There is something deeply saddening about a boat on the rocks. The men were always at fault but the hull has become like a rotting carcass a monument of shame to the men who failed her and loved her both.

The St. Jude was then named the Captain D and A and also deeply crippled by going up on the jetty. Most boats of her style are not compartmentalized with watertight bulkheads which might have saved her from the indignity of ingesting thousands of gallons of the sea into her fragile mechanical innards, but her bilge was common from the fish hold (where the plate was torn off) to the engine room. Only deep commitment and boundless energy could bring her back.

A soft spoken Vietnamese man walked the shore and came upon the scene of the wreck. He noticed a loud argument between two men near to the boat. It happened that this was a conflict between the insurance adjuster and the current owner about what they could settle for. Mr Bui waited patiently until they parted and approached the insurance adjuster and asked what the settlement would be. Then Mr Bui made an offer as is where is for the boat! This was the offer of a man of courage confidence and know how. 

As it happens Mr Bui was a Caterpillar Engine dealer and so some of the most challenging work ahead (the engines) could be done very cost effectively at his shop. His broad ties to the Vietnamese fishing community got him the help he needed to float her off and tow the boat to a shipyard for the hull repair. He took great personal satisfaction in having become a boat owner as were many of his Caterpillar customers in Port Arthur Texas where he lived.

To be continued