Logos Hope floating book fair brings 400 volunteers to Jamaica

When Logos Hope, the world’s largest floating book fair, docks in Montego Bay on February 13, there will be 400 volunteers from over 60 countries on board, among them one Jamaican. The ship will visit both Montego Bay and Kingston up to March 15, 2020. The last visit to the island was in 2017 when a total of over 160,000 visitors went on board the ship at both ports.

Esther Ehlert from Brazil is one of the international crew members. In her country, she used to work as a teacher until she decided to be part of our three-month long Logos Hope programme. However, at the end of the programme, she decided to join the crew for 16 months.

For the time she has been on board, Esther has been a member of the Book Fair Department. “I remember one day, I was feeling tired and the book fair was really crowded! But I remember people began to sing and at that point, I remembered why God had called me to serve on the ship because sometimes we can forget it when we get overwhelmed,” she said.

memories of logos hope

Like her, all of the volunteers can share thousands of stories that they collect through their journey on Logos Hope.

“Living with people of different nationalities is crazy. Having a lot of friends from different places and countries is amazing because we do become a family on board and it’s the best thing for me,” she continued.

The hundreds of volunteers on the floating book fair leave behind their families, jobs, and homes to serve the mission of the ship. They include engineers, plumbers, carpenters, book keepers, cooks, and other professionals, and other volunteers who have no qualifications but offer their time to serve through social intervention projects at the locations at which they dock and good literature for those who wish to buy in support of the Logos Hope’s fundraising efforts.

MV Logos Hope is operated by GBA Ships e.V., an international, charitable organisation registered in Germany. Since 1970, the organisation has welcomed over 45 million visitors up the gangways in over 150 countries and territories around the world.