Frequently Asked Questions

What have you been doing for the past few years?

Four years ago Grace and I met aboard the Logos Hope while it was in Korea. We became friends and after I left the ship 3 ½ years ago we began dating. 3 years and 3 days ago I proposed to Grace – and thank God she said yes! Since then we have been living in South Korea. Grace continued her career as an elementary school teacher and I completed a masters degree in international studies alongside teaching English. We have also been able to serve our church (through translating, Sunday school, English camps, and more) and Operation Mobilization Korea (supporting the Anyang university ministry program).

Where are you going?

We will be joining the Logos Hope in Chile at the end of January, 2019. After that the ship will sail around the southern tip of South America and then head north along the coast of Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil.

What is the Logos Hope?

The Logos Hope is an old car ferry turned into the world’s largest floating book store. That renovation took place so that the Logos Hope could be used by Operation Mobilization (OM Ships) to further its motto of bringing knowledge, help, and hope to people all around the world. It is the 4^th ship to be operated by OM Ships, which in the past 48 years have welcomed over 46 million visitors. 

The Logos Hope brings knowledge not only through selling books, but also through donating them, as well as hosting numerous conferences and seminars in every port it visits. It brings help through a variety of humanitarian services, such as well-drilling, construction projects, and distribution of water purifiers, eye-glasses, and other aid. All of these projects are done in coordination with local organizations to ensure that recipients do not merely receive a one-time handout but can develop long-term relationships. And this is because the reason the ship seeks to bring knowledge and help is because we want to share the hope that we have in Jesus Christ.

What will you be doing?

Our roles will primarily be to support and encourage the crew. Many of whom are single, young people coming straight out of high school or university. While they are often overflowing with a passion for Christ and missions work, the new-to-them and incredibly culturally diverse environment aboard the Logos Hope (over 60 nationalities are represented in the 400 crew members) can present various challenges. We will be as family to them in various ways, even ‘adopting’ 10 or so into our ship family (Eden will get many siblings soon), and I will also take up a position in the personnel department, training to take over the personnel manager role in due time.

Why do you want to do this?

God has given both of us a vision to see a unified and vibrant multicultural Christian community aboard the ship setting an example to the world that we are all better together, that human diversity makes us stronger and God can be the glue that holds us together. Grace and I have each had different intercultural experiences and education and now have a multicultural family – these have presented many challenges for us, but we have been growing through them and we hope to be able to help the crew grow through the various challenges they will face as well.

When are you coming to Canada?

We will be flying to Canada in one month – on December 4^th.

When are you going to the ship?

Our flight tickets will be booked once sufficient support has been raised. The expected date is currently January 26 in order to join the ship along with the winter pre-ship training group.

How much money do you need to raise and where does it go?

$4000 Canadian per month. To keep a ship operating costs a lot, fuel costs alone for the Logos Hope surpass $3 million US a year, then there are other maintenance costs, ministry costs, food, and more. 1/3 of all these costs are covered by book sales, another 1/3 by general donations to the ship, and the last 1/3 comes from the support raised by crew members like us.

Received donations will go to the Operation Mobilization office in the donor’s country. That country office will then send it to the Logos Hope where it will be put into a pooled account with all the other crew members’ financial support. In the case of OM Canada, 89% of the $4000/month received will be sent to the ship on our behalf, 8% will go to OM Canada to cover local operating expenses (but not OM Canada staff as they too need to raise support), 2% will go into an international development fund for international emergencies, OM events and projects, and the last 1% will go to the international coordinating team to fund international support services such as email.

How can we support you?

The greatest way you can help is by praying regularly for us.  We will be facing physical, mental, social and spiritual battles, and will undoubtedly feel like we are in over our heads at times – the ship is a busy environment that is constantly going through transition with people coming and going. We will need encouragement, accountability and mentorship. So we ask for your support, your encouragement, and your prayers.

We also stand in need of financial support, in order to keep the ship operating everyone onboard from the captain to the sailors, from the director to the personnel, is an unpaid volunteer who needs to raise support in order to cover the operational costs of the ship. Any and all financial gifts would be greatly appreciated, and in many countries (including Canada and Korea) are tax-deductible. Financial support can be given as a one-time gift or on a monthly or annual basis.

The quickest way for anyone, anywhere to donate is to visit https://www.om.org/en/content/give-om.
Follow the instructions and remember to leave a message that the gift is for: Andrew and Grace Eising (Logos Hope).

However, I would recommend that you first contact either the Operation Mobilization office in your country of residence or Grace and I to find out how you can donate to us specifically. For example, for those living in Canada, there are three ways you can send your support (which can be seen online at https://www.om.org/ca/en/content/om-canada-ways-give)

1.       Pre-Authorized Giving

a.       From either your bank account or a credit card

b.      To do this either phone OM Canada toll free at 1-877-487-7777 or fill-in the form at the bottom of the page and mail it to OM Canada at 84 West St, Port Colborne, Ontario, L3K 4C8 – along with a void cheque if your donating from a bank account.

      2.       Cheques

a.       You can mail cheques that are payable to “Operation Mobilization” with an attached note stating “for Andrew and Grace Eising” (you may send several post-dated cheques at one time for your convenience).

      3.       Online

a.       You can give online through OM Canada’s website at https://www.om.org/ca/en/content/give-now-om-canada. This donation will go through “Canada Helps”, which means 3.5% of your donation will go to them before OM Canada receives it and you will receive a tax receipt from Canada Helps not OM Canada.