Ship's Log
Updated Dec 17, 2009
Friends of Falls Of Clyde P.O. Box 25008 Honolulu, HI 96825 SHIP’S LOG
We know that there is great interest in the future of the Falls of Clyde. There is a lot going on that the Board of Directors is dealing with, so we felt that keeping stakeholders involved through a report on our website is the easiest way to reach our worldwide audience. Aloha, Bruce McEwan, President 16-31 December. A fairly quiet close to 2009. The Board elected two new members: Anne Stevens from State Civil Defense and Fred Nunes, who just retired from Harbors Engineering Dept. The endowment transfer is still working its way slowly through the legal proceedings, but we are hopeful in early 2010 we will have the funds and will be able to look at investment opportunities. There will be some folks down at Pier 7 tonight to see the New Year’s Eve fireworks off Aloha Tower Marketplace if anyone is interested. Friends of Falls Of Clyde is looking at a very active and positive 2010 and we wish all of our supporters a healthy and happy New Year!!!!! 1-15 December. The board approved moving forward in asking Chris Jannini to create a scope of work proposal so that we can get a sense of the cost for a full-blown drydock sometime in the next year or so. This will help us focus on what funds need to be raised. In addition, it will also help us decide what pierside work we can do ourselves prior to going to drydock. We have volunteer grant writers who are going to see if we can get money to hire a project manager to lay out our preservation works schedule and manage our volunteers. We were fortunate to get a substantial article in the December 9th Star Bulletin that let the the public know what we are planning. The steps to get the endowment are still being worked through, although all parties involved are in agreement as to what needs to be done. We hope to have the funds transferred over by the end of the year or early in 2010. This will really help the year get started on a positive note.
6-30 November. The much awaited condition survey was received last week from Chris Jannini. There is a lot of work for us to accomplish in the next 12-15 months and we will need volunteers to help with much of it. We are preparing grants to hire a project manager to oversee the work. Once we get an idea of the cost of the commercial work to be done, we will be raising the funds to pay for that. Preservation work will be accelerated in 2010. The agreement to transfer the FOC endowment is still ongoing. We are hopeful that this will be wrapped up by year end so that we can form our investment committee. A big mahalo to PENCO for making a generous donation to FoFOC and also selling us pumps that are much needed. PENCO and American Marine have been staunch supporters of the FoFOC and our work to save the ship and now our work to preserve and restore it. Mahalo also to Matson and Young Brothers for providing equipment and storage space, respectively, for the inventory of tools, parts, and miscellaneous property that FoFOC retrieved from the Hawaii Maritime Center. 16 October- 5 November:
The purpose of their inspection was to assess the physical state of the ship and provide FoFOC with a report and recommendations on the scope of work needed to be done in preparation for and in drydock. They spent the good part of a week going and out of tanks and doing a thorough job of inspecting the hull. Their report is due by mid-November. Once the document is received, the FoFOC board will make some decisions with regard to the preservation project. A lengthy list of volunteer activities has been identified so there will be a lot of work done over the next several months. We received word from Marisco that the window for drydocking the ship in January or early February has closed. Setting a new drydock period will be based on how much work is recommended at pierside in the Jannini/Allnut report.
Ultrasound test on the hull The report on the status of the endowment focused on the new strategy of getting the court to agree that the endowment is a trust and Bishop Museum, FoFOC, and the State Attorney General are all in agreement that the transfer should be made. There are some legal hurdles, but we believe that the end is in sight to take responsibility for the funds and their investment. We discovered that with the change in lowering the federal interest rates resulted in only a couple of hundred dollars in interest generated over the past six months. A presentation was made to the Bishop Museum board’s executive committee on October 29 by representatives of FoFOC, Hawai`i Maoli, Pacific American Foundation, and RIM Architects, the consultant for the redevelopment of the Hawaii Maritime Center. FoFOC and Hawai`i Maoli are partnering to lead a consortium of other organizations in redeveloping HMC to the King Kalakaua Ocean Center. Restoration of Falls of Clyde will be a centerpiece of the activities that will be taking place at the center should Bishop Museum agree to transfer it. We believe that there are positive forces coming together that will could us in a great position for the future if everything falls into place. 25 September-15 October. The General Meeting has been set for Sunday, October 25, from 1630-1830 at Pier 7. This will be a potluck with those attending asked to bring some finger food/pupu. Drinks will be provided by Friends of Falls Of Clyde. There will be an update on the drydock, volunteer projects, and a variety of other topics with up-to-the-minute status. The transfer of the endowment has not gone smoothly. Bishop Museum felt it was important to go through the court for a transfer, but the judge who has the case appears to believe that she does not have jurisdiction, so we are looking at a direct transfer from Bishop Museum with our respective attorneys working on the details. Both Bishop and FoFOC want the transfer to occur for the benefit of our work on the ship. Hopefully we will have good news by the General Meeting. The other big news is that we are hiring an expert in ship preservation from San Francisco to inspect the Falls and prepare a scope of work list for drydock, which now will take place in late January or early February in order to get two weeks on dock. 29 August-10 September. Members of the Board met with representatives from Marisco, PENCO, and American Marine, all