Cards, Prayers for Ship Captain Held in Mexico

Hundreds of prayer cards offering hope and encouragement will be delivered today to Scott McClung, who begins his third week in custody in Mexico, where he is charged with illegally bringing weapons into the country.

Parishioners at Mariners South Coast Church in Irvine, where McClung is a volunteer and mentor to high school youths, hope the messages of support will bring him strength as he recovers in a Cozumel hospital and awaits the uncertainty of Mexican justice.

“Basically, we’re giving him encouragement. Everyone wants to help. We’ve filled out about 600 prayer cards, and 10 of his students have been making calls to everyone we know, asking for their prayers,” said Christine Bogenrief, 15, who organized the card campaign.

The telephone calls have brought a groundswell of support, the Corona del Mar High School student said.

“The students tell their parents, and the parents tell their friends. That way, if they haven’t read about it, they know about Scott,” Christine said.

In addition to the personal notes of support sent by friends and well-wishers, each card includes a biblical quote intended to boost McClung’s spirits.

McClung, who turns 36 on Thursday, needs all the prayers he can get, said his friend Jeff Pries, a high school pastor at the church. Pries, who expressed concern about the effect incarceration is having on McClung’s health, will fly to Mexico today to deliver the cards to him.

“I really don’t know what to expect when I go down there. I just want to take him some encouragement,” Pries said. “I have worked in a ministry with Scott for 2 1/2 years. This is one guy who has total integrity.”

McClung, the skipper of a family-owned charter ship named the Rapture, collapsed and had to be hospitalized last week, after a judge in Cozumel ruled that he must stand trial for bringing three shotguns and two AR-15 rifles into the Mexican port.

McClung’s father, 71-year-old Eugene McClung, and first mate Noah Bailey also were arrested aboard the vessel when it docked in Cozumel on Aug. 10 for emergency repairs.

But the same judge who bound Scott McClung over for trial dismissed the charges against the elder McClung and Bailey.

Eugene McClung said the weapons were kept on board for protection against pirates. The shotguns were for skeet shooting.

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On Sunday, Scott McClung remained in stable condition in a private clinic in Cozumel, suffering from a stress-related illness.

A local prosecutor had asked that he be transferred to a nearby federal prison while he awaits trial, but the judge ruled that he could be held in the local city jail instead.

U. S. Ambassador Jeffrey Davidow will talk with the Mexican attorney general this week in an attempt to resolve McClung’s legal problems.

Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach) warned Saturday that McClung’s arrest could affect relations between the countries and have an adverse impact on tourism.

At the Irvine church Scott McClung attends, thousands of members offered prayers during Sunday services and expressed hopes that officials of the two countries can work out an agreement for McClung’s release.

“We pray for justice to be done swiftly. We pray for his release, and for [Pries] when he goes that it will bring [McClung] comfort and encouragement,” Pastor Gary Edmonds told the congregation.

Joan Ramsey has been following McClung’s case in the newspaper and decided to attend services at Mariners church Sunday “to join his friends in prayer.”

“I don’t know him, but from what I’ve read, he is a good Christian who practices what the Bible teaches. I was very impressed by the story in today’s paper that described what a giving person he is,” Ramsey said.

Inside the youth ministry building, teenagers expressed similar sentiments in notes scrawled on a giant postcard.

“Scott, you would be amazed by all of the people who are looking for ways to help. We are hoping and praying for your release,” one supporter wrote.