Sixteen years ago, member Laird Cleaver provided 10 sparkling new 420 sailboats for use by the Junior Program Advanced sailors. The magnificent gift has been the mainstay of that program for all this time and they have stood up well to the wear and tear of daily use.

The time has come when we realize that it is costing more to annually repair than is economically sensible and the decision has been made by the flags and the Junior Program Committee to replace these speedy and exciting denizens of the deep.

The replacement cost is $75,000. Two members of the club have stepped up to the plate, each pledging $20,000 gifts to the Junior Program Foundation in the form of a direct grant.

Paul Coulombe and Paul Schacknow (through the Schacknow Foundation) have specifically addressed their personal belief in the work of the Junior Program and in their desire to see that program have the proper tools with which to educate our youth.

Other individual gifts are being addressed and it is the hope of all involved that the new 420’s will be here by April, in time for the High School sailing program start up.

The Junior Program and the Adult Sailing Program have also jointly announced that a new staff position will be created to address long standing specific needs. The job will entail race management and supervision duties for the adult sailing program with its director and working under Sally Lloyd. The person will be a dedicated instructor for the advanced junior sailors excitedly using the new 420’s!

Thanks to new members Michael and Abby Smith, we have a location for the January social gathering.