New SCI Chaplain Commits To ‘Bring God’s Love’ To Mariners

With her blue hair layers and visible tattoos, the Rev. Grace Pardun said she might not be what mariners are expecting when a chaplain comes calling.

But Pardun, who began her role as supervisory chaplain for Seamen’s Church Institute’s Ministry on the River on March 10, has a calling to care for the spiritual needs of those who can’t get to traditional services, and that includes those working on towboats up and down the rivers.

“These are people who are away,” she said. “They’re not here all the time. They’re hard to get to, and they’re in an industrial, intense, harsh environment, and so to be invited to go out into that space and bring God’s love into that environment is the greatest privilege.”

Based in Paducah, Ky., Pardun spent the past three years as pastor of St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Paducah. She has served as a volunteer chaplain aide for SCI nearly all that time.

“I’m different from what they’ve had before,” she says of some past SCI chaplains, but Pardun added that also makes her perfect for going in and shaking up the routine.

Pardun can be serious, calm and peaceful when she needs to be, she said, and sometimes the job calls for that. On the other hand, she loves the lighter side of ministry, going out of her way to bring her boundless energy and even a touch of silliness, joking around with mariners when they could use a laugh.

“I think they saw I bring joy wherever I go,” she said of why she stood out for the job, which came open when former SCI chaplain the Rev. David Shirk moved overseas to support his wife, Bonny, who has joined the military in the Chaplain Corps.

It was the perfect time for her, too, Pardun said, as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) requires three years of congregational service before moving into a specialized ministry, such as chaplaincy. Pardun said she believed she would be called to chaplaincy eventually, but an assignment in a medical or assisted living setting didn’t appeal to her. Previous chaplaincy internships included work in youth residential treatment settings and prison ministry. Those settings appealed to her as opportunities to serve people who are sometimes forgotten by society, she said. Pardun sees ministry to mariners in the same light.

She wants mariners to know, “Everything is confidential. I do not report your information to anyone. You can trust me. There’s no judgment. I am just here to support you and make your lives easier. Thank you so much for how hard you are working. I appreciate you and am rooting for you. You’re always in my thoughts and prayers.”

Pardun, 42, grew up in North Carolina, and her parents continued to live in the Southeast. She later went to college in Minnesota, and her twin brother also moved there. She discovered Paducah because it was roughly the halfway point between the Carolinas and Minnesota, and because one of her mother’s best friends lives in Paducah and frequently talked about her love for the city.

Pardun’s mother coached a crew team for Vanderbilt University, and Pardun has always had a love for the water, enjoying boating and kayaking.

She said, while in college, she used to enjoy watching the towboats on the Upper Mississippi River, “just wondering what their lives were like on those boats.”

“I didn’t know God was dropping little hints,” she said.

Pardun graduated from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn., with her Master of Divinity degree, completed ordination requirements and was awaiting her call to serve in ministry for the ELCA in fall 2020. Her parents had an opportunity to retire early during the COVID-19 pandemic and moved full time to Paducah, where they had bought a home on Jefferson Street to renovate. Thus, Pardun decided to put her Minneapolis home on the market and move, too. The day she listed her house for sale, there was an unexpected opening for a pastor at St. Matthew, the only ELCA church in Paducah. She called to see if she could serve on an interim basis but was ultimately asked if she would like to be considered as a candidate for Word and Sacrament, to which she agreed.

“So I moved here without a job and then got a job and was called to St. Matthew and served for 3 ½ years,” she said. “This is the one thing in my entire life that I’ve been fully convinced it was God orchestrating. It just all fit together.”

During her first month as the pastor at St. Matthew, she was approached by the Rev. Charles Uhlick, an SCI chaplain associate who serves as rector at Grace Episcopal Church in Paducah, who asked her to consider volunteering with SCI.

“I was immediately like ‘Tell me everything! That sounds amazing!’” she said.

While living in Paducah, she has gotten to know the community—both shoreside and on the rivers.

On a recent Tuesday, Pardun was trying to decide whether she was going to spend her evening doing body pump at the gym or attending an Old Testament class at a nearby church. She also had six newborn chicks to care for, her elderly dog, Dixie, outdoor cats and plans for veggie, herb and flower gardens.

One of her outlets for fun is playing on the West Kentucky Rockin’ Rollers roller derby team, where her moniker is The Revelator (or the Rev for short). She showed up for a roller derby bootcamp despite having no previous skating experience because it sounded like fun and a challenge.

“I like the physicality and the challenge of it and the teamwork,” she said. “It’s something other people don’t do.”

Pardun also enjoys spending time in creative pursuits. She previously co-owned a ceramics business and has taught classes that include candle-making, glass-etching and pottery-throwing. She also paints. The large, colorful painting behind the desk in her office is of a sailing ship surrounded by high, rolling waves. She painted it years ago, not knowing how symbolic it would be one day of her job helping mariners face the storms of life.

Pardun said she believes in “no pressure, no judgment” ministry and that God accepts all people where they are. She said, while people might associate chaplaincy with responding in a time of crisis or emergency, she also wants to be proactive, offering support and reminding the 17,000 mariners in her care of God’s love for them.

“I ask them how their day is going, what they need, what I can do for them,” she said.

She reaches out to boat companies, builds relationships and attends crew changes to talk about what SCI’s Ministry on the River is and how an SCI chaplain can provide spiritual and emotional care both for mariners and their loved ones at home along with training and advocacy. SCI offers three chaplains on call 24/7 who answer a 24-hour hotline.

“There is always someone who will answer the phone,” Pardun said.

While available in an emergency, Pardun said chaplains are also available for happier times, including boat christenings, weddings and pre-marital counseling. All services are confidential.

Besides reaching out to mariners, Pardun said her priorities are building out SCI’s network of roughly 30 trained volunteer chaplain associates, supporting mariner mental health and reducing the stigma of mental health issues.

“We don’t stigmatize someone for having a broken leg or a sprained ankle,” she said, saying that mental health issues should be talked about and normalized.

She said she is also interested in connecting with company services that are designed for safety and mariner wellness.

“I’m very interested in collaborating, building bridges, sharing resources,” she said.

Pardun said she would like to brainstorm with companies about how they can be complementary to each other, working together to serve, support and care for the mariner as a whole.

She said, “The mariners work so hard, and they sacrifice so much, and the least we can do is support them while they’re out there doing that to keep America moving and keep our goods moving.”