of whom will be involved in the drydock project for the Falls. The outcome of the meeting was a clearer picture from all perspectives on what needs to be done to get ready for drydock and what to accomplish in drydock. The drydock set for 15 September is not realistic, so it will be rescheduled for early in 2010. We must advise the shipyard of the scope of the work in drydock so that they will have all necessary supplies on hand. It was also agreed that we need to do as much preparation work as possible. This means that we will have a great deal of volunteer work available between now and when we go to drydock. A top priority is secure safe access to the internal sections of the ship so that work can begin. We will be determining what work needs to be done to make sure the Falls will safely make the voyage to Marisco. Notices about workdays will be posted on the website. Besides the work on the ship, we need volunteers to help develop materials for the Bob Krauss Million Quarter Drive. Although it has been almost three months since the kick-ff, we need to work on marketing plan and get donation cans distributed. Anyone with talents in this area can volunteer by sending a note through the web email. Friends of Falls Of Clyde has been signed up with Foodland for their annual “Give Aloha” fundraising campaign in September. If you shop at Foodland and want to include a donation in your purchase, please designate FoFOC and our organization number is 78512. Save your receipt and send it in to us and we’ll send a donation letter. Every bit helps.
Following the Board meeting on 10 September, the directors went aboard the Falls and held a short memorial service for the late Capt. Gary “Skip” Naftel. Our very own piper, Susan Yamamoto, played "Amazing Grace" to end the ceremony. We will be holding a general meeting within the next few weeks to bring all interested parties up to date. 18-28 August. The FoFOC suffered the loss of one of our board members, Capt. Gary “Skip” Naftel, who passed away on August 24th. Capt. Naftel was a vice president and maritime industry liaison and was intimately involved in preparing to take the Falls of Clyde to drydock in a few weeks. His loss will be felt throughout the maritime industry. Some members of the board of FoFOC were fortunate enough to meet with Mori Flapan and his wife, who were in Hawaii on holiday. Mori has been a big supporter of the efforts of FoFOC even from afar. He has had a long career in the Australian maritime industry and has been intimately involved in historic ship preservation. He provided some recommendations for making our efforts successful. His work with the ship James Craig spanned a period of 20 years, but was very successful. He told us that we are well ahead of many restoration projects because Falls of Clyde is in much better shape than other ships that have been fully restored. We are greatly bolstered by this knowledge. Mori Flapan
We look forward to September as being a landmark month for FoFOC. We will go to drydock, take possession of the FOC endowment, and recognize the one-year anniversary of ownership and stewardship of this priceless national historic landmark. Imua!! 10-17 August. The FoFOC Board has decided not to move forward with a one-year celebration on September 26. We will hold an event later this fall. There are specific volunteer work projects planned prior to going to drydock. The next work day is Saturday, August 22, from 9 a.m.-Noon. Weekly work days have been deferred and volunteer work will be scheduled as needed up to the drydock time. You can check the website for scheduled days or call the volunteer coordinator, Capt. Jeff Lansdown, at 230-0940. We enjoyed making the connection with the maritime academy cadets. Although we only met a couple of dozen, we found that there were representatives from four different academies sailing on the CMA ship Golden Bear: Maine Maritime Academy (2), Massachusetts Maritime Academy (3), Texas Maritime Academy (136), and California Maritime Academy (71). It wonderful to see so many interested in the maritime industry of which Falls of Clyde is a great symbol. Golden Bear Cadets
24 July-9 August On 24 July, the Probate Court heard the arguments for the transfer of the Pfeiffer Endowment from Bishop Museum to Friends of Falls Of Clyde. Although both Bishop Museum and FoFOC made arguments for the transfer, the judge decided to request additional information from Bishop Museum and deferred a decision until September. The delay is not helpful to FoFOC, but we are hopeful that the transfer will be made at the next hearing. There have been weekly volunteer work projects on the Falls by volunteers. The work will continue weekly or every other week until the drydock. Currently the drydock, which was deferred from 29 July, is scheduled for 15 September. The exact date will be known as we get closer. Because of the delay, the Board has decided to forego a one-year celebration and fundraiser. We do plan to have some sort of celebration when she gets back from drydock. The drydock will include blasting of the hull, sealing any holes or weak areas, and painting the bottom hull. She will return to Pier 7 in seaworthy condition and will be ready for more preservation work. With the impending hurricane (or tropical storm or tropical depression) Felicia, we needed to shore up the safety lines of the ship. We put out a call and were fortunate to get volunteers from the crew of the California Maritime Academy ship Golden Bear. Golden Bear is currently crewed by cadets from both the California Maritime Academy and Texas Maritime Academy. FoFOC extends a sincere mahalo to the young men and women and their supervisors who came to the rescue and doubled the safety lines on the ship to withstand any winds that may come in from Felicia or any other hurricane that may come before we go to drydock. Volunteers also helped to “batten down the hatches” in preparation for any rain that we may get. During this period the asbestos on the ship was cleaned out, so we have no environmental issue that could cause any problems with drydocking the ship. We have worked closely with the employees of Marisco to prepare for drydock. As we prepare to go to drydock, watch this space to find out more about the opportunities to ride an escort vessel as Falls of Clyde is towed to Kalaeloa Harbor.
