The Seamen's Church Institute has been a fixture on the Philadelphia waterfront for 166 years, providing friendly help to 40,000 seafarers a year whose ships dock in ports along the Delaware River.

The Rev. James D. Von Dreele, an Episcopal priest, is head chaplain and executive director of the interdenominational ministry.

Father Jim and his staff, including five part-time chaplains and eight to 10 volunteers, visit more than 1,700 ships a year. They offer counsel to foreign sailors, help with immigration issues, and intervene in ship problems such as pay disputes. They also escort the sailors off ships for a few hours of R&R. Seafarers' favorite pastime? Shopping.

Because of stringent post-9/11 immigration regulations, many crews cannot leave ship because they do not have U.S. visas. Those who do, often head for the institute headquarters at 475 N. Fifth St. to watch TV, call home, reflect in the chapel, or surf the Web.

Question: How do you learn a ship is in port?

Answer: We have access to the Maritime Exchange ship lists, so we are able to tell where the new arrivals are. We cover 125 miles on both the New Jersey and Pennsylvania sides of the river. And there are 33 terminals that we serve.

Q: What do you do for sailors?

A: Part of it is simply befriending them. Being on a ship for eight to 10 months with the same guys, they get really tired of each other. We are the fresh face that comes aboard. We care for their emotional, spiritual, and physical welfare.

Shore leave is extremely important because of the monotony of the ship and the pressure of being on board. They need time to get away, and that's what we provide. We also do advocacy work. If a seafarer has not been paid, we will intervene.

Q: How often does that happen?

A: Not as much as it used to, but we have seen situations where the crew has been owed $50,000 or $60,000. We move in with some help from a labor inspector. We pressure the captain and the owner. We negotiate the issue.

About 95 percent of the seafarers we see are foreign, from more than 100 nations. About one-third are Filipinos. The rest are primarily from Asia, Eastern Europe, and Europe.

Q: How did the 9/11 terror attacks affect your work?

A: Since 9/11 it has been very difficult for seafarers to get off ships because of all the governmental regulations and requirements. Only 20 percent to 25 percent take shore leave now. Before 9/11, we just said, "Hi" and "Goodbye" and the guys got off. Now we have to go through elaborate procedures going into the terminal, signing in, and showing a TWIC card [Transportation Worker Identification Credential].

Q: Where do the sailors like to go?