Great Start on the Great Loop! | |
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The first six weeks of the Golden Rule’s “Great Loop” voyage has been amazing, and give us great confidence in the viability of this ambitious undertaking. We have had 40 events in 19 cities, prominent articles and photos in local newspapers, radio and TV interviews, lots of education, excitement and participation, many volunteers to work on and crew the Golden Rule, and $11,000 in donations.
We really want to highlight the stop in Dubuque with many of the Marshallese community. You will really enjoy watching the KCRG TV coverage and reading the article in the Dubuque Telegraph Herald.
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Please help keep the Golden Rule sailing along the Great Loop - we need money for the upcoming (expensive east coast) docks, food and fuel as well as a brief haul out to prepare the hull to be in the ocean again. | |
Preparing the Golden Rule to Splash Into the Water and Sail | |
In late August we successfully trucked the Golden Rule from Richmond in San Francisco Bay to Hudson, Wisconsin, near the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. We removed the masts in California and maintained/reinstalled them in Wisconsin. | |
Volunteer Mike McDonald, Minneapolis VFP, helping ready the Golden Rule to launch at Hudson, WI to start the Great Loop
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Many voluneers from VFP Minneapolis and others showed up to sand, paint, and step the masts onto the Golden Rule, including Tom Bouch, Steve Gates, Steve McKeown, Collin Mueller, Justin Farner,
Dale Opsahl , and Mary McNellis
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Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa of Hawai'i Island sailed the Golden Rule from Kauai to Honolulu, all around the island of O'ahu and to California before returning to prepare the Golden Rule for transport, put her back together in Wisconsin, and resume as captain for the first few months of the Great Loop Voyage. Kiko also gives his own unique Golden Rule presentations.
First Mate Steve Buck of Eureka, California (homeport of the Golden Rule) has been our skipper on previous occasions and is great with the engine and electronics.
Deck hand Mary Ann Van Cura of Minneapolis joined us in September. She is great with guests and is a super organizer. Mary Ann will be with us for a few more weeks.
Gina Miranda, originally from Guatemala and Nicaragua and now of Minneapolis is a keeper of the Mayan Calendar and author of several books. She has been with us since early October and will also remain for a few more weeks.
It's wonderful to have a happy, stable, well-balanced crew!
VFP members Mary McNellis, Steve Gates, Mike McDonald and Larry Orr were crew for several transits. Many others were with us for one transit.
Helen Jaccard, Project Manager and Gerry Condon, President of the Golden Rule Committee are following the Golden Rule in their RV as shore support.
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Mary Ann Van Cura, Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa, Gina Miranda and First Mate Steve Buck | |
The Mississippi River Voyage - Reaching Tens of Thousands of people! | |
We began our presentations off-river in Duluth, Minnesota, where Duluth VFP organized four days of events. We had a press conference with the mayor of Duluth, the mayor of nearby Superior, Wisconsin, and a Minnesota state senator, all of whom spoke eloquently about the urgent need for nuclear disarmament. Project Manager Helen Jaccard and Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa spoke to six high school classes and we made presentations in two churches. We tabled all day at the Riverfront Harvest Festival where we talked with scores of curious and supportive folks. We received good coverage in two newspapers. Donations were generous. | |
Minneapolis Veterans For Peace and others have had a widespread petition campaign to urge the US government to ratify the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. At the Riverfront Harvest Festival in Duluth. many new people signed the petition. | |
Phil Anderson, who organized our stay in Duluth, MN, has a Nuclear Disaster roulette wheel. Each number corresponds to one of the many times when a nuclear accident or miscalculation could have resulted in a nuclear exchange or "dirty bomb" (radiation release from a dropped nuclear weapon). You spin the dial, then read about that particular incident. | |
VFP, Grandmothers for Peace, and the Golden Rule project tabled at the Harvest Festival | |
Next we had an event at the Phipps Art Center in Hudson, Wisconsin, attended by VFP members from Wisconsin and Minneapolis, as well as others who had read about the event in the local newspaper. That was followed by two events in Stillwater, MN – one at the library and the other at the riverside park, with live music and food. | |
VFP members from the Twin Cities came to the Phipps Art Center in Hudson, WI to ring the bells for all of the victims of war | |
