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Captain James & Lillie McPherson, parents of Conservancy Advisory Council member Rosalyn McPherson, aboard the United States
Update from the Executive Director
Dear SS United States Conservancy Members and Supporters:
The SS United States Conservancy is in a race against time. We have the funding in hand to take care of the SS United States for only one more year. Your continued support will give our national flagship a chance at a future. No amount is too big or too small.
Conservancy donors are inspired by the SS United States for many reasons. In explaining her recent $10,000 gift, Marie Prewett writes, "Especially in times like these, we must save a symbol of America's perseverance and resilience... For future generations, she represents the ability that we once had, then let drift away, but can - and will - reclaim."
As always, to make a tax-deductible donation in support of the Conservancy's predevelopment and historic preservation efforts, please click here.
One major focus of the Conservancy's fundraising efforts is our future museum. This week I delivered a presentation to the International Congress of Maritime Museums, a gathering of museum executives from 22 countries. Panels examined evolving museum visitor expectations, new revenue models, and trends in innovative interactive exhibits. The Conservancy recently launched its own curatorial planning process: What stories should our museum tell? What can the SS United States teach us about the American dream? Our Cold War history? Advances in steam propulsion? Immigration? Our primal quest for power and perfection? We look forward to receiving your thoughts and suggestions as we continue to refine our curatorial plans.
We always love hearing from Conservancy supporters. Eight-year-old Elliot Lehmann recently wrote to tell us to tell us not to scrap the SS United States. He asked us to "look out for the ship carefully. There are no more German U-boats or sea mines. There may be icebergs. If there are, just be careful. And turn in time."
Elliot: We vow to turn the ship in time. And we promise to work our hearts out to save the SS United States for your generation and those that follow behind.
With my warmest wishes,
Susan L. Gibbs
In this issue:
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 SS United States Conservancy Welcomes Three New Members to its Board of Directors |
The SS United States Conservancy is delighted to announce the appointment of three new members to its board of directors. As we deepen our curatorial and preservation planning efforts, the Conservancy is extremely fortunate to be guided by these renowned experts in the fields of finance and the arts. Welcome aboard! 
Stephen S. Lash is Chairman Emeritus of Christie's Americas and Vice Chairman of Christie's American Advisory Board. He has been with Christie's since 1976, when he was one of the original team of eight responsible for launching the venerable auction house's first galleries on Park Avenue in New York City. Prior to joining Christie's, Mr. Lash worked in London with the investment-banking firm of S.G. Warburg. During his 35 years with Christie's, he has been involved with virtually every major historic record-setting auction. Mr. Lash serves on the boards of the Museum of the City of New York, The New York Landmarks Conservancy (of which he was Chairman for several years), the Park Avenue Armory, and the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, where he is on the Board of Overseers and Chairs the Maritime Visiting Committee. He previously served on the boards of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and the Preservation League of New York State. He is a newly appointed Trustee of the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, as well as a newly appointed Member of the Advisory Board of Stanhope Capital in London. His passion for all things maritime inspired him to become the founder and first president of the Ocean Liner Museum, which became part of the South Street Seaport. He is an avid collector of trans-Atlantic passenger steamship memorabilia, and has loaned items from his collection to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, as well as to the Cooper Hewitt, Mystic Seaport, Peabody Essex, and Forbes museums. Mr. Lash enjoys lecturing on board various vessels and at other venues; a favorite speech includes The Floating Palaces of Art Deco. He has also taught a Residential College Seminar at Yale, entitled The Ocean Liner and the Golden Age of Travel. Mr. Lash received a B.A. in French Literature from Yale and an M.B.A. in International Business from Columbia. 
Mark Byers is a vice president and senior relationship manager at Wilmington Trust Company responsible for managing high-net worth family relationships throughout the United States. Prior to joining Wilmington Trust in 2002, he worked in New York for the Swiss investment bank UBS Warburg. Mark's international experience includes five years in Moscow, Russia, as a business development director for a Moscow-based joint venture. As a veteran of the United States Army, Mark worked in Intelligence and served in Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf War. Mark holds an MBA in International Management from Thunderbird, The Garvin Graduate School of International Management, and is a magna cum laude graduate of Portland State University with a bachelor's degree in Economics. Mark is a member of the Philadelphia CFA Society where he serves on the Board of Directors as a vice president and is also chairman of the Society's Career Development Committee. 
Robert L. Forbes is Vice President of Forbes and President of ForbesLife, launched in 1990 as Forbes magazine's dedicated lifestyle supplement, devoted to the pursuit of "civilized pleasure and fulfillment." Published five times a year, it is designed for affluent business leaders who "play as hard as they work." Mr. Forbes has authored numerous articles on food and travel, in addition to producing various documentary films for Forbes. In September 2007, his book of poetry for children, Beastly Feasts! A Mischievous Menagerie in Rhyme (Overlook Press), was published. His new book, Let's Have a Bite! A Beastly Banquet in Rhyme, was published by Overlook Press in September 2010. Both are illustrated by world renowned caricaturist Ronald Searle. He divides his time between Manhattan and Palm Beach, Florida.