We understand that many people are interested in the current status and future of our wonderful national historic landmark, Falls of Clyde. The official spokesperson for Friends of Falls Of Clyde is our president, Bruce McEwan, so all official information will come from him. He can be contacted through this website at bmcewan@friendsoffallsofclyde.org July 21 - 24 - Aloha all, late last week we were notified that the Falls dry dock has been delayed to accommodate an emergency ship dry dock. We are now scheduled to go to Marisco in mid-September. Marisco is providing a big assist to the Falls by trying to fit her in among a very busy schedule. This makes it more of challenge for everyone to set a schedule, but at least we are able to get in line. Up until the time she moves we will be working on the tasks necessary for the tow along with some basic preservation ship projects. Volunteer days are scheduled for Saturday mornings. Board member Capt. Jeff Lansdown is the point of contact for more volunteer information; he can be reached by cell at 230-0940. 15-30 June. The fundraiser tonight went very well. We had over 50 attendees who enjoyed ono food and drink from the Honolulu Café. Our silent auction sold over 75% of the items we had and the door prizes were well appreciated. All-in-all the event was a fine social and networking evening. The net income will help strengthen our financial resources. The drydock date of 29 July will be here before we know it. The plans for the drydock process are coming together and we hope the trip out to Marisco and back to Pier 7 will go smoothly. The assessment and work done in drydock will launch us into the preservation phase and then into the restoration phase of the Falls of Clyde. The future is very exciting!! The volunteers who have been working on and around the Falls have been productive. The aft railing has been sanded down. There is now a security fence set up and a new gangway is just about finished that will make access to the ship much safer than before. Some volunteer work will continue to be done until the ship goes into drydock. Capt. Jeff Lansdown, a board member, is coordinating the volunteer work. Keep checking the website to see the work schedule. 30 May-14 June. We have set our first official fundraiser for 30 June. We wanted to start out with a low key, affordable event. The event will be held at the Dillingham Transportation building from 5-7 p.m. Tickets need to be purchased in advance for $40, with $20 being a tax deductible donation. Food will be provided by the Honolulu Café. There will be a silent auction of Falls of Clyde and other maritime memorabilia. A flyer will be sent out shortly with the details for ticket purchases and one will be posted on the website. We hope to draw on the grassroots base of Falls of Clyde supporters. An agreement has been reached with Bishop Museum to pay for the removal of the asbestos on the piping in the ship. A contractor will be hired and the removal accomplished before drydock. On 14 June, Flag Day, the first of what we hope will become regular volunteer workdays was held at Pier 7. Volunteers did some sanding on the ship and a fence was built to prevent access to the ship’s berth. For those who came by, there was a treat to see the Falls decked out in flags on the port and starboard sides which were borrowed from the Coast Guard and there was a large American flag flying from the stern. The next set of workdays is 27 and 28 June. Details about the work for volunteers will be posted on the website. There will be other special events coming up in the next couple of months, including a One Year Celebration of Friends of Falls Of Clyde’s ownership of our wonderful lady. More to come on this, but save 26 September.
12-29 May. There is finally some positive news to report. Friends has received a $45,000 grant from the Atherton Foundation towards the costs of taking the Falls to drydock in July. We are still waiting tom hear from Aloha Petroleum about the request we put in.
We are trying to set up a fundraiser downtown in June to raise the balance of the funds we need to cover all costs associated with going to drydock. When the date and venue are set, we will get the word out and hope to get at least 100 people to the event. If anyone has items for a silent auction, we would appreciate contact so that we can get them ready. We will also use this opportunity to formally kickoff the Bob Krauss Million Quarter Drive.
