Meet the Students
Community support means evrything to these kids.
"Sailing is fun but on the boat you must know where everything is and how everything works. The keel is a part of the boat that you never see while you're in the water. It keeps the boat from tipping but not from tilting (heeling). The rudder is the part of the boat that directs it. It can only move vertically to left and right. The hull is simply the body of the boat. A tiller is like the steering wheel to a sail boat. If you turn it left the boat will move right and if you turn it right the boat will move left. The boom is part of the sails that moves depending on your direction. The main sail is the back sail. It is turned left and right by the boom to get pushed by the wind. The head sail or jib is the sail that will give you more speed. The mast is the long pole that will hold the main sail up to its maximum height. We are lucky to have access to these sail boats and ride them. Ask any student here at BMC if any of their friends have ever been sailing, have ever gotten their boating license, or even have ever been canoeing. The answers will most likely be none. All of us have fun and volunteer for any job out on the sail boats because not every kid has the chance to do what we do.
--Jorge L.
Typically half of our new students have never been on a boat. It is hard to believe this is possible when most of these kids grow up just minutes from one of the most beautiful lakes in the country. Imagine the thrill of their first boat ride when it is on a boat they have built with their own hands!