In Memorium: Deborah Natansohn

[crystal808]

Simon/Kiwi:

 

Thanks so much for substantiating what we expected about Deborah and the SB staff and crew. The "best of the best" in any corporate situation starts from the top executive(s) and works its way down throughout its employees. As Seabourn is such a "class act", it's not surprising to know where Deborah stood, and how she supported such an amazing staff and crew.

 

Our thoughts of gratitude and condolences go to her entire family, both on land, and sea.

 

Paul W.

April '06/SB Legend

(And congratulations on your new position!)

[Martita B.]

Sailor's,

I thought you would like to know all of our "Three Seabourn Sister's" will be flying their flags at half mast today....from sunrise to sunset.

I received a photo from Captain Geir-Arne early this morning.....of the Officer's, in full white dress, taken during the lowering of the Legend flag ceremony. I am sure the Pride and the Spirit will have ceremonies, as well, today.

We shall stand strong and tall, together, today for

our President of Seabourn! Debbie would want this

and will be proud, looking down, at each of us.

Martita B.

[TravelBug13]

I am honored to say I worked with Debbie at Orient Lines many years ago.. I remember how proud we all were as a company when it was announced that Debbie was being promoted to President. Not only was this a wonderful celebration for those of us at Orient Lines, but it also opened the door for females to advance to this type of position in the Cruise Industry. The best thing about Debbie was she always made it clear that we were a team... Regardless if you were a VP or a Res Agent, she made it be known that the success of Orient Lines was due to a total team effort.

 

She was a brilliant colleague and classy lady. She is held in the highest regard by her friends and staff at Orient Lines and abroad.

 

I am deeply saddened by her loss.

[blackbird71]

Martita if you will email me the picture I will post it on here tonight

[Martita B.]

Blackie,

I will e-mail Capt. Geir-Arne as to his wishes, as to the photo.

I just had a sweet and moving e-mail from Captain Tonis T., the Spirit is calling on Milos today. He said he would be blowing one long on the Spirit horn at exactly 2:15 p.m.

What thoughtful and never-ending kind Captains we do have on our Seabourn Yachts. I am positive Debbie will hear his whistle!

Martita

[dalwhitt]

I've never sailed Seabourn and I didn't know the lady. But anyone who loves cruising (and I do) has to be touched by the kind words said here today.

 

There is no better legacy than to be loved, respected and cherished. She can rest in peace knowing that she made her mark and touched many people ... even those of us who never knew her.

 

For that reason alone, I may give Seabourn a shot.

[Host Dan]

I've never sailed Seabourn and I didn't know the lady. But anyone who loves cruising (and I do) has to be touched by the kind words said here today.

 

There is no better legacy than to be loved, respected and cherished. She can rest in peace knowing that she made her mark and touched many people ... even those of us who never knew her.

 

For that reason alone, I may give Seabourn a shot.

And you will be welcomed with open arms..

 

Debbie, may you rest in Peace.

 

Host Dan

[Kiwisinger]

You certainly will be welcomed aboard! We truly are a family here at Seabourn and I can guarantee that once you have sailed with us, the 'big ships' will pale in comparrison! One thing that I learned from Debbie is that is is OK to be proudof 'us' and what we do here. I truly beleive in our product and I know that each and every crew member is grateful and feels priveldged to be working on these fine ships! I have seen a design plan for the new ships and they will be beautiful! Thank you Debbie for shepparding this through for us all!

Love to all our family - Jane, how are you doing?

Tomorrow night we are going to dedicate 'Rock The Boat' to Debbie, and weknow she will be smiling down on us.

Cheers everyone!

Kiwi.

[JaneBP]

>"Jane, how are you doing?"

 

I hope you mean the 'East Coast Jane' and I can say that I am hoping that you will be on one of my upcoming cruises!! I am on the Spirit next year, Istanbul to Dubai. Promise me you will be there?

 

Hugs and Kisses to Svetlana.

XOXO

[crystal808]

You certainly will be welcomed aboard! ...and I can guarantee that once you have sailed with us, the 'big ships' will pale in comparrison!

