Chuck Heath ’72

“My Whole Personality Changed Because of MMA”

Chuck Heath ’72 grew up in Laurel, Delaware, as part of a sailing family. His great-grandfather was a shipbuilder of Chesapeake Bay Ram ships. These three-masted ships were about 120 feet long with flat bottoms and a centerboard. His grandfather was owner and captain of the last commercial, three-masted schooner on the East Coast.

At his uncle’s recommendation, Heath applied to Maine Maritime Academy and received a letter stating he was on an alternate list. “At the time,” said Heath, “my dad worked for Delaware Governor Charles Terry who was golf partners with Maine’s Governor Ken Curtis ’52. My dad talked to Governor Terry, who called Governor Curtis, and a week later I had an interview with Captain Irv, MMA’s academic dean at the time. After a fifteen-minute interview, he told me I was accepted, and I started that August.”

After graduation, Heath worked for a series of companies, including Seatrain and Farrell Lines, building experience while looking for an opportunity to be directly involved with shipping. He worked as the New England regional manager for Cruise International in Norfolk, Virginia, a company owned by MMA graduate Richard O’Leary ’54. Heath was hired as the New England sales rep for Greek Line and Carnival Cruise Line. Ferrell Lines hired him to shut down part of their European service. They said that if he closed it within a year, they would find him another job in shipping.

He met this goal and the president of Ferrell introduced him to people at Sealand who were looking for a director of commercial trade development for the brand new port of Jebel Ali in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Heath, his wife, and children moved to Dubai in 1981. In 1985, the port decided to open the Jebel Ali Free Zone on land surrounding the port. Heath became one of the directors, and it is now home to 9,500 companies. In 1986, the family moved back to the U.S. and Heath opened up the first American office for Jebel Ali Port and Free Zone.

In 1998, the Director General of Dubai Commerce and Tourism brought Heath back to Dubai to develop an international cruise hub. When it opened, it was the only cruise terminal between the Mediterranean and Southeast Asia. It was also the first international cruise terminal to receive ISO certification.
“We had all our policies and procedures in place during construction, so Lloyd’s of London certified us before we opened the doors,” said Heath.

The chairman of Jebel Ali Port gave Heath the responsibility to develop free-trade zones on a global basis in countries where they had ports operating, using the same model that was such a success at Jebel Ali. After about ten years, Heath retired in 2011, except for some consulting he did for the World Bank in Africa.

In 2016, the Jebel Ali Port chairman asked him to go to London where they had built the largest logistics port in Europe. But they were having difficulties. Heath assessed the problems, made recommendations, and spent about six months implementing them. In 2017, Heath moved to Dubai as Chief Operating Officer for the International Economic Zone division.

Maine Maritime gave me the self-confidence that I could do anything I put my mind to.

Heath is quick to credit MMA for the success he has achieved. “My whole personality changed because of MMA,” Heath said. “I was extremely introverted growing up. I was very, very shy. I would actually cross the street to avoid having to talk to other students. Maine Maritime Academy gave me the self-confidence that I could do anything I put my mind to.

“Did I enjoy my time at Maine Maritime Academy? Probably not as much as I respect it today. It was a challenge. I was in the first graduating class receiving a certified Bachelor of Science degree. Even if you’re on the midnight to four watch and the noon to four watch in the afternoon, that didn’t get you out of your coursework responsibility. You still had to keep up your academics. You had to learn to manage your time. And time management is directly linked to self-discipline.”

But he is quick to point out the importance of people skills. “If you were to ask any of the people, not only that work for me, but within the organization itself, I’d like to think I have a pretty good reputation. I don’t care if you’re the office boy or if you’re the chairman of the company, I’ll give the same courtesy, attention, and respect.

“I tell it the way it is. If I see a decision is being made that I think is wrong, I have no problem playing devil’s advocate. I can do that because of the self-confidence Maine Maritime gave me. I like pointing out risks because the last thing I want is for the company to make a decision that I know is wrong.”

by Frank N. Famulari ’67

ABOUT FIVE YEARS AGO Angela and I decided to include Maine Maritime Academy in our trust and will to ensure that at our passing our intentions would be clear to our administrator. The concept of including MMA in our estate came from a classmate. Some years ago, he was featured in the Alumni News explaining why he and his wife decided to include MMA in their estate plans. At that time, I didn’t give it too much thought, but as the years went by and our portfolio increased, we became more aware of the need to specify how our portfolio was to be distributed at the time of our passing.

During our discussions, I realized that, had it not been for graduating from MMA, I doubted we would be in the financial position we are. We determined that the bulk of our estate would be directed to MMA.

As with many of the MMA alumni, I have routinely contributed to the yearly and specific fundraising requests. Through our planned giving, we will ensure our continuing support for MMA long after our passing.

This is a positive way to help sustain Maine Maritime Academy in the future long after we are gone.

Creating your Legacy

When you include Maine Maritime Academy in your estate plans, you make a permanent and lasting difference to MMA, its students, faculty, and staff. By making a planned gift, you ensure MMA will be producing top-notch graduates long into the future.

There are many ways you can provide for MMA, now and in the future:

Include a bequest to Maine Maritime Academy in your will, either a specific bequest or a percentage.
Name MMA as a beneficiary of your retirement account.
Name MMA as a beneficiary of your life insurance.
Leave your house or property to MMA.

Contact Christopher Haley, VP for Advancement for more information: email christopher.haley@mma.edu or call 207-326-2232.

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