Barbecue on the foredeck on the downwind passage to St. Helena on the passage from Cape Town, SA, 2nd World Cruise in 1981. Jamie Barker, ship's carpenter and Tom Schaffer, the AB. Also aboard Tom & future bride Becky Mignano.

Tragically, Wayne Williamson died in a house fire Dec. 2017.: Atlantic PA. He would be a storied Romancinero as probably the only crew from the rolls of the Romance: South Pacific Voyage: 1977- 1979: sailed on a Brigantine then served in the navy on nuclear attack subs as purser for seven, migrated ashore in Hawaii worked in supply, went the naval war college, Newport RI. spent 2 years in in university in Kansas: developed a original corrosion test with a navy class mate.

2024 - Everybody pitched in as a Marenero- but they,Mates ,that mattered. The Styrman who severed on the Romance. Wish we highlight them-

Ps. I have some skin in the game as the Romance WW2- She was the medical officer on the brigantine and servers as the British call: day; lamps. Pps. Never the later Styrmsn that brought, those moments of support. PPS. If you ever talk to To Schaffer/ Styrman. He will tell you when he was sick with Dengy fever- Mrs K. Brought him on deck and back to health.

PS. Also dug up large photograph of Romance with her wooden lowers in her that I shot in the BVI. Norman Island, when Mrs K would take the clients to see the caves. I will send that along as well, for you to keep and perhaps make it as a image to be part of Romance gear. On a side note, not sure you ever heard this story? We were anchored in front of the Coast Guard station at Charlotte Amalie, when a Freedom Yacht, the first ketch powered around our vessel in the afternoon after work. Clear conditions, calm, the owner on circumnavigating the Brigantine, got to close to the head rig and snapped off the end of the jib boom painted white when he caught it on his back stay. Needless to say skipper was aghast. The crew having witnessed the event were in disbelief. Onward...

2018 - I do no have any intention of speaking about Mrs K. negatively, I just wanted for you to know the dichotomy to you of their relationship. They were an inseparable unit. If you wanted to be aboard, you had to get along with Skippers wife and her banter. For some, that was an impossibility. I spoke on the subject because it was so ying and yang that made up the after guard and a makes one ponder. Robie Price starred in the movie with the Lindo and has a line as helmsman. Tell them to get out of the way. Dick Price: Robies dad. He owned Graves ship yard in Marblehead, he took care of skippers ketch when he was serving aboard tankers, and would have his vessel painted and ready to go to sea when he was on leave and made landfall ashore. Skipper would maximize his 30 days and be underway as soon as possible. Dick Price sold the shipyard to Ted Hood. As a lad Robie knew Skipper from kicking around the yacht yard. Robie was the backbone: Stryman of the 77/78 South Pacific trip after serving on the Regina Maris. The south pacific trip was the setup voyage to position get Romance back to the Pacific and set up for the 2nd World Cruise. Especially to save time by starting from San Pedro. CA. skipper remarked, you either have to go round the world in 18 months as in Irving Johnson and bride Exy: Owners of the Brigantine Yankee or it takes you 7 years because of seasonal weather patterns Anyway, I hope this clarifies some of your points. Ps. The Movie Island especially : Robies scene epic. Originally the producers wanted to physically blow up the vessel, the owners rejected the idea so they achieved the effect with animation, you cant even tell. Just shows you how narcissistic Hollywooder are. Just on a point of order- The Romancia, skipper would hail his command while on shore, technically she had the name of the Thetis during her Hawaiian movie scenes. So technically she was Grete before she was the Thetis and then the Romance. In History she was a vessel ( Thetis), that was commissioned by the first puritan church of Boston to do missionary work in Hawaii via the Horn, see trailer. PBL. Ps. Any word about Jim Brink? Peter Damon said he was in Texas building sails?

I told Peter that when we went to Pitcairn Island, the islander where quoting what he had said to me in 1977 -78 pacific voyage verbatim: photo graphic memory: really oral memory. they said when I told them I was from Boston, they said do yo know Peter Damon( he was from Marblehead MA) WW1: 2nd mate/ navigator. I said no, they responded he said this and that. So I preposed to him we try to develop an oral history of Skipper and Mrs. K. Cheaper box of paints to quote: Orson Wells than film. My goal is to illustrate Skipper as a sailor, American ,and man, rather than a saint. I honor Mrs K. Too , unfortunately she was a alpha female often not as kind as her husband. To be fair they were an inseparable team. My line was you adapt to them, rather than they to you as it was their ship:Romance. They are not going to change. On the Lindo we use to say sensitive but not too personal, Personal but not to sensitive when it came to how to get along with shipmates. 24 hour constant contact. In Darwinian fashion: adapt or depart. That being said, I witnessed a micro aggression from Mrs K. I have a daughter who goes to a Quaker school/ 2018/ After, a seminar on micro aggression, I said it just seem to make my daughter mad. We had three Beloit students for the summer aboard: While maneuvering the sails, specifically hauling on the starboard course sheet which rove thru the bulwarks, the lad was not hauling the sheet with his hips and waist as Bruce Lee teaches you how to punch with power:1 inch punch Mrs K came up beside him on his blind side (right) dropped her shoulder and drove him down to the deck with kinetic force, then picked up the sheet and began hauling Never saying a word. I think she had a bit of a chip on shoulder: time line after WW2 voyage but before they went on their tall ship Canadian trip. She seemed to have an inferiority complex because of Skippers prowess. I just want to tell the story you can edit the base facts. On a side note, I met Glorias brother and family on a 8 glorious days BVI voyage. He told me that when her mom told Gloria to play with the neighbors visiting cousin when she resided at 18 in Detroit, to go out and play she ended breaking some of his bones : jaw and arm. I was speechless. Love to send you recollections,maybe you can help/ edited oral history of Brigantine Romance. Sailors are a smalltribe. It is amazing as in the spirit of St Peter how many people learned how to sail or experienced The Way of Ship( Allan Villiers). The Ks touched. Check out the Chatre Cathedral on youtube: St Peter-is on the back door. A stone dropped in the middle of pond the ripples it creates.