BASSETERRE, St. Kitts –LOGOS HOPE, the replacement ship of LOGOS II, is on its way to Port Zante and within three weeks the ship will be ‘Bringing knowledge, help and hope’ to the Federation’s shore.
The vessel, operated by the international charity GBA Ships e. V., is set to arrive on May 13 and will be open to the public from May 14-17. The four-day visit to the Federation marks the ship’s 25th port of call, after spending 13 days in Antigua and Barbuda.
LOGOS is known for its floating book fairs where many have access to quality literature at a fraction of its retail value. However, the new ship has added programmes to fulfil its mission of hope, including community help, outreach projects and a variety of dynamic on-shore and onboard programmes.
LOGOS HOPE is three times larger than any other LOGOS vessel that has visited the Federation and is decked with book galleries, a kids’ area, international cafe and a small theatre accessible to the public. The entire deck is air-conditioned and will ensure a comfortable experience.
The vessel brings to the Federation an expanded selection of over 7 500 books that covers a range of subjects including education, sports, hobbies and religion. There is something for everyone at the LOGOS book fairs, and students would benefit from children’s books, academic texts, dictionaries, atlases and learning resources.
In an interview with SKNVibes, LOGOS HOPE Project Coordinator Andre Choi said that many of the countries the boat visits do not have access to vital literature, noting that she is excited the LOGOS HOPE can bring knowledge, help and hope to over 160 nations.
“We also bring help through community programmes and right now, my colleague is looking at projects for us to collaborate with churches and community organizations.
“In St. Kitts, our ships have been known as the book ship. I am hoping that we could change this to the ‘Ship of Hope’. We want people to know that we are driven in action for the love of Christ. We are more than books; we are bringing a whole new experience of living out love and living out hope,” Choi stated.
During the visit, exciting programmes for people of all ages would take place in Logos Hope’s high-tech Hope Theatre. The coordinator has been in discussions with representatives from the Ministry of Education to accommodate 1200 students daily for the ship’s child and youth programmes.
Since 1970, the non-profit educational charity GBA Ships has operated four vessels (Logos, Logos II, Doulos) that have attracted a total of 40 million visitors. The ships have visited 450 different ports in 160 countries and territories. In total, over 1,400 port visits have been made.
