About

Boat 14 is a youth fellowship; a group of teenagers like you who gather to support each other and the community.

How did we get the name Boat 14?
Titanic set off on its maiden voyage, carrying more than 2,220 passengers, from the docks of Southampton, England in early April 1912. Titanic’s voyage was called the “voyage of discovery”, but it turned out to be the last voyage that it and most of its passengers would take. It was built originally with enough lifeboat capacity for everyone on the ship, but the boat deck seemed too crowded so half of the lifeboats were taken off the ship.

While the great ship was speeding toward New York City, it struck an iceberg about 153km south of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, only minutes before midnight on April 14, 1912.  Titanic was swallowed by the sea in less than three hours and even though there was enough room for half of the passengers in the lifeboats, the people panicked and loaded the boats themselves. In the beginning they filled the boats much less than full because many hasty passengers wanted to make sure they got themselves out.

When it became evident that the ship was sinking, the remaining lifeboats were filled to capacity and sent off.  Other than the officers manning the lifeboats, only women and children were taken. When the lifeboats were gone many passengers leapt from the Titanic and began swimming… almost all of which died in the icy waters.  Those safe in the lifeboats rowed aimlessly into the night, listening to the horrible cries of the  lost and justifying why they could not go back to save those who were drowning.  The fear of capsizing paralyzed the very ones who could offer help and hope.

But the survivors in Lifeboat No. 14 chose a different course.  Compelled by the sense that they were morally bound to save as many as they could, they rowed back toward the voices in the darkness.  Four more people were saved because of their courage.

The reward for the rescuers was the knowledge that they had risked all to save others.  A lifetime, free of regret awaited the volunteer crew of Lifeboat No. 14.  When called up in the moment of need, they did the right thing for the right reason.  In the end, out of the 2,220 passengers, 1,513 perished in the freezing ocean water, leaving only 707 (32%) passengers to live.

Now let’s relate this to today… 2200 people… that’s Red Bank Regional and Shore Regional High Schools put together… and how many of them are crying out for help, for salvation.  Maybe it’s not an audible voice, but perhaps the way they beg for attention or maybe they are openly searching for something… even if they don’t know what.  We have to be the ones to step outside our comfort zones and try to reach them… to try to bring them to safety. We have to be the crew of boat 14!

But theres more to the story… Another ship, the Californian, was close enough to Titanic to rescue the passengers, but it did not respond to the Titanic’s distress calls because its radio operator was off duty and asleep.

How many of us are asleep.  See it’s not just good enough to respond when we are directly questioned, or when it’s easy to see there are people drowning in icy wate.  We have to always be awake to hear the distress calls, even when its not obvious.  We have to be praying and searching for ways to reach the lost, and we have to always keep our ears open for whenever we hear an unexpected distress call.