July 2009

In this issue:

15th Anniversary Challenge Grant
2009 Staff Members
WAVES Iniative
Sailing Center in the News
Adult Sailing Instruction
CSC Volunteer Program
Upcoming Events

Annual Fund Kick Off

15th Anniversary Challenge Grant!

This season we are celebrating 15 years with the community!

We all believe that Lake Champlain is one of Vermont's greatest natural resource. The Community Sailing Center is dedicated to encouraging and celebrating the responsible use and long-term stewardship of the Lake by fostering education, recreation and growth in the community around us.

It is critical these kind of positive, character-building experiences and life lessons that the Lake provides are made available to our community. To do all this takes a lot of effort, skilled instructors, and financial support.

Thanks to a generous challenge grant issued by a long time supporter, every donation will be matched dollar-for-dollar, doubling the value of your gift and the amount of work we can do! Our goal is to raise $50,000.

Please consider a donation to the Community Sailing Center this season.

To donate online, visit JustGive.org

2009 Staff Members

A bunch of amazing people!

It take lots of effort to run the Sailing Center 7 days a week, 10 hours a day all season long. With all of our new and expanded programs, we needed a large number of amazing people to make the center come to life. This season it takes 22 individuals to keep the center sailing smoothly. Check out the Staff Biographies Page for more information about your favorite instructor, director or waterfront coordinator.

Staff Biographies

All of our staff have many great stories to tell about the day to day operations here at the center. Check our BLOG to hear about all the fun experiences!

Community Sailing Center BLOG

WAVES Iniative

Producers, Consumers, Decomposers, OH MY!

Last Wednesday during our regular sailing camp we welcomed Amy Picotte, a scientist in the Water Quality Division of the Department of Environmental Conservation. Amy engaged the students in a neat conversation about the lake and what lives there. What better way to see what lives in the lake than looking through a giant view finder! Campers were challenged to view the lake from a large black tube that when submerged in water allows you to see what is lurking below the surface. Fascinating! In addition to viewing the inhabitants of Lake Champlain the students finished their lunchtime WAVES special by learning about the important connections between producers, consumers, and decomposers. They assembled in a circle to see if they would be able to stay connected when one of those groups was eliminated. I’m sure you can only imagine what happened next. When one group was removed from the circle the remaining students were unable continue standing and fell (safely) to the ground.

To find our more information about our new experiential learning initiative,WAVES. Click here!

Sailing Center in the News

Community Centers Sails into 15th Season!

We always get excited when people spread the word about the great things that happen down here at the Sailing Center. Lynn Monty, a writer from the Burlington Free Press came to visit us for an afternoon and wrote a great story about our 15th anniversary season.

Check it out!

Community Center Sails into 15th Season

Adult Sailing Instruction

Play on the Lake!

Want to learn how to sail a boat?
Have plans of owning your own boat?
Dream about spending afternoons on the Lake?

Enroll in one of our courses today!

Sailing Basics
This 15-hour course includes a introduction to sailing, nomenclature, wind awareness, weather, rigging, points of sail, tacking and jibing, docking, mooring, and general boating safety. At the completion of the course, you will receive a US Sailing Small Boat Certification that allows you to rent a boat from our facility.

Beyond Basics
This 6-hour course is designed to expand on the skills learned in the Sailing Basics Course. It introduces new topics as controlling sail shape, heavy air sailing, aids to navigation, docking and mooring.

Private Lessons
Learn to sail one-on-one or explore your new sailboat with a certified instructor. Lessons can be given in the student's boat or in the Community Sailing Center's boat. Reservations need to be made at least 48 hours in advance.

CSC Volunteer Program

A note from Shreesh

We are grateful for the volunteers who assist will all of our major projects and programs at the Sailing Center. Shreesh Tandel and his daughter Rucha were part of our volunteer crew last winter that helped rebuild our dock, they have recently relocated out of Vermont but took a moment to write a wonderful note to us about their time at the Sailing Center:

"One of the things I loved about VT was the opportunity to be part of the Sailing Center. I really appreciated the chance to interact with and learn from a great bunch of folks. It made my life richer and more satisfying and it also made it relaxing and stress-free. Rucha & I loved every minute of working on the docks right from March when everything was covered in ice & snow to the hot, muggy days of July when the dock was anchored in place - and finally sailing off from that same dock last summer was a very satisfying feeling. I am so glad we had the opportunity to not only learn sailing but also things like basic carpentry, operating power tools and other handy skills." - Shreesh

If you would like to volunteer your time at the center please contact Colin Davis.

Upcoming Events

Everyone Loves a Parade

This summer marks the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Lake Champlain. We are sure you are all aware of the excitement surrounding the Quadricentennial, but there is definitely one event that stands out amongst the others: the Quadricentennial parade!

The Community Sailing Center will be joining in the festivities as one of the performances in the parade on Saturday! We would love to have as many people as possible show their support of the Community Sailing Center and Lake Champlain by participating in our portion of the event.

Join Sailing Center supporters, staff, campers and volunteers, by marching with us in the parade on Saturday, July 11, 2009, from 3:30 p.m. - 6 p.m. Please call Jen Guimaraes at 864.2499 if you would like to be a part of the 400th year celebration of the discovery of Lake Champlain!

Regatta For Lake Champlain The 6th annual Regatta for Lake Champlain and Lake Lover's Dance Party is happening on July 24th and 25th. This event is a fundraiser for organizations that help foster stewardship of Lake Champlain. Since it’s inception in 2004 the Regatta for Lake Champlain has donated close to $15,000 to the Community Sailing Center. The race is a pursuit race, and is open to all kinds of sailboats, big and small. This year a group of Sailing Center campers and instructors will team up to race!

For more information please visit www.RegattaForLakeChamplain.org

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