Ohio City man serves on Mercy Ship

CINDY WOOD/independent feature writer

The year was 1999 and Ohio City resident John Merkle was looking for a way to serve. He found it – and something unexpected – in Mercy Ships.

After reading about the floating hospital in a Christian magazine, Merkle, who had recently lost his wife, was determined to help make a difference. “I was at retirement age, and before my wife passed we had planned to do mission work part-time,” Merkle said. “So after I retired, I investigated it a little further and I made my first trip in 1999.”

At that time, Merkle had intentions of staying on the ship for five months to help install new air conditioning units. Five months came and went, however, and Merkle elected to stay on the ship to continue his work.

“It’s a good thing I did,” he said with a laugh. Just days after Merkle had planned to go home, he met Dorcas. “She did secretarial work and she managed the ship’s gift shop,” Merkle said, adding that Dorcas was also widowed.

Together, the two formed a friendship that eventually turned into marriage. The couple stayed on the ship together for another two years before coming home to their life together in Glenmore. “We helped to take care of my parents and my wife sold her home in Colorado Springs and we put our lives together here,” Merkle said.

Just recently, the Ohio City resident returned from another four-month volunteer effort on a Mercy Ship, this one stationed just outside Durbin, South Africa. Merkle was involved with helping install new generators on the ship. “This is a very large ship and they produce their own electricity,” he explained. “It’s really just like a modern day hospital and it’s all housed right there on the ship.”

Volunteers fund their own trips, and each crewmember pays a monthly fee, Merkle said, adding that medical supply companies such as Johnson & Johnson oftentimes donate significant amounts of supplies. “That really keeps everything running,” Merkle said.

The Africa Mercy, which Merkle served on, is the world’s largest private hospital ship. Together with a large crew, the ship provides health care and corrective surgeries to thousands of needy individuals. Along with health care professionals, thousands of people receive corrective surgeries on cleft lip and palates, tumor removals and orthopedics.

Merkle had a regular 8-to-5 job during the week while on the Africa Mercy and would often volunteer time on the weekends to work at orphanages in the village. On this particular trip, Merkle went into the village once or twice a day to purchase supplies needed to complete updates on the ship. “Originally I was going to do mechanical work this time around, but they had a gentleman who had to return home, so I replaced him,” Merkle said. “I would purchase plumbing and electrical supplies, and then enter these purchases into a computer system.”

Merkle said many of the doctors and nurses aboard the ship used their vacation time to volunteer their services. “There are so many people who volunteer their time to go into another country and provide these services; it really is overwhelming when you consider how many people are receiving the help they need due to these people.”

Unfortunately, Merkle’s wife Dorcas stayed home this time around, but the couple was able to connect with one another via satellite phones. Merkle said the Christmas holiday proved a bit rough, but crewmembers always find a way to bring a bit of home into the holiday season. “I left the last day of November, but we talked just about every day,” Merkle said. “The ship has a satellite phone system, so we were able to keep in touch that way.”

During the Christmas holiday, crewmembers enjoy a Christmas Eve service, as well as traditional customs on the ship. “Everyone puts their shoe outside their cabin door and all the crew members buy candy or snacks, and during the night, you go around and drop a candy bar in everyone’s shoe,” Merkle said, adding that crewmembers also enjoy a dinner on Christmas Day, as well as the many decorated Christmas trees around the ship. “That really makes it nice for everyone who is away from home for the holidays,” he added. “It’s more of a home-like atmosphere.”

Coming back from the southern hemisphere took a bit of getting used to, Merkle said. “It’s summertime there, so it’s quite a shock coming back to the cold temperatures and snow,” he noted. “I was hoping, since it was February, it would be a little more moderate here, but didn’t quite work out that way.”

According to www.mercyships.org, more than $800 million in medical services have been provided since the organization’s beginnings in 1978. Additionally, more than 47,000 operations, such as cleft lip palate, cataract removal, straightening of crossed eyes and orthopedic and facial reconstructions, have been performed. More than 485,000 patients have been treated and nearly 1,100 community development projects have been completed, focusing on water and sanitation, education, infrastructure development and agriculture. Over 560 port visits in 53 developing nations and 17 developed nations have also been made.

For more information on how to volunteer, or donate, visit the above website.