Alma honours trailblazing sea captain
Published Tuesday June 30th, 2009
Burial at sea ceremonies for Molly Kool set for Sunday
A Canadian naval pioneer will be laid to rest this weekend during a ceremony on the very waves upon which she made history.
Molly Kool, the first North American woman ever to become a sea captain, passed away at the age of 93 on Feb. 25. Her ashes will be buried at sea off the shores of her hometown of Alma on Sunday morning.
"She was a trail-blazer, as a woman, into the man's world," says Mary Majka, president of the Albert County Heritage Trust. "If you have the talent, the will, the determination, you can do it. You can show that women are just as good as men at commanding a ship, being at sea and going through the difficult and very dangerous times that she experienced as captain."
Kool sailed on her father's boat from the age of 16 before deciding to pursue formal seamanship training. She attended marine school in Saint John where she became certified as a mate.
She proceeded to get her master's certificate at Yarmouth, N.S., thereby becoming only the second woman in the world to be registered as a captain. Her unprecedented actions necessitated a change to the Canada Shipping Act to read "he or she," in order to include women.
On Sunday, two boats will depart from the Alma wharf at 9:30 a.m. On board the first will be Kool's family and a chaplain, who will commit her ashes to the Bay of Fundy waters. Several VIPs, including Lieutenant-Governor Herménégilde Chiasson, will observe the service from the second vessel.
Upon returning to shore, a public ceremony will begin at noon at the monument commemorating Kool's life and accomplishments.
Disabled
Search Articles
More CE Network Sites & Partners:
