Volunteers Anne, Greg and Heidi on Lightship Chesapeake.
Four volunteers showed up on a bright clear November day to do a little work on the Lightship Chesapeake. This was the largest work crew from the Chapter to work on the National Historic Landmark up in Baltimore since the Pandemic slowed things down. It will be a surprise to no one that it involved some painting. Volunteers painted a lantern holder, some hand rails, light bracket, and the gas barrel (for maybe the fifth time – it gets a lot of weather sitting out on the deck.)
Another volunteer spent a lot of time and elbow grease trying to loosen some screws on some of the light fixtures. Some had to be cut off. These fixtures will be removed and refurbished and then returned.
With a wire brush and a paint brush in hand volunteers also scraped and primed various other brackets around the ship. If it wasn’t moving, we considered it fair game. It was a good excuse to be outside since it was a beautiful day in the Inner Harbor. There were a lot of visitors who made their way through the lightship, many stopping to ask questions about what it was and how it all worked. Greg was happy to answer their questions. There was even a group of off duty Coast Guard folks who stopped and chatted for a while. You never know who you’re going to meet on a volunteer day!
This was the last Chapter workday for the Lightship for 2022, but look for dates for next year so you can get up close and personal with the lightship. Volunteering gives you an opportunity to spend time on the ship and visit areas not seen by the general public. You are also helping improve the visitors experience and we had several people stop and thank us for our work.
Oh, we also put up the Christmas lights even though it’s a bit early – since this is an easier task when there is more than one person.
Volunteers are still really needed, and it’s a lot of fun. You get to meet interesting people. Please consider joining us next year if you are a Chapter member.
Volunteers:
- Susan Duke
- Heidi Moser
- Greg Krawczyk
- Anne Puppa
Heidi painting gas barrel which had faded with time.
Heidi painting gas barrel which had faded with time.
Anne hanging Christmas lights on the radio room.
Greg trying to remove screw from light fixture.