We believe that the Bishop Museum board met this week and hopefully acted positively on our request to take responsibility for the asbestos clean up. This is a must do before we can go into drydock. I expect to receive word from them next week.
Attorneys for Bishop Museum have filed the necessary papers with the Probate Court to move the transfer of the Falls of Clyde endowment over to Friends. A hearing is scheduled for 24 July and we do not anticipate a problem with the transfer. 24 April-11 May. The Senate Concurrent Resolution passed which gives recognition to the ship as one of “historical significance as a sailing symbol of Hawaii.” We should all feel proud about that.
We did provide Bishop Museum with the report and quotes to clean out the asbestos on the ship. We have yet to hear from them.
Our grant applications to the Atherton Foundation and Aloha Petroleum have not yet borne fruit, but we hope to get a positive result any day.
The inventory went well and the majority of the heavy pieces are stored away in a 40-foot container. Mahalo to Matson for the use of the container and to Frank White for the storage space. The balance of the inventory was completed on May 9 at the HMC. The purpose of the second round was to catalogue smaller and more delicate items and to take measurements for crates so that they can be moved and stored. We are now also ready to take possession of documents that will need to be sorted and catalogued. This whole process has been exciting. There is a lot of work for volunteers who want to help sort and clean up the various artefacts. Once we get to the preservation/restoration phase and lay out our project timeline, we will be asking for help.
We have a definite drydock window on or about 20 July at Marisco. We will be holding one or more fundraisers within the next two months to raise the funds needed for the transit insurance and drydock.
Bruce McEwan will be interviewed on Rep. Corinne Ching’s `Olelo program on heritage on Tuesday, 12 May. In addition, he will be speaking to the Chinatown Rotary Club on 20 May. Each opportunity to speak allows us to reach out for support from more of our local citizens.
Nothing new to report on the endowment as it goes through the probation process in court.
We do have our own Revocable Permit now for the berthing at Pier 7, which is provided by the Harbors Division gratis for our non-profit organization.
9-23 April. We held a general meeting at the Waikiki Yacht Club tonight and reported on a number of issues. First, FoFOC has signed a lease for the Pier 7 berth with the Harbors Division, which has given it us gratis. When we do go to drydock, we are now assured of coming back to Pier 7.
We are still waiting for the quotes needed for the asbestos cleanup, which we hope to get to Bishop Museum within the next few days. Once this is completed we will be ready for drydock, so we need to see when we can fit into Marisco’s schedule. We want to be in and out before hurricane season begins.
The inventory recording and moving as much as we can to storage takes place this weekend at the Hawaii Maritime Center at Pier 7 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday (4/25) and Sunday (4/26). We expect to have a good group of volunteers.
We are waiting to hear about our grant application to the Atherton Foundation for funds to pay for expenses associated with drydocking the ship. We have also put in a request for funding to Aloha Gas, which is a successor company to Associated Petroleum, which owned Falls after Matson.
The resolution going through the legislature (SCR 138, SD1) has another hearing before the House Committee on Tourism, Culture, and International Affairs on Friday, April 24. We will again be testifying with our support. A positive change in the title of the resolution makes it very clear about the importance of the ship: “Requesting the State to Recognize the Historical Significance of the Falls of Clyde as a Sailing Symbol of Hawaii.”
The big news is a partnership that we have developed with a native Hawaiian organization, Hawaii Maoli, to look at purchasing the Hawaii Maritime Center and create a Hawaii Maritime Education Center with Falls of Clyde being a centerpiece at the facility. The focus will be on education and also on developing skills for the restoration and maintenance of the ship. There are funds available for this type of project and the opportunities are extensive for creating a major educational and cultural venue on the waterfront. We have gotten a commitment from Bishop Museum to give us time to conduct a feasibility study and make a formal proposal for the HMC, if the project appears likely to be as successful as our organizations envision.
Finally, we did receive two quarters of interest from the Pfeiffer Endowment and Bishop Museum is processing the documents through Probate Court so that Friends can take over trusteeship of the endowment. This should be finalized in the next couple of months.
28 March-8 April. The resolution we testified in favor of was passed out of the committee on 1 April and hopefully will pass the full Senate. The House version was heard on 6 April and was also passed out. Another resolution asking for a study to create a cultural heritage district within the Nu`uanu Ahupua`a was not passed. This would include the waterfront and Falls of Clyde would be part of it. Hopefully this idea will be championed by some legislators who are interested in all aspects of Hawaii’s heritage.
