WaterFront Alliance Boat Parade
On October 7th, 2019, our class was invited to the Boat Parade for Waterfront Alliance “Hero of the Harbor“ Gala Dinner at Chelsea Piers. In order for us to get underway, we needed to do an engine check: checking oil, coolant, alternator belt tension, bilge water levels, and the transmission drive oil. We also get lines assigned to us and a helms person. We took Privateer from Pier 101 in Governors Island to Pier 61 in Chelsea Piers.
We got there an hour early, so we stopped by my job at Classic Harbor Line for a little bit to do an unplanned site visit. I showed my class around the boats Manhattan and Full Moon then introduced them to my employer, Sarah Pennington. Sarah brought us aboard Full Moon and talked to us about what kind of cruises we do and our different boats: Yacht Manhattan, Yacht Manhattan II, Yacht Kingston, Yacht Full Moon, Schooner Adirondack, and Schooner America 2.0. She also mentioned how to go about getting employed there and what kind of skills you need in order to be a successful deckhand or dockside. I am currently a Dockside at Classic Harbor Line which means I catch and drop lines, assist crew when needed, and assist passengers on and off of our boats. I work alongside two of our alumni, Anderson Greaker and Jelani Wiltshire, as well as a current student, Timothy Morrison. Anderson is one of our captains on Yacht Manhattan and Manhattan II, and Jelani was a dockside and moved up to becomes a deckhand on both Manhattans as well. Timothy was a dockside as well , and moved up to a first mate during his second season with the company.
After enjoying our time at Classic Harbor Line we got back out onto the water and got ready to finally be in line for the Boat Parade. As we got closer to the pier someone announced our boats name and a slight background to it while we stood on the port side and waved to everyone watching us. The people on the pier looked very amused and were smiling with a lot of joy as they watched the boats go by. From the boat we also saw SUNY Maritime students in uniform, some being Harbor School alumni too. After doing a couple rounds of waving and smiling, we docked our boat at Pier 59 and walked to the event site.
~Mayra Puntier
