Final hospital ship mission ‘bittersweet’ for family

It’s a bittersweet moment as a Waikato family prepares for a final stint on a travelling hospital ship.

Jeremy and Ruth Pollard sold their house in rural Tahuna, quit their jobs and – with their four children – headed off to volunteer on a Mercy Ship for the first time in 2021.

Since then, they’ve been through the Covid pandemic and a second voyage on the ships, witnessing severe examples of need in areas such as northeast Africa.

The experience has been life-changing, they say, and they are planning a third and final voyage with the faith-based international charity in 2023.

‘‘[The children] see it as an important part of their lives,’’ Ruth said.

‘‘It’s bittersweet for sure,’’ Jeremy said. ‘‘We’re excited about the year ahead, but conscious it’s our last year, and we will miss it.’’

Mercy Ships offer hospital services and are invited to places like Gambia, Senegal and Sierra Leone, where they serve underprivileged communities and provide medical aid.

The family has witnessed some of the most severe instances of poverty, disease, and absence of healthcare.

‘‘They are the countries with the most need, some have health systems that are really struggling . . . it’s a real shock for the kids, as they walk down the streets and see things like that,’’ Jeremy said.

‘‘In Senegal we’d just walk off the ship, and it’s just right in front of you, it’s no housing, no clothes, no food sort of poverty.’’

The hospital ship not only serves the people but also makes sure the communities are left with the education and resources they need to survive, the Pollards say.

The Global Mercy Ship has been the Pollards’ most recent vessel and their largest to date. It can carry 180-200 crew members and 650 passengers maximum.

Standing at 12 decks high and fitted with a plethora of facilities, it was ‘‘massive’’, Jeremy Pollard said.

Over the past three years the family have been sailing amidst the global pandemic.

The year 2022 also brought new challenges, with the cost of living and inflation reminding them the ‘‘need is still there’’, Jeremy said.

‘‘It’s been an interesting time in the world . . . It’s a real shock . . . it’s just right in front of you,’’ Jeremy said.

Like their first vessel, the Africa Mercy Ship it also was fitted with a communal layout including the cabins, cooking and dining area, gymnasium, school, hospital and more.

‘‘It’s [the cabin] smaller than the average house,’’ Ruth Pollard said, but the family wouldn’t have it any differently.

Jeremy and Ruth have both worked as a principal of the school and the latter with the chaplaincy, youth group and hospital staff.

There were 60 countries represented by the families on board.

Being volunteers, Jeremy noted they had ‘‘given up an income,’’ but the lifelong connections and experiences they’ve had on the ship were worth it.

‘‘The kids are always with their friends . . . You get to know people really quickly,’’ Ruth said.

‘‘We’re all there for the same reason . . . The lessons you can learn are just so huge, you can’t put a price on that.’’

The Pollards had only committed to two years on the hospital ship, but they had enough in the tank for one more.

Their final journey will span 10 months before they reconnect with their lives in New Zealand.

They had no plans once they returned, instead they were going to soak up all that was left of their journey on the sea.

‘‘It is a great privilege to be a small part of that work.

‘‘We’re hoping it will shape our kids’ futures and the opportunities they look for when they get older,’’ Ruth said.