On the two issues mentioned above, Bishop Museum’s board did authorize the transfer of the interest to FoFOC. It was a very small amount, but we definitely have need for it to pay the ongoing bills to maintain the ship. The process of going through Probate Court to take management of the entire endowment corpus is now in the works. We hope to have control by the end of the second quarter, when we will draw down the interest again.
Bishop Museum has asked for documentation on the asbestos findings and also on quotes for the remediation. We are in the process of getting formal quotes to submit to them. We are very hopeful that this issue will be resolved in our favor. We believe that the other potential environmental issues may not materialize. Once we have satisfied the shipyard that there is no longer an environmental concern, we can get a firm drydock date.
We are preparing to take a detailed inventory of the various FOC property that is at the Hawaii Maritime Center. Once we have the details, we will be ready to put it in storage until we need it for the restoration and we may be able to have some work projects for volunteers to refurbish some things.
We are finalizing the date for our next General Meeting and will be sending out the notice soon. By the time of the meeting, we should know if we have grant money from the Atherton Foundation to carry us over the hump period until drydock. Our fundraising committee is looking at opportunities for us to get public exposure and awareness. We had a table at the recent Highland Festival sponsored by the major Scottish organizations (Hawaiian-Scottish Association, The Caledonian Society of Hawaii, the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, Honolulu Celtic Pipes & Drums). A Scottish Country dance written in the 1980s to honor the Falls of Clyde was danced in demonstration at the Highland Festival by members of the Royal Scottish Dance Society. We received over $400 from sales of Falls of Clyde items and donations at the festival. We plan on participating with an exhibit for Earth Day Awareness activities this month in Kailua and at the University of Hawaii.
13-20 March. On the endowment issue, it appears that Bishop Museum wants to go through Probate Court to handle the transfer, which could mean a delay. We have still not seen any documents as yet. We are asking for the two quarters of interest accrued even though the principal funds cannot be transferred yet. Our reasoning is that this money is solely for the ship and we own it and must maintain it. We see no reason for Bishop Museum to hold it back.
On 17 March, President Bruce McEwan was taped for a new `Olelo program called “Honolulu Needs.” He spoke about the Falls and its importance to Hawaii. When more information is available about when the show will be aired we will let everyone know.
Another positive and unexpected event was the submission of a House Resolution by Rep. Corinne Ching titled: “Requesting the State to Recognizing the Historical Significance of the Falls of Clyde as a Sailing Jewel of Hawaii.” The two key provisions are that Falls of Clyde “is recognized as a historic jewel of Hawaii” and “should always be treasured and protected by the State of Hawaii and its residents.” Hopefully this resolution will pass with no problem, which will give us another opportunity to keep our work in the public eye.
21-27 March. The hearing on the resolution will be on Wednesday, April 1, 2009 at 1:15 in Conference Room 016 at the State Capitol. It is designated as Senate Concurrent Resolution (S.C.R. 138) and separately as Senate Resolution (S.R. 91). Senator Suzanne Chun Oakland is the sponsor. Anyone wishing to attend or submit testimony should do so. Friends of Falls Of Clyde will be testifying.
We believe that the issues about Bishop Museum paying for the asbestos remediation of the Falls of Clyde and also aiding in the transfer of the Pfeiffer Endowment to Friends of Falls Of Clyde were discussed at the Museum’s Board of Directors meeting on March 26. In a recent correspondence, Tim Johns, President of Bishop Museum, said that they were getting an accounting from Bank of Hawaii on the interest that has accrued in the past two quarters. We have requested that the interest be turned over to Friends for expenses related to the maintenance of the ship. We are hopeful that both issues will receive positive action from their Board.
1-12 March. The insurance has been arranged for us to get the Pier 7 lease, so it is just a matter of processing paperwork. This will give us a definite spot to return to after the drydock period.
We continue to research the environmental remediation requirements and have been advised from a source at the University of Hawaii to have an environmental consultant work with us. We are looking for sources of government funds to help with the cleanup.
Four board members met on 10 March with Dr. Charman Akina, Chair of the Bishop Museum Board, and Tim Johns, the Museum’s CEO. We discussed the two most pressing issues for us, which is the environmental remediation and Pfeiffer Endowment. With regard to the remediation, the Museum’s position is still that they have no responsibility because we should have recognized that there was an environmental issue, because we had access to the ship and could have discovered the asbestos. It is unclear, however, how we could have discovered the sandblast grit, which is under the ballast water, or how we would have discovered that the ballast water itself may be contaminated. Admittedly, we are not entirely sure of the latter two issues as yet. They do not accept our position that the sale was not a true commercial transaction, but the transfer of stewardship of a national landmark and subject to a “good faith” relationship between the parties, which would have required affirmative communication of the environmental conditions. Anyway, by the end of the meeting they agreed to take the asbestos remediation issue to their board at their next meeting, which we believe is on March 26. Hopefully they will step up and pay for the remediation of the asbestos.