The String Beans - Refried, Chick Pea and Garbonzo – performed at Stillwater Park 9-17-22 and followed us to Red Wing and Dubuque to continue to entertain Golden Rule supporters. Also in the photo at right, Twin Cities VFP President Dave Logsdon in conversation with an Indigenous Minnesota drummer, Tony Frank, who performed at several Golden Rule events. | |
We sailed the Golden Rule to St. Paul, Minnesota, and began a series of events in the Twin Cities, sponsored by VFP Chapter 27 and Women Against Military Madness. We had several well-attended events, including another outdoor park event with live music. A terrific and prominent article in the Star Tribune, Minnesota’s largest newspaper, brought many people to visit and tour the Golden Rule peace boat. Helen Jaccard was also interviewed on KFAI, community radio with a large audience. Donations were generous, including a check for $1,000 from an activist with Back from the Brink. | |
Craig Wood, Penny Gardner and Mike McDonald visit with Tom Bouch at the Watergate Marina in St. Paul. | |
Strong Buffalo tells his story and sings at Peace Stock in Red Wing. | | |
Then we sailed down the Mississippi River to our next stop, Red Wing, Minnesota, where the Golden Rule and crew were the stars of this year’s Peacestock festival. We raised over $1,000 there. As with several previous events, we were welcomed by local Indigenous leaders with speeches and cultural performances. Great weather, beautiful Red Wing and the Golden Rule Peace Boat were host to Peacestock 22.
Bill Habedank, Red Wing VFP MC'd. Speakers/performers were Helen Jaccard (Golden Rule Project), John LaForge (Nukewatch), Strong Buffalo (Sisseton Wahpeton Dakota indigenous poet, performer, speaker), Colleen Rowley (Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity), Steve McKeown (Minneapolis VFP), David Logsdon (Minneapolis VFP), Bill McGrath (folksinger), and The String Beans (folksingers).
You can watch the whole three hours at here.
Continuing to sail down the Mississippi River, we made stops and held events in Minnesota (Wabasha, Winona), Wisconsin (La Crosse and Prairie du Chien) and Iowa (Dubuque, Clinton, Davenport, Muscatine, Burlington and Keokuk). We tabled at the Clinton Community Public Safety Forum. We made side trips by road to Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Ames and Des Moines. We had enthusiastic participation and good media coverage – radio and TV interviews, and mainstream newspaper articles in several more cities. In Des Moines, we met with religious leaders for lunch, and our evening event, organized by Catholic Peace Ministries, was very well attended. We raised over $1,000.
Dubuque, Iowa – this was truly the most amazing stop of all. First, a flotilla of sailboats escorted the Golden Rule into the harbor for a grand entrance. The Golden Rule’s arrival was greeted by a large group from the local Marshall Islands community. The Marshallese women, in traditional dress, were singing a sweet harmonies as the Golden Rule pulled up to the dock. The Golden Rule crew and many observers were in tears. The Marshall Islands was the original destination of the Golden Rule’s 1958 crew, who were trying to stop nuclear bomb testing there. The US exploded 67 nuclear bombs in the Marshall Islands, leading to many cancers, and rendering many of the islands uninhabitable, which is why there are Marshallese communities in several US locations.
KCRG TV gave the event fantastic coverage!
And the Dubuque Telegraph Herald wrote a wonderful article:"The voices of Noreen Akeang and the other singing women rose in intensity as the ship passed through the gates of Dubuque’s Ice Harbor.
The visit of the Golden Rule to Dubuque carried great significance to Akeang and other members of the city’s Marshallese community.
“We want to tell them how much we appreciate them,” Akeang said. “We want to thank them for what they tried to do so long ago.”"
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It was quite the celebration with Marshallese women, Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa, Cindy Boyam and Steve Buck and many others! | |
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The following morning, the Golden Rule was visited by a group of home-schooled children and parents, who toured the boat, made and flew kites, and colored a coloring-book picture of the Golden Rule, drawn and produced by VFP member Steve Gates.
In the afternoon, many Marshallese joined us for speeches, music, traditional dances and food. Also joining us were the wife and children of David Gale, one of the original 1958 crew, and Sally Willowbee, daughter of another 1958 crew member, George Willoughby.
In the evening, Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa gave a wonderful presentation, with a great Powerpoint, at the Mississippi River Maritime Museum, well attended and well received.
VFP members from several chapters, including a whole gang from the Twin Cities, converged on Dubuque for this wonderful event. We had a great article in the Dubuque daily newspaper.
