Sitting just southeast of Savannah’s historic downtown, Thunderbolt is a tight-knit fishing community that’s home to a population of about 2,500. Many people pass through Thunderbolt on the way to the islands, but this past weekend, many flocked to the coastal community to celebrate the annual Blessing of the Fleet.
The Blessing of Fleet is a tradition observed by Thunderbolt and other communities sustained largely by the shrimping and fishing industry during which a priest prays for safety and a successful harvest season for the hardworking shrimpers and fishers who engage in this work.
“Many years ago this whole community was based around shrimping and fishing,” said Mayor of Thunderbolt, Dana Williams. “And every year before the shrimpers and fishermen started their shrimping and fishing season, a priest would come out and bless the whole fleet to keep them safe and bring them home safe and hopefully grant them with bountiful catches and profitable seasons.”
Beyond the religious invocation, the Blessing of the Fleet is also a celebration of community where locals come together for fellowship and to take advantage of family-friendly activities. Thunderbolt’s Blessing of the Fleet celebrates three years after a more than two-decade hiatus. Williams made bringing back the Blessing of the Fleet a top priority during his campaign. And with the help of Simply Savannah Marketing and neighboring Savannah organizations and the support of the local community, Blessing of the Fleet is back and bigger than ever.
This year’s event took place on Saturday, April 27 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thousands gathered on Thunderbolt’s main strip, River Drive, to enjoy about 100 vendors, live performances from acts like the Savannah State University drumline and the Performing Arts Collective of Savannah, live music courtesy of the Speck Hosti Band, a beer garden, food trucks, a boat parade, and much more. Williams takes pride in the fact that the event has been so successful, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic.
“It's been a huge success, and really for me, community building is one of the biggest things I wanted to do. And this is one of the events that we always did that [brings] everybody out to talk about the past, which is something I'm so passionate about, remembering our history, remembering our heritage and those who came before us who worked so hard to give us what we have here,” said Williams. “And I just wanted to build on that and bring everybody back out. You know, I hate to bring up the C word, but I feel like COVID really isolated everybody and two years and half years ago, we were all just self-isolating and we lost that sense of community. And something I just really wanted to bring back is to know your neighbor, know your community and [have] community pride.”
In the first year of the Blessing of the Fleet’s return, the event attracted about 2,000 people. Last year, about 6,000 people attended, and it seems the event will continue to grow in the coming years. It’s an exciting celebration of the past in the present day, a time to reflect on Thunderbolt’s history and heritage.
“It really just continues that heritage and the history of the days gone by. When all the families came out, everybody, it was just a big community party. And I think really it just reminds people of the days gone by and reignites and reinvigorates that sense of the community and the beautiful, unique place that we have here in Thunderbolt,” said Williams.
He is thankful to everyone who came out and participated and to all the individuals who the Blessing of the Fleet honors: “the hard-working men and women in this town and the shrimping fleet.”
Williams noted that local shrimpers suffered last year after foreign nations illegally dumped shrimp in our market, essentially flooding the market and reducing the demand for locally sourced shrimp, which, unfortunately, forced a lot of local fishers and shrimpers out of business.
“If I could say anything, please shop local and buy local, whether it's shrimp, fish, local goods, anything, just support your local community,” said Williams. “That's what keeps us all here. The money stays here and it's so important to support those small local businesses.”
For more information on this year’s Blessing of the Fleet, visit botfga.com.