The discussion on the endowment was very positive. They explained why they had been delaying and agreed to expedite the transfer. We are hopeful that we will have access to the accumulated interest in the next week or so and that the cash in the endowment will be transferred to the FoFOC account.
On another front, we have been looking at possible grant funds. We will receive word from the Atherton Foundation next month about a grant application we currently have pending. We have also submitted a proposal through OHA for grant monies, which will tie Falls of Clyde more closely to Hawaiian history and the Hawaiian community. We see a partnership that could provide jobs during our restoration period and educational opportunities in the maritime industry.
One item on the negative side is that the U.S. Navy has declined to find a space in Pearl Harbor where the Falls can be berthed and worked on.
We are looking for a general meeting date during the week of March 23 and will send out a notice via our e-mail list once the date, place, and time are set.
9 February-28 February. These past few weeks have been used to do some research and gather cost estimates for the environmental cleanup that needs to be done before we can go into drydock. Board members have a meeting with Tim Johns and Dr. Akina, Chair of Bishop Museum’s board of directors, on March 10. Our hope is that Bishop Museum leadership has changed its position on paying for the cleanup of the ship. We also want to get a firm commitment to transferring the Pfeiffer Endowment to Friends. We know there is interest accumulation from the last quarter of 2008 and we should have some for the first quarter of 2009. The insurance premium paid by Bishop Museum on the ship runs out at the end of March, so we need funds to continue for the next six months. We have also pout in a grant application to the Atherton Foundation, but won’t know the result until mid-April. President Bruce McEwan and John Wright both spoke about Falls of Clyde at the symposium mentioned above on February 21. We both gave an open and honest perspective on the history and current situation we face in our goal to preserve and restore Falls of Clyde. Of greatest interest at the symposium were the presentations on Star of India, Glenlee, and USS Bowfin. In each case these vessels were in worse shape than Falls and have been successfully restored. In addition, Ray Ashley of Star of India and Jamie White of Glenlee both went aboard Falls and opined that the hull is in shape to be preserved. Another speaker at the symposium was the executive director of the USS Missouri Foundation, who mentioned that a surveyor had declared some of the tanks in the ship to be wasted away and needed serious steel work. The Foundation then hired two corrosion experts from Great Britain to inspect the ship and they countered the opinion of the surveyor and declared that the tanks did not need the extensive work, which will save the Foundation a great deal of money. Friends was fortunate enough to be able to have the two experts also inspect Falls of Clyde and they declared the hull to be sound and not in imminent danger of sinking, as had been stated by the surveyor Bishop Museum used. Not surprisingly, the surveyor for both the Missouri and Falls was the same person. Mahalo to Skip Naftel for coordinating the visits to the ship by the various experts who are supporting our position that preservation and restoration can and should move forward. We are also getting a lease for the Pier 7 berth direct from DOT-Harbors. Bishop Museum gave up their lease and as long as we can provide the insurance we will have the berthing. We are currently arranging with our insurance broker to meet the State’s requirements. After our meeting with Bishop Museum leadership on March 10, Friends will hold a general meeting for interested people in order to provide an update and report on our plans.
27 January-8 February. Since the last log entry, Friends has been researching the environmental requirements for the problems we have uncovered. We have also been getting quotes for cleanup of the ship. It will be several hundreds of thousands of dollars, which w e plan to press Bishop Museum for. We have also renewed our effort to get Bishop Museum to complete their contractual obligation to help transfer the Pfeiffer Endowment set up specifically for the Falls of Clyde over to the trusteeship of Friends of Falls Of Clyde. There was a recent article in Honolulu Weekly addressing this issue. Donations to Friends can be made directly to us through our website, so we encourage anyone and everyone to take advantage of that opportunity.
Representatives of Friends will be involved in an upcoming Symposium on Maritime Archaeology and History of Hawai`i and the Pacific on February 21-22. We want to make sure people are kept aware of our plans to continue to preserve and restore our magnificent historic landmark.
27 December-26 January 2009. I’m afraid that the new year has not started out in the best manner for Falls of Clyde. Since the last log, the ship was prepared to be towed to Marisco’s drydock on 15 January. Because of the weather front that came in and the likelihood of high wave action, the tow was postponed for safety reasons. That postponement resulted in losing drydock slot and also the use of the towing tug, which had other obligations out of Hawaii.
