SCI Announces River Bell Awards
The Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) will hold its 25th annual River Bell Awards Luncheon December 11 in Paducah, Ky. The event will be held at the Paducah-McCracken County Convention Center with a reception beginning at 11 a.m. and the luncheon and awards ceremony following at noon.
SCI will present the River Bell Award to George G. Leavell, CEO of Wepfer Group LLC. The River Legend Award will go to Capt. William R. “Bill” Barr, who spent a 50-plus-year career in the maritime industry with Charleston, W.Va.-based Amherst Madison. Marty Hettel, who recently retired as American Commercial Barge Line’s vice president of government affairs and who spent years as a stalwart member of the Inland Waterways Users Board, will receive a distinguished service award at River Bell.
In addition, the Seamen’s Church Institute will a pair of lifesaving awards to the crews of the mv. Susan Robinson, part of Crounse Corporation’s fleet, and the mv. Mary Moran, part of Moran Towing’s fleet.
The River Bell Awards Luncheon is an annual fundraising event that recognizes mariners and industry leaders for the impact they have on the maritime community, while also shining a light on how SCI serves the inland towboat and barge industry. Paducah is home to one of SCI’s two Center for Maritime Education facilities. SCI’s Center for Maritime Education offers e-learning, simulator training and courses, assessments and feasibility studies. Paducah is also a base of operations for SCI’s Ministry on the River, which provides pastoral counseling, support and fellowship to mariners that work aboard towboats, harbor tugs and dredges on the Mississippi River system and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
Sponsorship and ticket details are available online through the SCI website, www.seamenschurch.org.