They certainly do! :)

 

 

One thing that I learned from Debbie is that is is OK to be proudof 'us' and what we do here. I truly beleive in our product and I know that each and every crew member is grateful and feels priveldged to be working on these fine ships!

There is certainly a lot to be proud of...and "we" are priviledged to have such outstanding people working for SB!

 

 

Tomorrow night we are going to dedicate 'Rock The Boat' to Debbie, and weknow she will be smiling down on us.

Without a doubt...she'll absolutely love it! Have a great time on stage, Simon (as you do!) and that's all she could ask for....

 

Thanks for taking the time to add to the thread...

 

Paul

[Iamboatman]

I understand Debbie's funeral yesterday was quite moving, with high level representatives from most every cruise line, the top of the top from Carnival, many, many Seabourn employees as well as her friends and family.

 

Today is a new day and we all are taking a BIG breath and getting on with business...knowing Debbie is looking over our shoulders to make sure we all do it...and do it the right way.

[bgood]

Debbie's service yesterday was attended by hundreds of people whom she had touched in one way or another. The cruise industry was well represented by everyone from the corner offices to the mailrooms, clearly Debbie inspired respect and true affection from everyone. Her siblings eulogized her beautifully, and revealed an impressive family that is thoroughly grounded in love and support. It was instructive to see the source of that remarkable woman.

 

bgood

[Keith1010]

bgood and Iamboatman, thank you very much for posting about the Memorial Service for Deborah.

 

Keith

[norm2002]

Capt Geir-Arne has posted his picture on his website http://www.captain-ga.com/displayimage.php?album=lastup&cat=2&pos=0

[CruisinMatt]

Thanks Norm - I was waiting to see this.

[Seabourn-nail]

Coming back from a holiday in Spain, I read the sad news about Deborah only today! I had the pleasure of sailing on board one of the triplets with her once. Not that we talked much, but we said hello every day and talked once when she and I had a cocktail in the Club with the staff before dinner. She seemed a warm woman to me. It is strange, because the other day I looked at a photo of her and I thought "what a lovely picture of her". I just can´t believe the is gone! I wish her family a lot of strength in the time to come.
And let her passing away be a reminder to us - and especially to the ones who already had a warning - that we have to live life to the fullest if and while we can. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow a mystery, but today the present. May the present be like a present as in a gift!
When I think about names for the new ships, my idea would now be "Seabourn Natan" and "Seabourn Son". The last name would sound like our "Seabourn Sun" and "Sohn" means "Son". And "Natan" means "Gift of God". So not only would the names Honor Deborah, but also Seabourn.
I hope somebody from Seabourn will read my message and consider these names!
Rest well Deborah! And I know you won´t mind my signature!
Marja

[DeeKay]

To Kiwisinger,
Thanks for dedicating the show to Deborah. What a nice touch.

I sure hope you sent out a good "Rock the Boat Show"...I know you did,

But deep down I was still singing harmonies to "you can't hurry love" with you,

Love and light!

Dan

[LJ_from_London]

I was shocked and saddened to receive news of Debbie's death from an old friend in London. I remember her wicked smile and big laugh -- and her commitment to nurturing talent wherever she met it.

She gave me my first job overseas, bringing me to London in 1985, to work for Travellers International when Gerry Herrod, the boss, wanted to hire someone else. They took us both, and Debbie's astute reasoning for hiring me was borne out when the other writer went back to NYC after a nice long summer break in Britain.

Debbie had great faith in my ability to quickly pick up the knack of travel writing, and I was a diligent student. She saw to it that I experienced everything our customers and passengers would, from coach tours of Italy to travel aboard the Ocean Cruise Lines vessels, Princess and Islander. Her generosity gave me the opportunity of a lifetime, and I am proud that her faith was rewarded as I developed my own writing and travel career.

I rather lost track of her personally after she returned to the States, but kept in touch obliquely through mutual friends. I always wanted to see her again and tell her that I had helped resurrect our favorite ship, the Princess, from a 'graveyard' in Piraeus, and return her to active service for Thomson Cruises back in the 1990s. I think she would have liked that -- and would have been pleased that a protege of hers had continued in her footsteps, however modestly.

