The February 2026 welcome message from the AMWS Chairman,
Mr David Parmeter
Mr David Parmeter
Hello everyone,
And welcome to the February 2026 AMWS electronic newsletter.
This month the faith based providers of welfare for seafarers held a national conference, attended by representatives of Mission to Seafarers and Stella Maris from across Australia. AMWS is a great supporter of these organisations who perform magnificent work in providing care, compassion and comradeship to seafarers from around the world.
I had the opportunity to speak at this conference via a pre-recorded message. In my talk I explained how AMWS can provide financial support to MTS and Stella Maris seafarer centres in ports around the country.
Grants are made to finance, fully or in part, specific projects aimed towards benefitting seafarers. These grants have been put to a host of uses including contributions towards the funding of upgraded computer equipment, kitchen revamps, reroofing of premises, refrigeration and air-conditioning, and purchase of new or replacement buses, for example. These can be categorised as one-off costs.
There is also a policy of reimbursing centres for a range of regular, ongoing costs that are part and parcel of running a seafarer centre, such as internet/wifi; tyre replacement; and vehicle registration. These can be categorised as recurring costs.
So my message to the welfare providers is that AMWS is there to support them. While AMWS has finite resources and must live within its means, we are always looking at ways of supporting the great work these organisations do.
I trust you will enjoy this edition of the newsletter.
And welcome to the February 2026 AMWS electronic newsletter.
This month the faith based providers of welfare for seafarers held a national conference, attended by representatives of Mission to Seafarers and Stella Maris from across Australia. AMWS is a great supporter of these organisations who perform magnificent work in providing care, compassion and comradeship to seafarers from around the world.
I had the opportunity to speak at this conference via a pre-recorded message. In my talk I explained how AMWS can provide financial support to MTS and Stella Maris seafarer centres in ports around the country.
Grants are made to finance, fully or in part, specific projects aimed towards benefitting seafarers. These grants have been put to a host of uses including contributions towards the funding of upgraded computer equipment, kitchen revamps, reroofing of premises, refrigeration and air-conditioning, and purchase of new or replacement buses, for example. These can be categorised as one-off costs.
There is also a policy of reimbursing centres for a range of regular, ongoing costs that are part and parcel of running a seafarer centre, such as internet/wifi; tyre replacement; and vehicle registration. These can be categorised as recurring costs.
So my message to the welfare providers is that AMWS is there to support them. While AMWS has finite resources and must live within its means, we are always looking at ways of supporting the great work these organisations do.
I trust you will enjoy this edition of the newsletter.
