91st annual Blessing of the Fleet took place Sunday
Before shrimp season can officially start the Blessing of the Fleet must take place. The annual event was rescheduled for Sunday after Tropical Storm Cristobal caused the ceremony to be canceled last Sunday.
Nearly 100 boats came out this year to be blessed at the 91st annual Blessing of the Fleet, a ceremony held in honor of the beginning of shrimp season. Shrimp Queen 2020 Erin Schreck said, “It just means to have a safe and prosperous season fishing, oyster, shrimp, just all of it. It’s so important to these families to have a plentiful season and the blessing really signifies that.”
The blessing isn’t only reserved for fishermen and shrimpers. Decorated boats, working and recreational, eagerly waited in line to be graced by Monsignor Dominick Fullam’s Holy Water. “We’re asking for God to bless our shrimp fleet, God to bless our activities, our recreation, and our safety. It’s really just about bringing the community together and recalling where all good things come from.”
This year’s Blessing of the Fleet gave a little extra hope to a community still dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the aftermath of Tropical Storm Cristobal. Shrimp King 2020 Edward Rhodes said, “It’s a blessing and it gives you hope to things to change because it’s going downhill here lately. So, there’s not, not the boats like they used to be and the catches this year is, looks like there’s zill to none.”
Whether the season is fruitful or not, the blessing still plays a prominent role in the community. “It’s important for people to have an outlet where they can come together safely and just enjoy the weather, enjoy one another’s company and solidarity and say hey this is our heritage, this is what the Gulf Coast has to offer the world and we’re just happy to be alive and enjoy the weather and one another.”
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