The weather, however, was only part of the problem. While preparing for the tow, the surveyor discovered that material covering some old pipes that had been part of the steam boiler system contained what he thought was asbestos. We had the material tested and confirmed that it is indeed asbestos (chrysotile). In addition, when the tanks were sounded for ballast water volume, we discovered that sandblast grit had been left in the tanks when work was done a few years ago. The grit is under water, so was not identified earlier. In addition, we have found that a temporary toilet was put into use while the ship was being derigged and the waste was dumped directly into a tank, most likely polluting the ballast water, which is periodically circulated between tanks. Contaminated water cannot be pumped into State waters, so we are having the water tested to determine its content. The long and the short of it is that the shipyard will not take the ship until it is free of any potential environmental hazards. She will remain in berth at Pier 7 until this all gets sorted out.
Bishop Museum was put on notice of our findings early last week, but we have heard nothing in reply. Our hope, of course, is that the museum will step forward and clean up the ship so that we can proceed with our preservation work. The log will be kept up more frequently as this issue plays itself out. A news release was issued by Friends today and we are being open about the findings, although only the asbestos has been confirmed as an environmental hazard to be cleaned up.
13-26 December. Happy Holidays!! We received notice just before Christmas that an emergency drydocking of a tug at Marisco has delayed our ability to access the drydock on 29 December as previously scheduled. All parties have been advised and we do not expect any problems from Bishop Museum even though the 90-day unavoidable delay. Skip Naftel devised the tow plan and had it approved by the Coast Guard. Everything is ready with the tow insurance and with American Marine/PENCO personnel who will be the riding crew and escort vessel. Many thanks to everyone who has been contributing funds to pay the expected costs being incurred for the drydock phase. We have exceeded the $10,000 level and believe it is only a matter of time before we get the larger donations we need to get to our $65,000 goal. Discussions are currently underway to kick off our Bob Krauss Million Quarter Drive after the first of the year. We have yet to receive the Pfeiffer endowment documents from Bishop Museum. We are told they will be available after the first of the year. We know there is just over $500,000 in cash in the bank right now that will have to be invested after the market stabilizes. We can draw the interest once we have trusteeship of the funds. At the last Board meeting, two working committees were formed for Fundraising & Development and Archives & Documents. Those people who indicated an interest in one of these committees at the last General Meeting will be contacted shortly by those Board members chairing these groups. Two other committees that will be formed a bit later are the Marketing committee and Project committee. This latter one will be the group that will plan out the preservation and restoration of the Falls of Clyde. Ours is ongoing, active preservation work, so we want a marketing group to help keep our activities in the public eye. We are still working to find a home for the ship where the actual preservation and restoration will take place.
Today, 12 December, is the actual birth date of the
Falls of Clyde, when she first came out of the shipyard. A small group is planning a birthday ceremony at 1800 at the ship for anyone interested to mark the 130th year of her life. We all know that she has many more birthdays to be celebrated as soon as we get over this current “bumpy” period and have smoother sailing.
9-12 December. On 9 December, board members Ed Lott and Bruce McEwan met with the board of the Navy League. They briefed the board on the status of the ship and the plans for drydock and post-drydock. The primary purposes of this meeting were to let the Navy League know that we are actively working toward a viable preservation of the ship; that we need any assistance we can get to find a location, like Pearl Harbor; and, that we need to raise the $65,000 as soon as possible. The board members asked some questions, thanked us for our preservation and work to date, and said that they would discuss our request and get back to Ed.
26 November-8 December. We have not yet received the endowment documents from Bishop Museum. We are following up with their in-house counsel to get the required documents. The inventory of items that were part of the sales documents appears to be inaccurate with regard to what is physically at the Hawaii Maritime Center so we are trying to document what is missing and plan to ask Bishop Museum to make good for items that are short. We also have to arrange to have Bishop Museum move whatever items we want to a storage facility for us. We are currently looking for enough space to house some larger items. An estimate of 300 sq. ft. has been made for the needed storage space.
Hooray!! On 6 December we received our letter from the IRS granting 501(c)(3) status as a charitable organization. We can take donations directly, apply for grants, and move forward with major fundraising activities. Our “Bob Krauss Million Quarter Drive” will be our first major event. We are looking for a bank to partner with for the drive.
Our meeting at the Waikiki Yacht Club went well. There were about 20 people in attendance. An update was given on the drydock schedule, which is now confirmed for 29 December, with the ship to be moved at about 0700. The board has decided that no special ceremony will be held for the departure. It is likely, however, that there will be some new coverage. We need approximately $65,000 to cover the cost of insurance for the tow, the tug costs, and the drydock costs. While all parties involved are supportive, we do need to pay our way. There is a request in to Matson to help with the costs and we are hopeful that as word gets out that we have our charitable designation that more substantial donations will come in. We also need to have a location to take the ship after she comes off drydock. The purpose of the drydock is to assess the degree of work that needs to be done in the short and long term. Based on the joint surveyors’ report, the board will decide on how the preservation and restoration will proceed. We are making inquiries into the possibility of locating the ship in Pearl Harbor near the USS BOWFIN, which is under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service.
