4 MARCH 2019 • FOGHORN 2019 Goals: Safety and Emerging Leaders On January 20, 2019, I officially took over as President of the Passenger Vessel Association. I want to thank outgoing PVA President Gus Gaspardo as well as all of the PVA Board of Directors and committee members for doing such a great job in 2018. I look forward to working with each of you in the coming year. I have been involved in the passenger vessel industry for many years now. My first job in the marine industry was 29 years ago as a seasonal deckhand for Bay State Cruises Company in Boston, MA. I had no intention of making it a career but after four incredible summers of working at Bay State, I had graduated college, earned my Captain’s License, and decided my future was on the water. From 1995 until 2016, I was fortunate enough to work first for Spirit Cruises, then Odyssey Cruises and finally, when the two companies merged, Entertainment Cruises. I worked as a Captain, an Operations Manager, a General Manager and a VP of Marine Operations while living in Chicago, then Seattle, Chicago again until I moved back home to Boston in 2004. In 2016, I left Entertainment Cruises and became the General Manager for the world-famous Boston Duck Tours, where we operate 28 WWII replica amphibious vehicles on the Charles River and on the streets of Boston, carrying more than 600,000 passengers per year. Since 2008, I have served on the PVA Safety and Security Committee where we have tackled many important issues for our association and for our members. From developing Flagship, the PVA’s voluntary safety management system, to rewriting and updating PVA’s training and risk management guides, holding active shooter training and exercises and working to reduce slips, trips and falls, I have seen first-hand the great work that our volunteer committees do for the good of PVA members. I am honored to now serve as your 2019 President and I look forward to working with all of the committees, our fantastic Board of Directors and the in- credible PVA staff. This year, in addition to supporting the ongoing projects of our committees, I want to focus on two specific areas. Taking Safety to the Next Level My first goal as PVA 2019 President will be to expand PVA’s already extensive offering of safety training tools and programs. Such programs have assisted PVA members in consistently improving company safety practices.As a result, U.S. passenger vessel operators have been commended by the Coast Guard, and other govern- mental agencies, as leading the way in terms of promoting safety and developing new and effective programs to address the needs of the industry. As a member, and former chair, of the PVA Safety and Security Committee, I have been very involved in work to develop a variety of safety training tools for PVA member operators. As an example, our work with the Coast Guard, through the PVA/Coast Guard Quality Partnership meetings, has resulted in voluntary guidelines to help prevent passenger and crew slips, trips and falls. In addition, PVA continues to work closely with the Coast Guard to collect and analyze accident data—no matter how minor—so that we can identify any trends, and then develop recommendations and actions to address them. We all recognize that accidents do happen, but I urge all operators to continue working earnestly to raise the safety bar even higher. As is common practice, operators should regularly review and update their operational and safety manuals as well as their training and drill schedules. And, PVA can help you. For example, have you used the very successful PVA Online Learning Management System? This highly effective training tool is a cooperative effort between PVA and PVA member Marine Learning Systems. It allows you to electronically access a variety of crew safety training tools electronically and quickly, and effectively, broaden your crew training program. There is even a testing function available to allows you to track and measure crew proficiency. If you are not already using it, I strongly encourage you to consider implementing Flagship, PVA’s voluntary safety management system. This tool will assist you in taking your safety management practices to the next level. Please feel free to contact me or a member of the PVA staff to discuss the training tools that are available to you. After all, the safety and security of our passengers and crew is our number one priority in every decision we make. Emerging Leaders: Writing the Next Chapter of Our Industry My second goal for 2019 is to ensure the success of our newly launched PVA Emerging Leaders Committee. During the PVAAnnual Convention at MariTrends 2019 in January, we stood up this new committee to identify and support the ever-growing community of individuals in the passenger vessel industry who are transitioning into lead- ership roles in their companies. The Emerging Leaders Committee will help encourage the professional growth of the next generation of industry leaders through customized seminars, resources and LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT Bob Lawler PRESIDENT, CONTINUED ON PAGE 39