Aaron Bremner: Never forgotten

 

It was one month ago today that Hawaii Aloha, along with five other vessels throughout the state grounded during a winter storm. Crewman Aaron Bremner, was lost at sea after a series of large waves rolled the 86 ton yacht washing her ashore next to the Four Seasons Hotel north of Kailua Kona.

The update as of today is that the vessel has been removed from the shoreline, which we are very grateful to the Department of Land and Natural Resources for their rapid response. The heroic effort from the Fire Department (Ladder 7) and Coast Guard during the days of the search was amazing.

The memorial service for Aaron took place in Orange County, CA on Saturday, January 17^th with his family requesting a fund be set up for donations that would go toward replacing Hawaii Aloha so the work Aaron was so committed to might go on among the isolated islands of Micronesia.

The insurance that YWAM Ships Kona had was the only policy type available for ferro-cement hulls and unfortunately did not cover this kind of incident. We are now busy fundraising first to pay for the expenses of the clean up and also to replace the ship.

This event is heart breaking for us, however, we remain committed to bringing medical, educational initiatives and hope through our mission’s work back into the region just as soon as we can. Sympathies have flooded in from around the world, including letters from the President of the Marshall Islands, and the U.S. Ambassador in Majuro, Ministers of the Interior and local chiefs, all encouraging us not to give up or forget them.

We are also humbled by the outpouring of love and concern from the Kona community and wish to pass on our gratefulness. Many people came by and donated food during the initial days of searching for Aaron and have given finances to help us get re-started.

Thank you to the many who have already contributed.  We will bring an update again in the days ahead.  We are being encouraged by the many who are standing with us and remain confident that the work of YWAM Ships Kona will be back in the region again soon.

Thank you

YWAM Ships Kona

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