German Seamen’s Mission
The German Seamen’s Mission (DSM) with its international office in Hamburg is one of the oldest organizations of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD). Since the middle of the 19th century, the DSM has been providing pastoral care and social work to seafarers from all over the world on ships, in seamen’s clubs and in seamen’s homes on several continents. The work is carried out regardless of the origin and religion of the ship’s crews.
Today, the approximately 600 full-time and voluntary staff around the globe want to counteract loneliness and alienation in the increasingly multinational crews with leisure activities outside the shipboard routine. The DSM works closely with other Christian seafarers’ missions and organizations in the maritime world.
Under its motto “Support of Seafarers’ Dignity”, the DSM is committed to improving living and working conditions on board. To this end, the DSM maintains a network of 16 stations abroad, including in Durban, Antwerp and Hong Kong.
In Germany, there are also 16 sites run by independent domestic Seamen’s associations. Among them are Hamburg, Rostock, Brunsbüttel, Bremerhaven and Emden. The Seamen’s Mission is also active in Duisburg, Europe’s largest inland port.
The DSM has now developed psychosocial emergency care (PSNV) as a new focus of its work. Unlike for professional rescuers, there is generally no psychological aftercare for seafarers, e.g. in sea rescue. The only contact persons are then often the employees of the Seamen’s Mission. Time and again, seafarers of all nations contact our stations or the Hamburg headquarters because they cannot cope with what they have experienced and need help.
The work of the DSM is financed by church taxes, voluntary ship levies from shipowners and, above all, individual donations.
German Seamen’s Mission
Mattentwiete 5
20457 Hamburg
Tel.: +49 40 2393698-0