A pirate’s life [not] for me
John Cronan lay in a dark and sweltering diesel engine room at the bottom of a ship, hiding from pirates off the coast of Somalia. He was waiting with the rest of the crew to hear the fate of his captured ship’s captain.
The 46-year-old Merion Station resident works on commercial merchant vessels as an engineer, so spending time in the engine room of a merchant ship was fairly common for him. But the morning of April 8 was different.
Cronan was aboard the Maersk Alabama when it was hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia.
The container ship, carrying food and aid materials for east Africa, was traveling at about 25 mph on a flat, calm sea. The pirate attack and ensuing standoff drew immediate global attention.
Cronan, a member of the Merchant Marine, spoke to students about his experience at Coopertown Elementary School in Haverford School District, and again a few weeks later, at Merion Elementary School in Lower Merion School District, where his daughter is in third grade.
The Coopertown fourth- and fifth-grade students got a taste of a pirate’s life June 5. Cronan’s visit to Coopertown Elementary was an extension of a current events project in the fourth-grade class.
“It was a rewarding experience. Kids asked great questions at both schools,” Cronan said. “It was really a wonderful experience working with the kids.”
He spoke to students about the importance of teamwork, having a plan in an emergency situation and about his career as an engineer.
Cronan said he had sympathy for the emaciated Somalian pirates who come from extreme poverty, until they began shooting at him and the other crewmembers.
The boat’s captain, Richard Phillips, was taken hostage, and the lead pirate captured the crew of the Maersk Alabama.
“I’m not a religious man, but I got to thinking that I wasn’t going to let myself be taken to Somalia alive. I was going to do what I had to do to prevent that from happening,” he said.
Eventually the United States Navy arrived to provide security, and the pirates were thwarted — three were dispatched by Navy snipers and one was arrested. The Maersk arrived in Mombasa, Kenya, half a day late to deliver the supplies. In the end, all 20 crew members returned home safely.
Cronan, who served in the Navy from 1979 to 1982, was grateful he made it home to his two daughters, Annie, 12, and Sarah, 9, and wife Heather.
Cronan has traveled to over 60 countries since he started in the Merchant Marine in 1983.
Despite his experience, he is not scared to sail the ocean waters again, but he hopes to continue in the maritime industry and stay closer to his family, if his assignments allow it.
When speaking to students, Cronan showed photos of the ship and maps on PowerPoint. For about an hour he told students about his adventure at sea and about his job in commercial transportation.
Growing up, Cronan enjoyed listening to the stories of his father, who was also in the Merchant Marine, and he was pleased to be able to share his own stories with students.
“It was awesome to see a room full of kids interested in what I had to say. It makes me feel good and reminds me that life is a good thing,” he said.
Liz Mansure is the teacher of the fourth-grade class Cronan visited at Coopertown. “To actually have a real world connection to the current events that the students studied in class is awesome,” Mansure said.
Emily Bilhuber, 10, is a fourth-grader in Mansure’s class. The Havertown native’s father sailed with Cronan’s father in the 1970s and was inspired to complete her current events project on the Maersk Alabama because of the local connection.
The project required students to pick an article out of Time for Kids or another news periodical and write about their thoughts. Emily decided to ask Cronan to visit.
“I thought it was very interesting, and I liked how he was brave. It made me feel like he was a lucky man to survive the pirate attack,” Emily said.
She enjoys studying current events in school, and reading the newspaper and Time for Kids outside of the classroom.
“It is fun to learn about what’s happening in the world,” she said.
Earlier in the year, at least three students wrote their current event projects about the Somalian pirates.
“They were all very curious and interested to see what he had to say. They really focused on his presentation and were well-behaved,” Mansure said.
For the bi-annual current events assignment, students summarize the article, write about how if affects the world, explain their opinion on the event and share it with the class. Students also brought in articles on topics including plane crashes, animals, sports and homeless shelters.
“We think it is important for students to know what is going on in the world around them,” Mansure said.
The 46-year-old Merion Station resident works on commercial merchant vessels as an engineer, so spending time in the engine room of a merchant ship was fairly common for him. But the morning of April 8 was different.
Cronan was aboard the Maersk Alabama when it was hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia.
The container ship, carrying food and aid materials for east Africa, was traveling at about 25 mph on a flat, calm sea. The pirate attack and ensuing standoff drew immediate global attention.
Cronan, a member of the Merchant Marine, spoke to students about his experience at Coopertown Elementary School in Haverford School District, and again a few weeks later, at Merion Elementary School in Lower Merion School District, where his daughter is in third grade.
The Coopertown fourth- and fifth-grade students got a taste of a pirate’s life June 5. Cronan’s visit to Coopertown Elementary was an extension of a current events project in the fourth-grade class.
“It was a rewarding experience. Kids asked great questions at both schools,” Cronan said. “It was really a wonderful experience working with the kids.”
He spoke to students about the importance of teamwork, having a plan in an emergency situation and about his career as an engineer.
Cronan said he had sympathy for the emaciated Somalian pirates who come from extreme poverty, until they began shooting at him and the other crewmembers.
The boat’s captain, Richard Phillips, was taken hostage, and the lead pirate captured the crew of the Maersk Alabama.
“I’m not a religious man, but I got to thinking that I wasn’t going to let myself be taken to Somalia alive. I was going to do what I had to do to prevent that from happening,” he said.
Eventually the United States Navy arrived to provide security, and the pirates were thwarted — three were dispatched by Navy snipers and one was arrested. The Maersk arrived in Mombasa, Kenya, half a day late to deliver the supplies. In the end, all 20 crew members returned home safely.
Cronan, who served in the Navy from 1979 to 1982, was grateful he made it home to his two daughters, Annie, 12, and Sarah, 9, and wife Heather.
Cronan has traveled to over 60 countries since he started in the Merchant Marine in 1983.
Despite his experience, he is not scared to sail the ocean waters again, but he hopes to continue in the maritime industry and stay closer to his family, if his assignments allow it.
When speaking to students, Cronan showed photos of the ship and maps on PowerPoint. For about an hour he told students about his adventure at sea and about his job in commercial transportation.
Growing up, Cronan enjoyed listening to the stories of his father, who was also in the Merchant Marine, and he was pleased to be able to share his own stories with students.
“It was awesome to see a room full of kids interested in what I had to say. It makes me feel good and reminds me that life is a good thing,” he said.
Liz Mansure is the teacher of the fourth-grade class Cronan visited at Coopertown. “To actually have a real world connection to the current events that the students studied in class is awesome,” Mansure said.
Emily Bilhuber, 10, is a fourth-grader in Mansure’s class. The Havertown native’s father sailed with Cronan’s father in the 1970s and was inspired to complete her current events project on the Maersk Alabama because of the local connection.
The project required students to pick an article out of Time for Kids or another news periodical and write about their thoughts. Emily decided to ask Cronan to visit.
“I thought it was very interesting, and I liked how he was brave. It made me feel like he was a lucky man to survive the pirate attack,” Emily said.
She enjoys studying current events in school, and reading the newspaper and Time for Kids outside of the classroom.
“It is fun to learn about what’s happening in the world,” she said.
Earlier in the year, at least three students wrote their current event projects about the Somalian pirates.
“They were all very curious and interested to see what he had to say. They really focused on his presentation and were well-behaved,” Mansure said.
For the bi-annual current events assignment, students summarize the article, write about how if affects the world, explain their opinion on the event and share it with the class. Students also brought in articles on topics including plane crashes, animals, sports and homeless shelters.
“We think it is important for students to know what is going on in the world around them,” Mansure said.
