Donations for Insignia crew

[jazcat]

After hearing about the Insignia fire and reading the thread here I wanted to do something for both the families of the deceased Filipino crew member and two South Korean contractors as well as any of the crew who had lost belongings onboard Insignia. I emailed Oceania and this is the reply I received.

 

Dear Mrs. Skelton,

 

Thank you for contacting the Special Services desk at Oceania Cruises.

 

We appreciate such a wonderful and thoughtful gesture. Unfortunately we have not set up any type of account, however if you wish to send something into our main office our Administrator will be happy and make sure they all receive it.

 

Please send this to the following address:

Oceania Cruises/Prestige Cruise Holdings Corporate Office

8300 NW 33rd Street, Suite #100

Miami, Florida 33122

 

Attn: Fiona Applebaum

Director, Corporate Operations

Please make sure to include a letter advising Mrs. Applebaum of the donation you are sending.

 

Thank you for your generosity and we hope you have a wonderful Holiday and Happy New Year!

 

Best Regards,

 

Dianne Blazquez

Special Services Coordinator

Oceania Cruises, Inc.

[seasoned]

My check is in the mail.

 

-Sukey-

[LHT28]

Thanks for the information

[boerneDQ]

Thanks for posting this!

[Wol]

I asked our present CD just this but the answer was that nothing seemed to be proposed company-wide.

That's a shame because there are many of us who consider themselves "family" but who live outside the States, and cannot realistically send donations by cheque to an address.

I suppose that Oceania consider a shipwide appeal would not do the image any good to outsiders, but it would be the only real way of organising donations.

[LHT28]

One one cruise we were on (not Oceania) there was a box at reception (at the end of the counter) that were for donations for the crew fund should anyone wish to donate

Some people put in their foreign currency as well

 

It would be a simple thing to do for Oceania ..a small sign saying it was for the crew of Insignia

 

Some crew left with the clothes on their backs & some may be still traumatized by the incident

Wonder if their things will be packed up & sent to them where ever they are ??

 

Lyn

[StanandJim]

One one cruise we were on (not Oceania) there was a box at reception (at the end of the counter) that were for donations for the crew fund should anyone wish to donate

Some people put in their foreign currency as well

 

It would be a simple thing to do for Oceania ..a small sign saying it was for the crew of Insignia

 

Some crew left with the clothes on their backs & some may be still traumatized by the incident

Wonder if their things will be packed up & sent to them where ever they are ??

 

Lyn

 

As tragic as the loss of any life is, some of this is getting a bit florid for my taste.

 

Two of the three persons who passed were Korean contractors who were previously unaffiliated with Oceania; so beyond the sadness that any of us may feel when a younger person goes before their time, we're talking about a reaction to the death of a single Oceania crew member.

 

The Crew does describe itself, rather euphemistically, as a family, but this is a group of almost four hundred people, working long hours, spread over multiple shifts, in the equivalent of a ten story building. Many of them don't even have a nodding acquaintance.

 

As regards finances, it is my understanding that the crew of the Insignia has not been disbanded, even though the Employment Contacts did give Oceania the right to do so while the ship remains out of service. Incomes will dip because tipping isn't in the picture at the present, but they do have jobs, room and board.

[LHT28]

As tragic as the loss of any life is, some of this is getting a bit florid for my taste.

 

I would say do not read it then but then you would have flippant answer

 

It does not change the fact that 3 people died & some of the crew did not get back into their cabins to get their things

No $ from O or their employer Apollo to buy clothes in Miami

 

Some were sent home & a big part of their income is gone

Some were sent back to work on other ships

 

Some 1st responders are having problems adjusting ...they may be trained in emergency situations but it does not happen daily like land EMS personnel

so dealing with the effects of going into the fire area & bringing out fellow crew members or contractors is still traumatic to some people even if they may have not know them personally

 

I know that land EMS (at least in Toronto) get counselling after a traumatic incidents plus down time .....maybe it does not happen for those in the USA

 

JMO

 

The fund should have been set up with Apollo Group not Oceania but many consider Oceania as their employer

Edited December 27, 2014 by LHT28

[seasoned]

+1 LHT28

 

-Sukey-

[Wendy The Wanderer]

...

As regards finances, it is my understanding that the crew of the Insignia has not been disbanded, even though the Employment Contacts did give Oceania the right to do so while the ship remains out of service. Incomes will dip because tipping isn't in the picture at the present, but they do have jobs, room and board.

 

I'm wondering what facts you are basing your "understanding" on, about the handling of the hotel staff and actual ship's crew? I know a few of the hotel staff got transferred to another ship, but the rest? I presume the ship itself still has a skeleton crew, so that's a good thing for those people presumably. But for the rest, do they in fact all have jobs and room and board? I somehow doubt it. I suspect LHT28 might be right, that many have been sent home (I'm hoping at Oceania's expensive, at least, although I don't even take that for granted), and of course, don't get compensated for their lost income.

[travelglobetrotter]

for getting the information that allows us, if we choose, to donate to the crew. I suppose some fared better than others, while some suffered more financially. Len and I have enjoyed quite a few O cruises, maybe with some of this crew, maybe not. It doesn't matter to us, we still wanted to help, and that is why we sent a check as per post #1, and if, when we board Insignia in April, we find crew members who were aboard in St. Lucia, we will talk with them, and show our appreciation once again for what they have gone through. We've been blessed, and paying it forward helps us be thankful for what we have. Join us, or not. It's your choice. Marlene