We will create three committees to begin working on key components for the preservation/restoration and future of the Falls of Clyde. We will have a Fundraising Committee to look at the various options to raise money as we plan out the phases for the preservation and restoration. A Project Committee will run the actual preservation and restoration. This committee will need to establish a phase timeline, gather the expertise for the project, recommend a project manager, identify resources needed, etc. This will be a very big and technical task. The Archives Committee will be responsible for organizing all of the documents, including pictures, that we have. This material will eventually be used in marketing and fundraising efforts and help us put together the educational component of the Falls future.
8-25 November. We met with Bishop Museum’s COO and General Counsel and found that the Pfeiffer Endowment monies have been converted to cash transferred to the Bank of Hawaii because of the current downturn in the market. Bishop is providing us with the various documents supporting the endowment, but there is no endowment agreement per se. We are researching the legal process to take control of the funds. It is likely that some funds will be available to us by the end of the year.
A letter was sent to the IRS requesting expediting of our 501(c)(3) application because of our inability to apply for grants and schedule fundraising events without it. We should know by the end of this week if it will be expedited.
We have been approached by a film company that is in Hawaii filming a new version of Shakespeare’s Tempest. They have a need to film inside an old ship and perhaps do some on-deck shots. They have visited the Falls and have indicated interest in using it for location shots. We are awaiting a proposal from the company.
A general meeting of those interested in the Falls of Clyde is scheduled for Monday, December 8th, at the Waikiki Yacht Club at 5 p.m.
1-7 November. Our Million Quarter Campaign is now delayed also because of the need for charitable status. Fortunately, the Matsunaga Charitable Foundation has arranged for Friends of Falls Of Clyde web donations to be channeled through their organization and bank. The Caledonian Society of Hawaii, Inc., another 501(c)(3), has also extended its organization as a channel for Falls of Clyde donations. We hope that these options will begin a flow of much needed cash. There is now a donations link on this website and we hope it will be well used.
Board members will be meeting with the COO of Bishop Museum to begin the process of transferring trusteeship of the Pfeiffer Endowment over to Friends of Falls Of Clyde. This endowment was provided by the late Bobby Pfeiffer of A&B for the maintenance of Falls of Clyde. It was agreed that the endowment should rightfully go with the ship.
We have also been advised that the initial drydock opening during the week of 17 November has been closed because of an emergency vessel repair. Right now it looks like mid-December for the drydocking. We have until 29 December to move the ship from Pier 7.
19-31 October. We were contacted by both foundations to say that our applications would not be processed without Friends being a 501(c)(3) organization. In addition, we did not meet the criteria for the Castle Foundation. The Board is seeing if the IRS application can be expedited. In addition, we have kept our Congressional delegation apprised of our activities and have specifically asked Representative Abercrombie to see if there is any way we can get some assistance in expediting the application. The Board will meet very two weeks with periodic general meetings.
18 October. We held a general meeting of interested stakeholders to determine what resources we have and to gather ideas for fundraising and for how the preservation should progress. We hope to be able to create small working groups to plan and carry out specific activities.
1-17 October. During this period of time the Board was busy focusing on what needs to be done over the next couple of months. The two critical pieces are fundraising and finding a location for the ship after she comes out of drydock. The application for 501(c)(3) status from the Internal Revenue Service was filed in early-September. To date we have only received notice that the application was received. Preliminary grant applications were sent to the Atherton Family Foundation and the Castle Foundation. Planning was started for a Million Quarter Campaign.
30 September 2008. This seems the most appropriate date to start since it was the day Friends of Falls Of Clyde took ownership and stewardship of Falls of Clyde. It was a wonderful occasion for those who spent so much time and effort keeping the ship from being scuttled by Bishop Museum. The event began with a piper, Dan Sinclair, calling the attendees to their seats. The crowd was entertained with a Highland dance by Linda Schupp. Helen Baskett from Glasgow sang a song of the River Clyde. There were short speeches by Bruce McEwan and Tim Johns, President of Bishop Museum, who then formally signed the sales documents. McEwan paid over $1.00 to close the sale. Representative Corinne Ching presented a Certificate from the House of Representatives marking the occasion. Ginger Krauss, daughter of journalist Bob Krauss, who was a staunch advocate and biographer of the ship, said a few words to close the ceremony. A reception was held at Gordon Biersch.
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