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From the President - 1-14-06

In my last letter, I asked for ideas as to how we might assist the sailors and yacht clubs along the Gulf Coast that were devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. While there has not been a lot of good news to report from an area that is struggling to rebuild, the spirits of the sailors and club members remains high. I have received reports that many of the hulls owned by the clubs survived – but not much else. In particular, there is a tremendous need for sails as well as boat hardware, spars and other sailing equipment. This includes not only gear for Flying Scots, but also Opti’s, Sunfish, and Lasers used in sailing camp. Many of us have unused sailing items in our garages and basements. How about donating your surplus sails and gear to the Gulf Coast yacht clubs so severely hurt by Katrina and Rita? There are a few ways to direct your donations:

1. Edie Sullivan of the Lake Norman Yacht Club has agreed to coordinate the collection and distribution of sails and equipment to the Gulf Coast clubs. Edie grew up along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, is a member of Pass Christian Yacht Club, and has many sailing contacts in the area. If you have items to donate, please call or email Edie for directions as to where they should be sent. Edie can be reached by phone at (704) 341-5673 or by email at ediesull@bellsouth.net.
2. Davis Island Yacht Club (DIYC) in Tampa, FL (www.diyc.org ) has put together a Relief and Recovery effort to help build up two of the hardest hit areas of Mississippi that includes Bay Waveland YC and neighboring Pass Christian YC. DIYC has already delivered trailers full of household appliances and goods, sails for boats including Flying Scots, clothing and medicinal supplies. Their next trip is planned for early Spring. As there will be many sailors from around the country attending the Midwinters, it would be a great time to gather old sails, spars and hardware from your Fleet members and bring this equipment to the St. Petersburg YC where it will be picked up by DIYC. For further information about the DIYC Relief and Recovery effort, please contact Shannon Figley-Taylor, FS 4321, Fleet 168, at taylorsailors5@yahoo.com.
3. If you would like to make a monetary contribution, please consider the Gulf Yachting Association Foundation which was formed by the GYA clubs in 1993 as a means to support sailing on the Gulf Coast and amongst its member clubs. The primary emphasis is on juniors. Any funds received will be used to restore and replace damaged and destroyed equipment at the 15 clubs that sustained serious hurricane damage based on need and the total amount received. The foundation is a 501(c)3 organization which allows contributions to be considered charitable contributions for Federal Income tax purposes. Contributions may be sent to the Foundation Treasurer, Janet Miller-Schmidt, 2777 Lakeshore Drive, Mandeville, La 70448. For further information go to www.gya.org.

The weekend before Thanksgiving I had the opportunity to attend the U. S. Sailing One-Design Sailing Symposium held in Annapolis, MD. There was an impressive list of speakers including the familiar names of Joni Palmer, Greg Fisher, Brad Davis, Stuart Walker, Janet Baxter, John Burnham, Dave Dellenbaugh and Gary Jobson. Equally impressive was the list of attendees representing many Class Associations from all over

Glenn Shaffer