As our fleet of lady ships (Scarlet Lady, Valiant Lady, and our newest star, Resilient Lady) prepare to set sail, we’re searching for their Godmother. But first, let’s break down what exactly a Godmother — of the high seas — even is?!
A longstanding naval tradition, the concept of a ship’s (or ships) Godmother dates back to, well, basically as long as ships have ever existed. Godmothers, or Godfathers, are chosen to bring good luck and protection — watching over ships at sea, and in our case, celebrating with a larger-than-life party to make things official (complete with the breaking of a champagne bottle on the hull).
Dating back thousands of years, varying forms of “Godmothers” have been called upon to keep ships safe — with almost every culture having some kind of traditional ceremony to launch a new vessel. From the Vikings who incorporated sheep sacrificing elements in their coining of a Godmother (don’t worry, we’ve ditched that part), to 1700s shipbuilders who would carve the bow of the ship with a female figurehead (women were believed to have better eyes for navigation) — the presence of a Godmother figure watching over ships is one of the most storied seafaring traditions in existence.
And while the role of the Godmother has evolved and may feel a bit like a figurehead, it really is so much more than that. The person we coin Godmother represents our brand, our goals, and the spirit of who we are. And we want to find the inspiring, empowering, unapologetic person who can best embody that — someone willing to get loud, dream boldly, and throw a party or two along the way (work life balance is important at Virgin Voyages). So for the next few weeks, we’ll be interviewing candidates for the position publicly; aka, on our social media channels, and you can follow along as we do it.
Everyone we’re considering is phenomenal — so don’t miss out on all the people we’re honored to meet, interview, and get to know. We’ll also be looking for recommendations from you, our Sailors, so keep an eye out for our call for that, too. Look, we will be fangirl-ing (and fanboy-ing) over our options, so absolutely under no circumstances expect us to play it cool (trust us, you wouldn’t either).
