Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island

Before being launched, SSV Oliver Hazard Perry's hull was painted with supplies donated by OHPRI Marine Trades Partner Interlux Yacht Paint (OHPRI/Matt Gineo)

NEWPORT, R.I. (December 13, 2011) –Rhode Island’s Education-at-Sea School Ship, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry, tested the waters of Providence Harbor and upper Narragansett Bay Monday, December 12, when it was launched at Sims Metal Management (formerly Promet Marine) in Providence, R.I. and towed to its new home at Senesco Marine in North Kingstown, R.I.. At Senesco Marine, one of the Northeast’s premier shipyards for new construction and vessel repair, the non-profit organization Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island (OHPRI) will continue building the 196-foot (sparred length) steel-hulled ship.

“Up until now we’ve been mostly laying groundwork,” said OHPRI Construction Supervisor Rick Williams.  “This whole year has been devoted to welding, repairs and inspections, but now we are entering the real building stage. Senesco is where all the major construction will be taking place.”  Williams explained that this includes the fabrication of fuel and wing tanks; installation of the lower deck as well as machinery, engines, and generators; fabrication of the new topsides, weather deck, bulwarks and transom; and the stepping of the ship’s three masts.

Before hitting the water, the bottom of SSV Oliver Hazard Perry’s hull was painted with supplies donated by OHPRI Marine Trades Partner Interlux Yacht Paint. The ship was towed approximately 18 miles from Sims to Senesco by Reagan Construction Corp., also an OHPRI Marine Trades Partner.

“We’re very excited about the new location and the fact that the ship can remain in Rhode Island for completion,” said Williams, adding that Senesco Marine has been building steel vessels on 26 acres of land at Quonset Point since 1999. “Senesco will fit the bill perfectly.”

The hull of the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry was launched at Sims Metal Management (formerly Promet Marine) in Providence, R.I. and towed to its new home at Senesco Marine in North Kingstown, R.I. (OHPRI/Matt Gineo)

Since the hull was first bought by OHPRI in 2007 from a Canadian group, the organization has worked to create a network of donors and suppliers to help build the ship while focusing on the maritime heritage of Rhode Island. The list of OHPRI Marine Trades Partners continues to grow rapidly and includes Furuno USA, Hall Spars and Rigging, Harken, Hood Sailmakers, KVH Industries, Matthew Smith Naval Architect, Milton CAT, Newport Harbor Corporation, Ocean Navigator Publishing and Onne van der Wal Photography.

”These fine companies, representing the best of Rhode Island’s world renown marine industries, have stepped up to become partners, stretching our precious resources as we create this floating education facility,” said Williams. “We appreciate their involvement and invite others to join in.”

More About OHPRI:
Transforming the traditional classroom experience, OHPRI is bringing experiential learning to life with the construction of Rhode Island’s Education-at-Sea School Ship, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry. OHPRI’s mission is to offer students of all ages a platform for experience-based education that supports and promotes tall ship sail training, marine trade workforce development, as well as marine conservation and environmental stewardship.

By 2013 – once its deck, masts, rigging, sails and electronics have been added – the ship will be the flagship for Rhode Island, sailing

The hull of the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry was towed to its new home at Senesco Marine by Reagan Construction Corp., a OHPRI Marine Trades Partner (OHPRI/Matt Gineo)

as a 196-foot (sparred length) working vessel and supporting itself with education-at-sea programs. When not performing educational objectives offshore, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry will be prominently displayed and available to the public in Newport and in other Rhode Island and New England ports to help promote tourism and generate new business.

Becoming a Marine Trades Partner:
Members of the marine industry can help build the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry through monetary donations, products or services (in-kind or wholesale).

To become an OHPRI Marine Trades Partner, please contact OHPRI Construction Supervisor Rick Williams, 401.841.0080, Williams@ohpri.org

For more information about OHPRI visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, Buliod-Perry House, 29 Touro Street, Washington Square, Newport, R.I., 401.841.0080.

Follow OHPRI on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ohpri

NEWPORT, R.I. (September 7, 2011) - Collaborating with the community is an important part of the Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island (OHPRI) mission, and the non-profit organization is working to cast a wider net in the marine industry as it forges ahead with construction of the Education-at-Sea school ship Oliver Hazard Perry and the development of its educational programs.

“We are formally announcing a program where we are looking to partner with the marine trades for our shipbuilding project,” said OHPRI Chairman Bart Dunbar. “Our current partners have generously offered significant discounts and donations of goods and services, and more partnerships will allow us to help reinvigorate the marine industry, which is an important part of Rhode Island’s economic development.”

