On November 15, 2007 the double hull oil barge, Lovel Briere, was launched
at Zidell Marine in Portland, Oregon. Employees of both Harley Marine and Zidell celebrated the launch with local vendors, clients, ConocoPhillips and family of Mr. Lovel Briere. Guests were welcomed by the staff of Zidell Marine and festivities commenced with speeches from Jay Zidell, Harley Franco, Tim Quigg and Rosie Mathews, the daughter of Mr. Lovel Briere. The barge was blessed by Father Jim Gallagher of the Congregation of Holy Cross.

The barge was named after a dear friend of Mr. Franco who was a long time supporter of Cystic Fibrosis
and other honorable charities. Mr. Briere lost three children to cystic fibrosis: Theresa in 1974 at age 6,
Ben in 1983 at age 10 and Bernie in 2000
at age 21. Cystic fibrosis brought intense pain and suffering to the Briere family and consequently Lovel dedicated his remaining days to help support finding a cure for cystic fibrosis. Taken from an exert from
his obituary, the below paragraph will
give you just a brief description of Mr. Briere and why we are honored to name
a barge after him.

“Lovel's lifelong career of volunteering
and community service began at a very early age by shoveling snow for neighbors and continued for the rest of his life.
Some of his many accomplishments include: He was one of the founding families
of Holy Family School, recipient of Holy Family School's "Humanitarian Award,"
(later renamed "Lovel Briere Distinguished Humanitarian Award"), recipient of the Knights of Columbus Washington State and International Family of the Year Awards for his service to the Catholic Church, recipient of the "Salvation Army Volunteer of the Year Award" (later renamed "Lovel Briere Salvation Army Volunteer of the Year Award"), founder of the Bernie Tourney, a golf tournament to raise funds for
Catholic education, Smokey the Bear in the pet parade for 36 years, softball and basketball coach,
actively involved in the Respect for Life movement, started the Veteran's Appreciation Dinner
to honor vets, a member of the Victorious Missionaries to provide spiritual support for persons
with disabilities and their family and friends, ran the concession stand at St. Martin's University
donating his paycheck to the Bernie Briere scholarship fund, member of Holy Name Society,
member and past district deputy and Grand Knight for the Knights of Columbus (Father Nicholas Rausch
OSB Council #1643), 2006 Capital Lakefair Grand Parade Marshal, Tree of Life member for blood donation over 200 times, and active fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to bring awareness and some day
a cure for the disease that took the life of three of his children.”

During Mrs. Mathews speech she shared with the guests the below list of “Important Barge Stuff”
written by the kindergarten students in the class that she teaches.

Mrs. Mathews Kindergarten Class of Important Barge Stuff
1)  Always be safe when you are traveling.
2)  Always wear a life jacket.
3)  Bring binoculars with you so you can watch for
     dangerous stuff in the water.
     You can also do some bird watching.
4)  Watch out for sharks!
5)  Watch out for scuba divers
     so you don't hurt them.
6)  Watch out for rocks and turn if you see one
     because they could break the boat right in half.
     Everyone would get hurt.
7)  Don’t ever fight on the barge.
8)  NEVER push someone over the side of the barge.
9)  If you spill a little bit of oil on your hands,
     don't worry about it, you can just wash it off.
10) If you spill oil in the sea, be sure to clean it up
     right away so the animals don't get hurt.
11) Always say a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance
     before you go out on the ship.
12) The barge is really cool and pretty.
13) You should clean the boat with a hose
     and a wash cloth after every trip to keep it clean.
14) It was a good idea to name the boat after
     Mrs. Mathews’ dad. The name fits the boat
     perfect. It got picked from someone really nice.
     It got picked from a Super Hero.
15) Thank you for helping people who are sick.
     You are really good people to take care of people
     with a disease.
16) You will always be safe because
     God is in Heaven watching over you.

The Christening ended with a splash as the barge slid proudly down the launching ways
and into the Wilamette River. The barge will enter the Harley Marine Fleet and begin working along
the U.S. West Coast for ConocoPhillips. Thank you to everyone at Zidell, ConocoPhillips and Harley Marine for all of their work and dedication throughout the build and now the life of the Lovel Briere.

Also, to add onto the already exciting news, Mayor Greg Nichels of Seattle, Governor Christine O. Gregoire of Washinton, and Mayor Tom Potter of Portland, proclaimed November 15th "Lovel Briere Day",
which celebrates the successful partnership of Olympic Tug & Barge,
the medical community and children stricken by cystic fibrosis. 

See the official proclamations
See the photo gallery

Lovel Briere  ~  Double Hull Oil Barge  ~  Capacity - 52,000 bbls.  ~  289 ft. LOA  ~  78 ft. Beam