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In Des Moines, we received a great proclamation from the mayor, Frank Cownie, who happens to be vice president of Mayors for Peace. | Keokuk was another great stop, as reported in the Daily Gate by Deborah Callaghan. | |
Golden Rule Crew and Keokuk Organizing Committee with Mayor Kathie Mahoney as she signs the Resolution welcoming the Golden Rule to Keokuk on October 22, 2022. | |
Standing Bear Council with Golden Rule Crew in Rand Park | |
Hailstone Society with Mike Beall | |
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The “Great Loop” voyage has certainly started out with a bang, exceeding our expectations. It give us great confidence that we have made the right decision and that all the hard work is well worth the effort. Several VFP members have reported that this is re-energizing their chapters, and giving great visibility to Veterans For Peace. A new VFP chapter may actually be forming in Muscatine, Iowa as a result of the Golden Rule’s visit!
Our message of nuclear abolition is striking a chord as the war in Ukraine has heightened concern about the possibility of nuclear war. We are in the right place at the right time. The VFP Climate Crisis and Militarism Working Group will be adding a banner to the boat – “US Military Fuels Climate Crisis.” This is a very compatible message.
The Golden Rule Is Sailing for a Nuclear-Free World and a Peaceful, Sustainable Future.
To see the full schedule for the “Great Loop” voyage, please visit our website, vfpgoldenrule.org
To see photos and videos of our voyage, check out our Facebook page, VFP Golden Rule Project.
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Sailors and Guests Welcome! | |
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Most transits between ports will be daytime only and we can accommodate both sailors and guests on the Golden Rule. To request to sail with us (guests, too), please fill out the crew application form. There have been dozens of crew members, over half women and two children ages 10 and 14 (with parental permission).
We're always looking for volunteers to help us organize events. Please let us know here.
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Be Part of this Epic Voyage - Please Donate Now! | |
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With your help, the Great Loop voyage will allow the Golden Rule to visit 28 large cities and 68 small towns, bringing awareness of nuclear issues to thousands of people at a moment when more people than ever are concerned about the possibility of nuclear war.
Please make a tax deductible donation
- By check to: VFP Golden Rule Project
PO Box 87, Samoa, CA 95564
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Call Helen Jaccard, 206-992-6364 with credit card information.
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Climate Change Forces Route Change | |
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Low water levels on the Mississippi River are grounding and delaying barge tows that bring corn and soy beans from the mid-west to the Gulf of Mexico, worsening the global famine situation and creating perilous conditions for the Golden Rule.
Although the Army Corps of Engineers is working as fast as they can to maintain the river depth at 9 ft in the channel, there is no shoulder to pull into for the Golden Rule to make room for those barges that do come through, making navigation more dangerous.
Instead of going down the lower Mississippi River, we will divert at Cairo, Illinois and go upstream on the Ohio River and enter the Tennessee River at Paducah, Kentucky. From there we will sail the down the Tombigbee waterway to Mobile, Alabama.
The new route will cause us to bypass Memphis, Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The schedule revision will only affect our stops until Mobile. The rest of the route will remain unchanged.
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We'll visit St. Louis, MO Oct 27-Nov 1, then mostly small towns before heading towards Florida:
Kimmswick, MO, Hoppie's Marina, 11/1 - 3
Lovejoy, MO 11/4 - 5
Cape Girardeau, MO 11/5 - 6
Cairo,IL 11/6 - 7
Paducah, KY 11/7 - 9
Grand Rivers, KY, Green Turtle Marina, 11/9 - 11
Hardin, KY, Ken Lake Marina, 11/11 - 13
New Johnsonville, TN, Pebble Isle Marina, 11/13 - 14
Clifton, TN, Clifton Marina, 11/14 - 16
Counce, TN, Grand Harbor Marina, 11/16 - 18
New Site, MS, Bay Springs Marina, 11/18 - 19
Aberdeen, MS, Aberdeen Marina, 11/19 - 21
Columbus, MS, Columbus Marina, 11/21-23
Pickensville, AL, Pirate's Marina Cove, 11/23 - 24
Demopolis, AL, Demopolis Yacht Harbor, 11/25 - 27
Silas, AL, Bobby's Fish Camp Marina, 11/28 - 29
Mobile, AL 11/29 - 12/2
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