SSV Oliver Hazard Perry is currently undergoing construction at Promet Marine Services in Providence, R.I., and has already made its footprint in the marine trades industry by working with businesses such as Bay Marine Inc., Furuno USA, Hall Spars and Rigging, Harken, Hood Sailmakers, Interlux, KVH Industries, Milton CAT, Newport Harbor Corporation, Ocean Navigator Publishing and Onne van der Wal Photography. By 2013, the organization will have employed approximately 50 skilled workers. After 75 percent of the ship has been completed, it will return to Newport waters where it will be on display as an educational public exhibit. Its masts, rigging and hardware will be configured and installed while interior accommodations and other improvements are finished.

By July 4, 2013 the Class A tall ship will sail as a 196′ (sparred length) working vessel, supporting itself with education-at-sea programs and employing approximately 17 people, with an office, staff and crew. OHPRI will team up with public and private schools, colleges, universities and educational and cultural organizations, and the ocean school ship will be outfitted with equipment to accommodate each educational mission. When not performing its education-at-sea objectives offshore, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry will be prominently displayed and available to the public in Newport and in other Rhode Island and New England ports to help promote tourism and generate new business.

OHPRI at the Newport International Boat Show (September 15-18)
With the Newport International Boat Show making its way to the Newport Yachting Center on Thursday, September 16, OHPRI will be able to reach out and broaden its network in the marine trades. The organization will have Booth #50 in Tent C and will run a multi-media presentation about the shipbuilding progress and the development of its educational platform. OHPRI also will be promoting its boat donation program with Block Island Maritime Funding, which allows individuals to donate boats to the foundation and receive a tax deduction for the full appraised value of the donated vessel.

“This will be our third year attending the Newport International Boat Show,” said Dunbar. “We love being a part of the event and have made great connections with marine companies and those who are passionate about boating, which is so integral to our heritage and future as the Ocean State.”

For more information or to contribute to the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry Education at Sea programs, visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, Buliod-Perry House, 29 Touro Street, Washi ngton Square, Newport, R.I., 401-841-0080.

For more information about OHPRI at the Newport International Boat Show, visit http://www.newportboatshow.com/ or contact Board Member Nancy Piffard at npiffard@newportexhibition.com.

$200,000 McBean Grant Awarded and $500,000 Stratus Challenge Presented

NEWPORT, R.I. (August 8, 2011) – Back in 2008, it was a perfect time for Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island (OHPRI) to find a deal on a tall ship hull, but a formidable year to launch a multi-million dollar campaign to acquire the vessel and finish its build-out as Rhode Island’s official Education-at-Sea school ship. The 501(c)3, Newport-based organization this month surpassed the $4 million mark in its $6.6 million goal to complete the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry, a 196’ (sparred length) three-masted, square rigger to be used as a platform for experiential education that supports and promotes sail training, marine trade workforce development and marine conservation and environmental stewardship to students of all ages.

“With the commitment early on of several private donors, we were able to acquire the steel hull of the former HMS Detroit, which had been built by a group in Canada,” said OHPRI Chairman Bart Dunbar. “In the three years since we moved it to Rhode Island, we have made great strides in our fundraising efforts.” Most recently, the Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust awarded a grant for $200,000 to OHPRI. The Trust provides grants to organizations focused on environmental preservation that enhances the quality of life in Newport, RI.

This momentum spurred OHPRI Board Member Regis de Ramel’s Stratus Foundation to put in place a $500,000 challenge grant, whereby if any new or existing donor contributes $500,000, the Stratus Foundation will increase its current commitment of $250,00 to $500,000, thus earning $750,00 in new philanthropic revenue.“These major gifts, added to the generosity of our many Plank Owners, will build the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry as our state school ship between now and 2013 when we want to begin enrolling students,” said Tom Goddard, OHPRI’s fundraising chairman. “That $500,000 donor is key to our 2012-13 shipbuilding efforts, yet we will eagerly welcome 500 more Plank Owners.”

Two years ago, the organization began offering recognition as a Plank Owner for donors who pledge $1,000 or more over two years, and over 200 people, businesses and foundations have since signed on. “At our first strategic planning retreat back in 2008, we knew we had to be creative and thoughtful in our fundraising to gain momentum and come out strong when the economy improved. This was when our Plank Owner program was conceived.”

The roll out of the Plank Owner program was followed with an announcement that formalized a boat donation program through Block Island Maritime Funding. Boats donated to Block Island Maritime Funding are chartered for three years to prospective owners and then sold, with proceeds directed to OHPRI. “We have already earned $175,000 from this initiative and expect a total of $550,000 with the inventory of boats recently donated,” said Dunbar. “This program is a real winner for all parties and we hope to keep seeing the boat donations in the future.”

