Seamen's Church Institute of NY/NJ
Seamen's Church Institute · at New York
- Address
- 123 Broad Street, Port Newark, NJ
- Phone
- +1 973 589 5828
- [email protected]
- Website
- https://seamenschurch.org
- Hours
- Daily
Services available
- Free wifi
- Most centres offer free wifi covering email, video calls, messaging apps, and modest social-media use. Bandwidth is rarely sufficient for streaming HD video or large file downloads. Bring a working unlocked phone or laptop; the centre may have a guest-network password posted, or you may need to ask at the desk.
- Transport to/from the ship
- Most port-side welfare centres provide a van or minibus shuttle between the ship's berth and the centre, and onward into town. Transport is normally free but may have set departure times. Ask the chaplaincy in advance — or call the centre's helpline — to confirm pick-up timing. Bring your gate pass and seaman's book for terminal security.
- Chaplaincy / ship visits
- Chaplains visit ships in port (port chaplains) and serve at the welfare centre. Their role is pastoral support, practical help (transport, money-changing, hospital visits, family-emergency communication), and confidential conversation. You do not need to share their religion to ask for help.
- Legal aid
- The chaplaincy and ITF-affiliated centres can refer seafarers to maritime lawyers experienced in MLC complaints, wage disputes, and personal-injury claims, and many centres run first-call legal advice clinics. The Seamen's Church Institute's Center for Mariner Advocacy in the US and Stella Maris's UK legal team are particularly active.
About Seamen's Church Institute
The Seamen's Church Institute (SCI), founded in 1834, is a major American seafarer-welfare ministry. SCI operates centres in New York / New Jersey, Houston, Newark, and along the US Gulf and inland-waterway system. It is one of the largest seafarer-welfare providers in the United States and runs a substantial training and chaplaincy programme for the inland tug-and-barge industry.
Pastoral and practical care of merchant seafarers in US ports, especially New York, Newark, Houston, and the inland-waterway system.
SCI centres are typically well-resourced — full chaplaincy, transport, shop, legal-aid (the SCI Center for Mariner Advocacy is a leading provider of seafarer legal advice in the US), and training. Inland-waterway crews can access SCI's River Days programme during transit.
Bring your seaman's book and any US-port paperwork. TWIC-card holders have easier port access. For legal-aid cases, bring all wage and contract documentation.
At this port
This centre serves New York in United States. Check the port page for shore-leave, visa, helpline, and PSC context that affects your call here.
Editorial confidence: how we grade. Welfare centre opening hours change — confirm before visiting.