Breakfast, Bay Tours and Family Event Mark Maritime Week Celebrations

Thursday, 05 May 2011
Contact: Marguerite Elicone (619) 686-6222

The Port of San Diego is joining its working waterfront tenants, the Propeller Club of San Diego and the Maritime Alliance to celebrate National Maritime Day and Maritime Week.

A series of events are planned to honor those in the U.S. maritime industry responsible for handling U.S. imports, exports, domestic shipments, millions of annual cruise passengers, military shipments and those who currently and those who have served as merchant mariners in service to our country.

Maritime Day Breakfast

On Tuesday, May 17, 2011, the Port and its partners will be hosting a Maritime Day breakfast at the San Diego Marriott Marquis & Marina.

The breakfast will include an informative presentation and panel discussion on how our everyday lives are impacted by what comes through our nation’s ports. Panelists include Wayne Darbeau, President/CEO of the Port of San Diego; William J. Morani, VP-Environmental Management Systems, Holland America Line and George W. Pasha IV, President and COO of Pasha Automotive Services. Captain Thomas H. Farris, Commander, Sector San Diego, U.S Coast Guard, has also been invited to be a panelist. Cindy Gompper-Graves, CEO of the South County Economic Development Council, will serve as the event’s emcee.

The breakfast will be from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Registration is available online.

Family Event & Tours (Note: Tours are full)

On Saturday, May 21 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Port will host a free celebration at the Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier. The event will feature educational maritime exhibits, interactive displays, refreshments, entertainment, carnival rides and prizes. The STAR 94.1 Prize Patrol will be on site from 10 a.m. – noon to hand out free prizes to lucky guests. Employees from the Port’s working waterfront businesses will be at the event to talk about their jobs and how the work they perform contributes to the region. Confirmed participants in the event include the International Longshore Workers Union, Aquarius Yacht Services, Inc., Cohn Restaurant Group, Old Town Trolley and SEAL Tours, H & M Landing, Carefree Travel, South County Economic Development Council, Spa Aquazul – Hilton San Diego Bayfront, Joe’s Crab Shack, Pasha Automotive Services, Marine Group Boat Works, Best Western Plus Island Palms Hotel and Marina and General Dynamics/NASSCO.

The Port is also hosting two free public boat tours to give the public the opportunity to learn more about its operations. The first tour will be held Saturday, May 21 2011 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. The second tour is scheduled for Wednesday, May 25, 2011 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Both tours are full.

The tours will be on Hornblower Cruises and Events’ vessel, the Lord Hornblower, and will depart from the Port of San Diego’s high speed ferry dock, located between the Midway Pier and Broadway Pier.

Both tours will give an up close and personal look at San Diego Bay and its maritime operations, which include imports of bananas, automobiles, windmill components and other cargo. You will also get an up-close look of where San Diegans work and play along the waterfront.

Tour goers will see North Island Naval Station, Naval Base San Diego, shipbuilding and repair yards and the Port’s two marine cargo terminals. Additionally, the vessel will cruise past the Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier, the B Street Cruise Ship Terminal, Harbor Island, America’s Cup Harbor and Shelter Island.

In addition to the Port’s boat tours, the Maritime Day Breakfast and the free family event at the Port Pavilion, the Maritime Alliance is sponsoring a symposium on how the U.S. Navy and California ports are striving to be environmental stewards. The symposium will take place on Tuesday, May 17 after the Port’s Maritime Day breakfast at the San Diego Marriott Marquis & Marina. The symposium will begin at 9:45 a.m. For more information and to sign up for the Maritime Alliance symposium, go to www.themaritimealliance.org.

The mission of the Maritime Alliance is "Promoting the Maritime Community". The non-profit group is the cluster organizer for the San Diego maritime technology community and fosters maritime business and technology innovation through collaboration within the United States and throughout the world.

• Learn More: Ports Bring Home the Goods

View photo slideshow in new window

Maritime Day History

A Joint Congressional Resolution was passed on May 22, 1933, declaring it National Maritime Day.

Observance of this day honors the maritime industry and the benefits it brings Americans. These benefits include high-paying jobs, improved water transportation, importation and exportation of cargo, as well as recreational opportunities. National Maritime Day also honors the contributions of the American merchant marines, who have defended the freedom of the United States since 1775.