Series I.C. John C. Bates letters to his mother, Natica Inches Bates, are reflective of John’s work with the International Greenfell Association (IGA), an organization that provided a medical and other services to fisherman and coastal communities in Northern Newfoundland and the coast of Labrador. Many of Bates’ letters are addressed from the Change Islands, Newfoundland, and describe the association’s activities in support of the fisherman there. Bates owned and skippered a fast cabin cruiser the Northern Arrow for his work with the organization, and described saving over thirty lives with the vessel as well as “treating 107 patients in 4 ½ days.”