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Conservancy member Jason Summers & Cassandra Alvarez get the word out in
New York's Herald Square
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The Conservancy's urgent "SOS" campaign continues to gain momentum. A successful rally was staged in Manhattan's Herald Square last week, and Conservancy supporters distributed campaign materials to thousands of interested New Yorkers on their way to work. The crowd enjoyed great musical entertainment accented by speeches from the Conservancy and the New York Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance. (A full recap of the event can be found below.) Stay tuned for a major campaign event in Philadelphia next month and please join us next Friday, May 3 for our benefit dinner outside Washington, DC!
It is more important than ever now to spread the word and build momentum around saving the SS United States! In our first month, we have raised over $87,000 in small, grassroots donations. We're encouraged by this start, but we absolutely need "all hands on deck" to give, advocate, and spread the word.
Support our efforts now to
help rescue and restore the SS United States
Also in this Issue:
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 SS United States: Made in AmericaFinal Chapter Online |
The final chapter of our film, SS United States: Made in America, is now online! We hope you'll share all five chapters of this powerful film with your friends, colleagues and family members. This documentary film is a great introduction to the historic importance of America's Flagship, and is a wonderful way to spread the word about her plight and potential. Stay tuned for screening opportunities for the complete film. As our final chapter's title states - failure is not an option! |
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Herald Square Rally Recap
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Thanks to all who came out to our "Save the United States" Rally in New York City last Friday! Speaking at the rally were Dan McSweeney, Managing Director of the SS United States Redevelopment Project, Roland Lewis, President of the New York Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, and several other SS United States supporters. Special thanks to the Conservancy's New York and Northern New Jersey Chapter Chairman Paul Stipkovich and chapter members, Michael Matulewicz & the SUNY Maritime choir, cadets, and Chapter members, and the fabulous Main Street Cruisers for the wonderful entertainment. We are also grateful to Carl Weber for his help in printing SOS campaign materials. For further recap on the event and the Conservancy's urgent SOS campaign, see this article in Crain's New York Business. For a photo gallery of the event, visit our Facebook page.
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Author Steven Ujifusa Speaks about the
SS United States at Tenafly High School
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Conservancy Advisory Council member Steven Ujifusa, author of A Man and His Ship, the recent biography of the SS United States' designer William Francis Gibbs, spoke about the SS United States this week at Tenafly High School in Tenafly, NJ. Students at Tenafly learned about the SS United States, its place in history, and its relation to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields.
The SS United States offers many exciting educational opportunities for students of all ages. In the coming months, the Conservancy hopes to further develop lesson plans and curricular materials for educators. Visit our "Conservancy Kids: Junior Shipsters" website page HERE for some initial ideas. Are you a student or educator who has featured the SS United States in your classroom? We'd love to hear from you!
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LAST CALL: RSVP Now for Washington DC Benefit Dinner |
Next Friday - May 3, 2013 - the SS United States Conservancy will host an important fundraising event at the beautiful Riverbend Country Club in Great Falls, Virginia. The dinner will feature a menu and entertainment reminiscent of a first-class dining experience aboard a trans-Atlantic ocean liner. Most importantly, this event will raise crucial funds and awareness of the plight and potential of America's endangered Flagship, the SS United States.
Please join us and support our SOS Campaign! If you are planning to attend, please RSVP today as we need to finalize our guest count. Click here to RSVP online or click here for our printable invitation, sponsorship tiers, and mail-in form.
(If the above link does not open on your machine, copy and paste http://www.ssusc.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/riverbend_invitation.pdf into your browser bar)
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Recent SOS Press Coverage
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More press continues to come in to support the SS United States, including coverage in Crain's New York Business. (To view any of the stories mentioned, clink on the bold text.) The SS United States was also covered in this incredible photo gallery in Hidden City Philadelphia, aptly titled "There'll Never Be Another U". Conservancy Advisory Council member John Milligan penned this excellent piece for the Maritime Engineers Review (PDF only). Finally, Anthony Celletti recently provided great coverage in the Examiner and Karen Frederickson wrote this article for Travelers Today. For a more complete list of our press hits, please visit our website.
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The Conservancy Welcomes new
Advisory Council Members
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In this crucial time for the Conservancy, we are honored to welcome new members to our Advisory Council. We will be profiling our new members in future issues of our newsletter. This week, we'd like to introduce and welcome Alex Keisch and Alan Stover. They have both been helping us plan next week's important fundraising event at the Riverbend Country Club outside of Washington DC. We are delighted to welcome them to our Advisory Council!
Alex Keisch - Motivational speaker. Alex served as a deck cadet aboard the Big U and has become a passionate advocate and leader in support of the ship's restoration. As a holocaust survivor, he lectures around the nation on the holocaust, bullying and related themes. He now incorporates the plight and potential of the SS United States into his public presentations and speeches - let us know if you or your organization would be interested in hosting Alex as a speaker! He is currently working on his memoir, The Last Meyser Zorger. He is a graduate of the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point and is active in alumni outreach efforts. Alan Stover - Lawyer and architect. Alan is an expert on American Institute of Architects (AIA) design and construction contracts; he served on AIA staff for 10 year as head of the contract documents program, advancing up to General Counsel. He has spent almost 30 years in private practice representing nonprofit organizations, design professionals, owners, developers and contractors in the Washington, DC area. He has constructed 3D models of the Pearl Harbor, the USS Maryland, SS Normandie, RMS Queen Mary, and is currently working on a model of the SS United States.
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Position Openings: Summer Internship and Program/Administrative Assistant (part-time)
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The Conservancy is in need of additional staff support during this critical time, and is currently accepting applications for a Summer Intern and a part-time Program / Administrative Assistant. Click the links above for details and application information on each position.
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Ship Owner Profile: Jean M. Thomas
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Shipowner Jean M. Thomas purchased part of the starboard "U" in honor of her father Alfred Bluhm, Chief Linotype Officer aboard the "Big U" from her maiden voyage in June 1952 until June 1964. Jean shares unique memories of her time aboard the ship at SaveTheUnitedStates.org.
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Help us reach more people in our quest
to save America's Flagship.
Thanks to your support, we are now at 8,400 followers on our Facebook page! Let's keep going! We need to reach as many people as possible. Be sure to like our page, follow us on Twitter, and encourage your friends and family to do the same!
 
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SS United States Conservancy
P.O. Box 32115
Washington, DC 20007
(888)-488-7787
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