Mariners Fellowship

Westminster Mariners Fellowship

Mariners are small groups of adult Westminster members and friends who meet monthly in members’ homes or other locations to share many different activities, to encourage Christian faith and fellowship and to seek ways to serve the church and the community. If you think you might like to join a Mariners group, contact Rev. Laurie Vischer through the church office.

History

Westminster’s Mariners Fellowship was organized in 1939 under the leadership of the pastor, Dr. Perry Hopper. Through nautical symbolism, members were portrayed as mariners on the sea of life with Christ as their pilot, the Bible as their compass and the church as their anchor. During the period of 1959-1961 there were as many as twenty mariners groups. Pilot, the first club organized, continued for 54 years. There are now 11 active groups. Starboard Mariners, after many years of service, is honorably retired.

Sailing Guide and Navigational Chart

Presbyterian Mariners of Westminster Presbyterian Church Portland, Oregon Westminster Mariners are members or friends of Westminster Presbyterian Church of Portland, Oregon and are organized as Mariners Clubs and a Flagship. Membership is open to all.

Our Purpose

Chart 1 To encourage Christian faith and practice.

Chart 2 To offer fellowship within the church for people of similar interests.

Chart 3 To act as a service organization for the up building of our church.

Chart 4 To develop leadership for the church through stimulating interest in Christian work in the church school and related programs of Christian education and through the missionary emphasis of the church.

Chart 5 To interest people outside the church in becoming active and uniting with the church, and also to stabilize those people who join with us by helping them progress in their Christian living.

A Mariners club shall be identified by a Mariners name.

Clubs shall meet monthly at a time convenient for its members and shall be on record with the flagship as to their arrangements for meeting.

Club and Flagship officers shall be a Skipper and a Logkeeper/Purser. The Skipper and Commodore offices should rotate alphabetically. Commodore for 2007 was Anchors. Commodore for 2008 is Bowsprit. Topside and Compass is semi-retired.

The term of officers shall be from Mariners Banquet to Mariners Banquet (usually held in late January or early February). Names of newly elected officers should be reported to the Flagship on or before the 10th of January. The Flagship is a committee composed of the club Skippers. Officers of the Flagship consist of a Commodore and Logkeeper/Purser. Meetings are arranged for as required at the discretion of the committee.

Clubs shall maintain affiliation with the Flagship by supporting its activities, assuming a cargo appropriate for its membership and by contributing annually to its support at the established rate per member. The annual dues are $2.00, and are to be remitted and the cargo selected is to be reported to the Flagship prior to the first of April each year.

The Flagship stands on the bridge and guides the Mariners clubs, aids the church staff when needed, determines that each club has a cargo and that their navigational charts are in order, aids them in program material and emphasizes the Mariner purposes. The Flagship assumes responsibility for cargos requiring involvements of all clubs including but not limited to: the annual banquet, printing of club rosters, after-church coffee hours, the annual “Kick-off” Breakfast, and Communion clean-up.

The clubs, the Flagship, Session and church staff participate in the recruitment of new members and the formation of new clubs. The church staff may participate and is invited to participate at their discretion as advisors to clubs and the Flagship or under some other arrangement. The church staff is to supply a cargo list to be included with the club roster.

The Sailing Guide and Navigational Chart becomes effective on ratification by two thirds of the clubs and may be amended by approval of two thirds of the clubs.

Prepared by the 1997-98 Flagship and approved by the clubs.