Pass Christian celebrates 46th annual Blessing of the Fleet
Many gathered for the celebratory start of shrimp season and the 46th annual Blessing of the Fleet in Pass Christian over the weekend.
“Hopefully we can get the quality of the shrimp up high. We keep all fresh shrimp, good shrimp right here.” Those requests are a few of the many blessings shrimpers are asking for. Percy Bradley, this year’s Shrimp King, has been a shrimper all his life in the Pass and has seen plenty of ups and downs during the shrimp season.
The Blessing of the Fleet is a prayer for safety and a prosperity. The wreath placed into the water is a remembrance of fishermen who lost their lives at sea, but the blessing is quite celebratory as well. Pass Christian Ward 3 Alderman Kirk Kimball said, “Oyster, shrimp, crab fish. This is what we do. This is what our town is. This is the largest oyster reef in the world right here, Gulf of Mexico. So, we celebrate that and we celebrate what we do.”
Citizens of Pass Christian say the Blessing of the Fleet is not only for shrimpers ahead of the shrimp season, but for the community as a whole. “We’re blessing our town. We’re blessing the people we are blessing ourselves from storms. We don’t want any type of incurrence that will hurt us into the future, but the Blessing of the Fleet goes way back and this is a time-honored tradition. We want to continue to move forward with that tradition.”
The event featured live music, food, entertainment, and unique art to showcase the beauty and economic driver of the seafood industry along the Coast. Tami Curtis is the creator of the poster for this year’s Blessing. She shares her inspiration for the work. “Just because of the different staffs and nets, they have it, just created this beautiful abstract scene to me and I’ve always been captivated.”
