HAL comes through

[Leslieswiger]

I am VERY pleased to hear and see how well HAL is helping with the Indonesia earthquake victims. Thanks Holland America for what your doing and very pleased that the Indian and Indonesia staff are looked after. Happy Sailings...Leslie Swiger:)

[localady]

Leslie- What kind of help are you referring to?? Just curious.

 

Thanks !

[Cruising Jake]

I read in the paper that HAL flew any affected crew members home at HAL's expense.

[Sierrachik]

Leslie- What kind of help are you referring to?? Just curious.

 

Thanks !

This link is posted on the HAL website, it is in PDF format. It went up a day or two ago I believe. http://www.hollandamerica.com/pdfs/Tsunami-WebLetter_2004-12-30.pdf

[Leslieswiger]

Just go to the HAL web site lower left corner. Also had an e-mail from a friend who is now on the Amsterdam. Cabin steward said that HAL is doing everything to see that they are in contact with love ones back home. I just knew HAL would come through for the Indian and Indonesian staff. Thanks HAL!:)

[dot73]

My heart goes out to Indonesian staff on HAL. How hard it must be to continue working hard, always smiling and being polite, when your heart must be breaking. I hope that the HAL passengers will take this into their hearts and express their sympathies to the workers. I know how much they appreciate when you show interest in their countires and families. Also, if you can afford it, throw in a few extra bucks into the tip envelope and write a nice note. I plan to do that on my February cruise. I especially hope that the small minority of "difficult and high maintenance" passengers realize how lucky they and their families are and give the staff a bit of a break. I cannot even imagine how hard it must be to continue working when you have lost family members, friends and your home. I am sure they would prefer to go home but most cannot because they and their families will need their salaries even more. I am so proud of the way my country, Canada, and our neighbour the U.S., and the rest of the world have reacted to this tragedy with offers of assistance. It is too bad that it takes a horrible tragedy to get counties to cooperate with each other. Maybe something good will come out of this catastrophy.

[Krazy Kruizers]

It's good to see that HAL is doing everything that they can to help any crew members that may be affected.

We sent a contribution to the Red Cross the other day.

[arzz]

Was on the Zaandam Christmas cruise. Many Indonesian crew were aboard, including our cabin steward. Our cabin steward told us that they were allowed to call home to Indonesia on Monday, December 27 which was just about when the world was beginning to discover the extent of what had happened. We could tell that the phone calls really helped most of the crew feel better.

[Southbound]

We just returned home this afternoon from the 14-day holiday sailing on the Rotterdam. According to the information we received from speaking with several Indonesian crew members, only one steward on board was known to have been affected by this tragedy; a brother living in Java was reported as being missing. Hopefully he has since been located and is safe.

 

 

Two days after the disaster occurred, Captain Bos announced that a secure donation box had been placed at the front desk should any passengers wish to donate towards aid for the victims' survivors or, alternatively, have a contribution placed on their account. This morning, prior to disembarking, Captain Bos announced that more than $16,200 had been donated by the passengers on board (he gave the exact amount, right down to the change, but I can't recall it). A loud round of applause could be heard throughout the ship, and deservedly so, for such a great showing of generosity and caring.

[jasl]

Just returned from the Amsterdam and miraculously none of the crew had immediate family members affected. Captain Harris made an emotional speech and announced that donations totalled over $6,000.00 from passengers with one individual donating $1,000.00. Also, many crew members were donating one days pay to the cause and Holland America made a substantial donation. All funds collected are going to the Indonesian Red Cross.

[DFD1]

Thank you all for sharing these wonderful stories about the passenger contributions onboard these cruises. These are very uplifting things and we all need to hear them.

 

We've made a contribution, but I would loved to have been a part of those strong statements of support coming from current HAL passengers.