With $4 million now committed, including a $1.6 million conditional construction loan from Bank Newport, OHPRI is in overdrive in its quest for the final $2.6 million. “With continued support, we will be able to finish construction of the ship in Rhode Island and charge ahead with the design of our educational programs,” said Dunbar, emphasizing that an educational director, Betsey Hyman, has been in place for several months, and OHPRI is cooperating with Rhode Island colleges, as well as public, independent and charter schools to operate academic programs aboard the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry. “This project has the ability to change this community for the better and we need all hands on deck. We are committed not only to providing Education at Sea opportunities to young people, but also engaging the community’s waterfront related organizations in every step of the ship’s development and showcasing and supporting the marine trades that have become so vital to Rhode Island’s economy.”

Ship Building Update
With the help of many generous supporters, OHPRI is well into Phase II of construction, which has included transportation of the hull from Newport, R.I., to Promet Marine Services in Providence, R.I. for government inspections, design work, and the beginning of major steel and mechanical work. Seventy five percent of the ship will have been completed before the ship returns to Newport waters for Phase III of construction. With a berth at Louis Jagschitz Pier (State Pier Nine) on Long Wharf, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry will be viewable as an educational public exhibit, and its masts, rigging and hardware will be configured and installed while interior accommodations and other improvements are finished.

Phase IV has the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry sailing as a working vessel, supporting itself with Education at Sea programs and employing approximately 17 people, with an office, staff and crew that has an operations budget of $1.4 million each year. The ship will have a strong physical presence in Rhode Island waters and run its programs throughout New England, Canada and the Great Lakes during the summer and the Caribbean in winter. It will have a capacity for 100 students and crew for day sails and 13 crew members and 36 students for overnight sails.

For more information or to contribute to the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry Education at Sea programs, visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, Buliod-Perry House, 29 Touro Street, Washington Square, Newport, R.I., 401-841-0080.

WHAT: Alliance for a Livable Newport hosts Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island (OHPRI) Forum, which will provide an update on the shipbuilding progress of the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry and the OHPRI program development.

Panelists Include:
Bart Dunbar, OHPRI Chair & President, Bowen’s Wharf Co.
Paul O’Reilly, OHPRI Board member & President, Newport Harbor Corp.
Capt. Eric Williams III, USCG (Ret.) & OHPRI Shipbuilding Committee Chair Elizabeth Hyman, OHPRI Education Coordinator
Wendy Mackie, Executive Director of Clean the Bay, Inc.

WHEN: Monday, July 25, 2011, 6:00 to 7:45 p.m.

WHERE: The Program Room, Newport Public Library, Newport, Rhode Island

MORE INFORMATION: Transforming the traditional classroom experience, OHPRI is bringing experiential learning to life with the construction of Rhode Island’s first Education at Sea school ship, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry. OHPRI’s mission is to offer students of all ages a platform for experiential education that supports and promotes tall ship sail training, marine trade workforce development, as well as marine conservation and environmental stewardship.
Once its deck, masts, rigging, sails and electronics have been added, it will sail as a 207’ (sparred length), three-masted, square rigger – the largest ship in America owned by an educational non-profit organization.
The steel hull is currently dry-docked and undergoing work at Promet

Marine Services in Providence and will return to Newport waters in 2012 for Phase II of construction and fitting out, which will take place at the dock in view of the public, and is expected to set sail July 2013. OHPRI set out on an ambitious timetable for raising $6 million to fund the acquisition of the building the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry and has currently raised over $4 million, and Phase I of construction is nearly fully funded.

For more information or to contribute visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, Buliod-Perry House, 29 Touro Street, Washington Square, Newport, R.I., 401.841.0080

Follow OHPRI on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ohpri

For more information on the forum or to submit questions, please contact info@allianceforlivablenewport.org

Industry Partners:
Furuno, Milton Cat, Bay Marine Inc., Interlux, Ocean Navigator, Professional Mariner, Harken, Hood Sailmakers, Onne van der Wal Galleries and Hall Spars Inc.

Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island’s newly appointed Educational Director, Betsey Hyman (Photo courtesy of OHPRI/Trixie Wadson)

NEWPORT, R.I. (June 15, 2011) –Through the eyes of Betsey Hyman, the newly appointed Educational Director of non-profit Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island (OHPRI), the learning opportunities are endless aboard Rhode Island’s Education at Sea school ship SSV Oliver Hazard Perry. The vessel will serve as a platform from which students of all ages can learn about sail training, navigation, oceanography, the marine trades and Rhode Island’s rich maritime history. Hyman, who was selected to join the OHPRI team earlier this year, has spent the last few months scouring the eastern seaboard to learn more about maritime education programs at other facilities and how they have been woven into curriculums. In fact, just this past month, Hyman, along with OHPRI board members stepped aboard the United States Coast Guard (USCG) Tall Ship EAGLE in New London, Conn. to find out more about how the USCG trains its future officers.

“When boarding the EAGLE, some people see ropes, storage facilities and a lot of sailing gear on the deck and below decks, which can be overwhelming,” said Hyman. “But everything that I saw translated into opportunities to learn – opportunities of the kind we will be able to offer on the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry.”

Though the programs aboard EAGLE differ from OHPRI’s by virtue of their focus on training cadets and officer candidates, many of the crew members from the USCG are sailing for the first time; therefore, basic education at sea becomes very important. “This type of experiential learning is tough to put a price on,” said CDR Paul Flynn of the Coast Guard Officer Candidate School. “The EAGLE does two things: first, it compliments what we’re trying to do in the classroom in terms of all the navigation and operations and second, it compliments what we’re trying to do in the barracks in terms of leadership, because it puts these students out on the ocean for two weeks where they are really dependent on one another.”

Aboard United States Coast Guard Tall Ship EAGLE in New London, Conn. (Photo courtesy of OHPRI/Kirsten Ferguson)

Hyman and the OHPRI team are also in the process of conducting studies within Rhode Island. “We have established a focus group of Rhode Island teachers and school administrators who will provide guidance and input as we develop offerings,” said Hyman. “These educators represent a cross section of grades K through 12 coming from public, charter and private schools across the state, all with an interest in developing experiential education programs.” Hyman also has collaborated with the regional NSF SMART Center at Tidewater Community College; conferred with the Maritime Academy Charter High School in Philadelphia and toured the New York Harbor School on Governor’s Island in New York.  As well, she is exchanging information with programs in Savannah, Georgia and Tampa, Florida. “I am open to exploring everything at this point,” said Hyman.

A Rhode Islander through and through, Hyman has always lived and worked in the state. She taught for 25 years in East Providence. She was awarded the Christa McAuliffe Fellowship in 1997, giving her the opportunity to work at the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) for two years. In 1999, she became the principal at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Middletown, R.I. She later returned to the RIDE to continue development work with curriculum, instruction and assessment until retiring in 2008.

While in the classroom, Hyman strove to infuse curriculum and instruction with Rhode Island’s maritime heritage and culture in Narragansett Bay and beyond. “If we have four hundred miles of coastline, then students need to know what that means,” said Hyman. When Student Ocean Challenge (SOC) programs were active, they offered opportunities for students to engage in real-time sailing events from their home base. Working with SOC, “my students went around the world – saw life at sea and in foreign ports through the eyes of the skippers. Now, aboard SSV Oliver Hazard Perry, we have the opportunity to keep maritime education front and center and broaden the understanding of what our state’s maritime world is about,” said Hyman.
 
As the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry undergoes the next phase of its construction at Promet Marine Services in Providence, Hyman and her OHPRI team will continue on their quest to develop the most fitting shipboard, experiential programs for students of all ages. Once the ship’s deck, masts, rigging, sails and electronics have been added, it will sail as a 207’ (sparred length), three-masted, square rigger – the largest privately owned school ship in America.

For more information or to contribute to SSV Oliver Hazard Perry Education at Sea programs, visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, Buliod-Perry House, 29 Touro Street, Washington Square, Newport, R.I., 401-841-0080.
Follow OHPRI on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ohpri.

WHAT: Philadelphia’s Tall Ship Gazela Primeiro Open to the Public in Support of SSV Oliver Hazard Perry

WHERE: Bowen’s Ferry Landing, America’s Cup Blvd., Newport, R.I.

WHEN: Friday, June 3 and Saturday, June 4 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday, June 5 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

TICKETS: $5, for boarding at the foot of Bowen’s Wharf Ferry Landing through the first    weekend in June and can be purchased at the Bowen’s Wharf Welcome Center on America’s Cup Avenue.

Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island Education-at-Sea partners with Philadelphia’s Tall Ship Gazela Primeiro in Newport Harbor to offer dockside visits aboard this authentic, turn-of-the-century (three-masted) barquentine.