I am so sorry that I will never have the chance to do so. It was great just knowing that she was out there somewhere, loving cruising, being wildly successful, and mentoring other young women as she had me. I will miss her presence in my world. I would like to extend all my sympathy to her family, friends, and colleagues at Seabourne.

[Martita B.]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=blue]LJfrom London,[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]Thank you for your post. Debbie was such a strong, brilliant,astute business woman. But knowing her socially, she was so much fun and so very witty......again a "brilliant gem!" Her laughter was contagious.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]Her sense of humor was famously noted![/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]There are so many amusing stories about Debbie....I would so love to hear all about the time she attended The Academy Awards. I still wonder her selection as to what hat she wore to meet Queen Elizabeth, at the launching of the QM2. Perhaps some of our CCer's[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]will relate wonderful stories they know of Deborah. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]I know a few.....we enjoyed many fun, festive dinner's and luncheon's together.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]Ohhhh, those were the "Days of Wine and Roses!"[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]We will all miss her terribly.....but she shall remain in our hearts and minds forever.....and will sail with us on the Seabourn Yachts on the Seven Seas thru'out the world.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]Martita B.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[blackbird71]

[IMG]http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/images/mecry.gif[/IMG]I got out my docs for my Nov cruise to answer a question on boarding time and the first thing I saw was the Welcome Letter page from Deborah, it made me feel sad.

[Chairsin]

I have been away from this board for some time but Martha B. was good enough to phone me with the very sad and unexpected news of Deborah's passing. I never had the good fortune to meet her but have only heard good things about her from Martha. She will most certainly be missed and my hubby and I shall raise our first glass of champagne on our Dec 6 Spirit cruise to toast her memory. Maybe the next ship could be the Seabourn Muse in her honor.

[cruisenheartsedi]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]As everyone who knew Debbie, I also am still shocked and saddened. I was one of the lucky ones who got to see her on a monthly basis at our Hearts game. Oh Debbie... I always saw her as smiling, warm and relaxed, a competitive and talented player by anyone's standards (as if I would know), but pretty tolerant of those of us who played, heaven forbid, for fun. We called her the black widow, because she really knew the game, and could strike at any moment. She and I shared our birthday month, which was a nice touch for me. I also knew her from the cruise industry, meeting her in the mid-eighties when there was a group of us that went to almost every trade show, almost a pseudo-family in the fall and spring. It was great to watch her climb thru the ranks, never losing who she was, always with a kind word and smile. Today, I was invited to a long time scheduled Commonwealth Institute luncheon, a very poignant event, as Debbie was the incoming president of this mentoring group of powerful women. That's when it truly struck me how wide her many circles of friends were, and how diverse. As different as we all are, we will always share a common bond-our sense of loss at Debbie's passing.[/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Edi[/FONT]

[Martita B.]

[SIZE=3][COLOR=navy]Deborah's family is forming a Memorial Foundation in her name. Donations can be made to: The Deborahn L. Natansohn Foundation, c/o Mr. Saul Natansohn 44 Russell Road Wellesly, Mass. 02482[/COLOR][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][COLOR=#000080][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][COLOR=#000080]What a fitting and appropriate legacy to Debbie.[/COLOR][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][COLOR=#000080][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][COLOR=#000080]Martita B.[/COLOR][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][COLOR=#000080][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][COLOR=#000080][/COLOR][/SIZE]

[JaneBP]

Thanks for posting that Martha. Do you know what the foundation will do?

Jane (just curious, not judging)

[Martita B.]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=blue]Jane,[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]As we are all aware, Debbie had several special charity/interests.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]She was President of The Commonwealth Institute, South Florida (group for executive women)....also the Miami Dade School Districts. These are only two she worked so tireless and diligently. Deborah was certainly a "don't give up the ship" lady![/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]I am not certain as to where the contributions will go, nor what the foundation will be funding.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]I will be talking to Deborah's Mother this week and will inquire. ~~~I shall post it.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff]Martita B.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#0000ff][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]