeland Security, as well as the United Nations, the International Maritime Organization, the International Labor Organization and maritime trade associations.