Though SSV Oliver Hazard Perry will be 30 feet longer and three stories higher, the 177-foot Gazela will provide an exciting glimpse of traditional maritime sailing and educational opportunities – experiences that OHPRI seeks to bring to the Newport waterfront in the near future.

Gazela Primeiro, built in 1901 at J.M. Medes Shipyard in Setubal, Portugal, was originally a fishing vessel, carrying 40 men to the Grand Banks of Newfoundland every spring. After a remarkably long career, the ship’s last fishing voyage was made in 1969. On May 24, 1971, a crew of Americans sailed Gazela to its new home in Philadelphia, Pa. where it was transferred to the Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild. Gazela is on a five-port 40-day trip up the Eastern Seaboard.

More about Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island:
Transforming the traditional classroom experience, the non-profit organization Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island is bringing experiential learning to life with the construction of Rhode Island’s first Education at Sea school ship: SSV Oliver Hazard Perry. The ship will serve as a platform from which high school and college students can learn about navigation, math, oceanography, sail training, the marine trades and Rhode Island’s rich maritime history. The steel hull of SSV Oliver Hazard Perry is currently dry-docked and undergoing work at Promet Marine Services in Providence. Once its deck, masts, rigging, sails and electronics have been added, it will sail as a 230’ (sparred length), three-masted, square rigger – the largest privately owned school ship in America and is intended to be a symbol for Rhode Island tourism. OHPRI is a 501(c)(3) and RI Incorporated Non Profit.

For more information or to contribute to the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry project, visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, 29 Touro Street, Washington Square, Newport, R.I., 401.841.0080.

Follow OHPRI on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ohpri.

Winthrop Williams Aldrich and wife Harriet (photo courtesy of Lucy Aldrich Burr)

NEWPORT, R.I. (May 3, 2011) – Winthrop Williams Aldrich’s spirit will be forever present aboard Rhode Island’s Education at Sea tall ship, SSV Oliver Hazard Perry, through his daughter Lucy Aldrich Burr’s (Mystic, Conn.) generous donation of $15,000 to the non-profit Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island’s (OHPRI) mission to bring experiential learning to students of all ages. “Lucy Burr’s donation has come at a critical time in the construction phase,” said Bart Dunbar, chairman of OHPRI. “We have just completed the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) inspections and certification as built to date, and now we’re ready to begin cutting steel to finish the hull and move her back to Newport for rigging and final fitting out,” said Dunbar. “We are very grateful for Lucy Burr’s donation and every donation that we receive, and we welcome the community to get involved in the building of this ship.”

According to Dunbar, the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry’s binnacle (which houses the compass on the ship) will be named in Winthrop Williams Aldrich’s honor. A renaissance man, Aldrich enjoyed painting and music, finding much inspiration in the seascapes that surrounded him during summers spent on the water in Rhode Island. Aldrich was appointed commodore of the New York Yacht Club in 1931, one year after he sailed as navigator aboard Enterprise, defender in the 14th America’s Cup. “OHPRI is an organization that my father would absolutely love,” said Lucy Burr. “He was very proud of Rhode Island – he used the state anchor as his first signal flag – and I know that if he could contribute to one success in this state it would be this school ship.”

Winthrop Williams Aldrich was well known for his successful professional life as well. From 1930 to 1953 he was president and chairman of the board of Chase National Bank and also in 1953 was appointed U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom under President Eisenhower after being recognized as a key player in the British War Relief Society (a U.S. humanitarian organization that brought aid to the British throughout World War II). “There is so much history in Rhode Island,” said Dunbar. “Stories like this one remind us of how important it is to give back and commemorate the heritage of our ancestors.”

The hull of SSV Oliver Hazard Perry is currently at Promet Marine Services in Providence, and with the help of donors such as Lucy Burr, OHPRI can complete construction. Once the deck, masts, rigging, sails and electronics have been added, SSV Oliver Hazard Perry will sail as a 230’ (sparred length), three-masted, square rigger: the largest privately owned tall ship in America.

Involvement with OHPRI is multifaceted and the organization welcomes contributions at many levels, including a popular Plank Owner program for donors of $1,000 or more. There are currently 175 Plank Owners of the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry. Other ways to become involved include donation of goods and services from the marine trades industry and donations of private sailing and power yachts. On Friday, May 6, OHPRI will host “Building the Ship,” a reception and auction from which all proceeds will go toward the construction of SSV Oliver Hazard Perry and the development of its at-sea educational programs.

For more information or to contribute to the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry project, visit www.OHPRI.org or contact Vice-Chair Perry Lewis at OHPRI headquarters, Buliod-Perry House, 29 Touro Street, Washington Square, Newport, R.I., 401-841-0080.