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New Feature: SS United States Conservancy Donor Profiles
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We pleased to announce that Dr. Marie Prewett has made an extremely generous gift of $10,000 to the Conservancy. A research scientist in New York City, Prewett has also created a moving video advocating for the preservation of the SS United States.
 | | SS United States 2011 |
Dr. Prewett hopes that her generous gift to our organization will inspire others to contribute to the preservation of this irreplaceable national treasure for future generations: For me the SS United States represents much more than just an engineering marvel. She represents a time when America could always improve upon existing technology and make it better, faster, and more efficient. We had the talent to take the design successes and failures of the past, learn from them, and distill that knowledge into something new and special. "Made in America" meant solid engineering and durable quality. For future generations she represents ability that we once had, let drift away, but can and will reclaim. After long consideration I've decided to help toward the preservation of the SS United States because, especially in times like these, we need to save a symbol of America's perseverance and resilience. Congratulations to our newest Blue Riband Council member! Together, we can indeed change history. To read Prewett's complete statement, click here.
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SS United States Featured in Dazzling New Publication
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SS United States: America's Superliner The Conservancy is pleased to announce the publication of a comprehensive new history of the SS United States by British maritime expert and author Les Streater. The book, titled SS United States, America's Superliner, contains a treasure trove of SS United States imagery and information. The book chronicles the story of the vessel from William Francis Gibbs' early conceptions to the Conservancy's current efforts to foster a public-private partnership to facilitate the ship's redevelopment. Handsome, 250-page hardbound copies are available from Maritime Publishing Concepts. To order, please e-mail:
sales@marpubs.demon.co.uk or visit www.lesstreater.com.
Streater has very graciously offered to donate 10 percent of the book's sale proceeds to the SS United States Conservancy. The Conservancy is delighted to spread the word on this comprehensive work on our great ship. Streater was meticulous in his research for the book and has assembled an extraordinary collection of vintage photographs to accompany his riveting narrative. The Conservancy was fortunate enough to be introduced to Les Streater by Carl Weber, administrator of the SS United States Yahoo Group, a long-time friend of the organization. We are grateful to both Carl and Les for their ongoing support.
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SS United States Redevelopment Project Update
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Putting the United States back to work...
 This is my first update as Managing Director of the SS United States Redevelopment Project. I'm looking forward to using this forum as a way to share information about the business side of the effort to save and redevelop our great ship of state. As the Conservancy announced last month, we have separated the for-profit aspects of the project from the Conservancy's core non-profit mission in order to clarify our efforts and make them more efficient.
I recently discussed latest developments at the World Ship Society Port of New York Branch meeting. The upshot is that we are gaining momentum, attracting influential supporters, and looking into more detailed possibilities for the ship. New York remains our primary proposed site for redevelopment.
In the next several weeks, we'll be making several significant announcements about the way ahead. I think you'll find the news both positive and realistic.
As always, thank you for your interest and support. If you have any questions about the business/investment side of "Saving Our Ship," please don't hesitate to contact me.
Best regards,
Dan McSweeney
dmcsweeney@logatl.com
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Fair Winds and Following Seas to Steve Ciccalone
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 The Conservancy is deeply saddened to announce the passing of Steve Ciccalone, a good friend and trusted advisor to the organization on structural issues related to the SS United States. The Conservancy had last been in touch with him during a productive work session in August during which he offered, as usual, his unparalleled expertise on redeveloping the vessel. Steve was one of the leading steel and rivet experts in America. A retired Coast Guard commander, Steve never hesitated to express his frank views on his areas of expertise, especially when the issue at hand concerned his beloved SS United States. He had been hired by Norwegian Cruise Line to advise on the redevelopment of the ship and continued to advise Atlantic Logistics (the ship's managers since 2003) and, subsequently, the Conservancy upon assuming title to the vessel.
In his inimitable way, he represented a hard-nosed approach to the vast challenge of saving and redeveloping our great "ship of state," and the Conservancy is proud to award its Blue Riband Award to Mr. Ciccalone posthumously. We know he will continue to guide our efforts from his next port of call. |
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Follow the Conservancy with Facebook and Twitter!
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Over the past few months, the Conservancy has completely redeveloped its presence on online social media, giving us new ways to connect with potential supporters of the SS United States. Be sure to join us on Facebook and Twitter for the latest in developments from the Conservancy as well as discussions, photos from the ship, photos of Conservancy events, and fun ship related trivia!
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