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New York - Canandaigua Hospeace House Regatta & Nautical Celebration
Hospeace House Regatta & Nautical Celebration The Third Annual ESL Hospeace House Regatta and Nautical Celebration was held in fair winds under fair skies on Saturday July 14th at Canandaigua Yacht Club. Success was met on many fronts due to excellent weather, fantastic work from all involved and generous donations from so many. After the weather for the last two years’ regattas, all committee members were a bit worried about weather and sailor participation. Our worries were unfounded. The day turned out to be perfect. We had sun, temperatures in the seventies and wind ranging from 5- 15 knots. We raced 3 classes of boats: 4 J-24s and 6 Thistles and 5 other PHRF non-spinnaker boats. Two of the J24s were Canandaigua boats as well all of the non spinnaker entries It turns out that J-24s and Thistles have the same PHRF rating (who knew?) so they raced against each other. This made for some very tight racing, interesting crossings and mixed up finishes. No one knew who won until the awards party as one Thistle and one J-24 were very close. It turns out that Kiki Werner, a J-24 sailor from Rochester, and her team tied with John Baker, a Thistle sailor from Seneca Yacht Club, and his team. Happily for Kiki’s team, they won the tie breaker. Kiki told us at the award party that she had attended 5 other hospice regattas in New York and placed second each time. She is thrilled to have broken the “curse of second place” and to be taking her team to represent Canandaigua Yacht Club and the Hospeace House in Naples at the 2008 National Hospice Regatta Alliance Championships in Annapolis, MD. After the sailing, we had a sailor’s happy hour, sailors raffle and the awards ceremony. Great fun was had by all, many great prizes were won by sailors and non sailors alike and trophies were awarded to the top three boats in each of the three divisions. Commodore Rob Turbett spoke about how happy the club was to be a part of the event and then gave the trophies out. Winners were: Kiki Werner for the J-24s, John Baker for the Thistles, and George Walters for the non spinnaker division. In addition, Mike and Jeff Schenk and team were recognized for being the sailing team who collected the most donations for Hospeace House on their own. They raised over $2,200 dollars for Hospeace House. Later that night this team received the “Winds Of Hospeace Trophy” which they accepted in honor of Coach Gordon. Fabulous job, Team Schenk! Last but not least, we all were ready for the awesome silent art auction, an incredibly tasty dinner, some inspirational talk about the value of hospice care and recognition of all the sponsors. We raised over $19,000 for the Hospeace House. Thanks went as well to the Canandaigua Yacht Club and its members who helped in this event. Special thanks went to Bill Schmidt, Kyle Mueller and Charlie Perfetti for their efforts. We topped off the successful event with great dancing to music provided to the Millionaires. Thanks again to everyone. See you next year! Joy Martin, HH Regatta Chair Hosted by: Canandaigua Yacht Club
Website: http://www.hospeacehouse.org/ Hospeace Contact: Joy Martin 315-945-4571.
Hospeace House Regatta & Nautical Celebration Did They Really Sail that Day? The weather forecast was ominous, yet the hardy and intrepid CYC and Hospeace House volunteers, along with the crazy sailors, showed up to make the 2nd annual Hospeace House regatta happen. As we were setting up registration and boats, the rain began to pour. Our prospects were not bright. A quick look around the waterfront at CYC found sailors ranging in age from 12 to 75 and classes including Thistles, Stars, J22’s, J24’s, and a variety of Portsmouth handicap boats. The Stars decided they didn’t like being wet and packed up. Too bad for them, as the rain broke and we raced under cloudy skies, but with good wind. A few other CYC members decide not to race, but donated their regatta fee to the good of the Hospeace House. The able race committee, run by Jim Mueller, set up a long distance course for the boats racing under the Portsmouth handicap rule. 10 boats competed in that fleet. John Baker and crew took top honors in that fleet on Curt Barnes’ J24, Brain Cramp. Jim also set up around the buoy racing for the four Thistles. Four races were run with Jim Gindling and team coming out on top. On the water were also photographers Gordon Bennett and Jack Harvey. Their photos are available. The win by Baker and team qualifies them to compete in the National Hospice Championship Regatta held in Annapolis, MD from May 11-14 on locally donated J 105s. This is a great honor and a wonderful opportunity to race against nationally recognized sailors from the other 24 hospice regattas run around the country. Nice job, team Brain Cramp A new feature of the regatta this year was the “ Winds of Hospeace “ trophy. Donated by Sue Kennedy, this beautiful blown glass sailboat trophy was awarded to the skipper who brought in the most donations for Hospeace House. While Jim Gindling and John Baker raised $ 500 between the two of them, they could not compete with Mike Schenk. His efforts brought another $1,300 to the Regatta efforts for Hospeace House. After the racing, sailors and volunteers were treated to a “sailor’s happy hour” with beer and munchies, sailor’s raffle and an award ceremony. Much fun was had by all as we bought $1 tickets and vied for items that varied from flip flops and sailing bags to Great lakes navigation chart books, fleece vests and a vintage neon Genesee beer sign. All the sailors and their sponsoring donors were recognized. And trophies were given out to the top three sailing teams in each division. The National Hospice Regatta Alliance has a slogan, “ We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails.” The Hospeace House Regatta committee has adopted the same attitude. While turn out was small, we had great sailing and the sailors raised awareness as well as money for hospice care in our region. We look forward to doing more of the same with more sailors and volunteers next year. Come and join us if you can. Nautical Celebration was a Tasty and Swinging EventThe second annual Nautical Celebration was not deterred by the weather. 90 people came to eat a fabulous meal of shrimp and filet mignon and dance to the great music of As folks entered they were able to buy a drink, peruse and bid on the amazing silent auction art items organized by Skip and Judy Miller. The items included wonderful art work from gracious local artists as well as beautiful photos taken by Gordon Bennett. Prior to the meal, attendees took some time to hear about the regatta earlier that day, our regatta’s link National Hospice Regatta, the mission of the Hospeace House, and some personal stories of the impact the Hospeace House has had on the families who have loved ones at Hospeace House. Michaeal Hartshorne told a very moving story of the amazing help that Hospeace House provided to his mother, his siblings and him. Thanks to Micheal for sharing his family story. That is what Hospeace House and our support through this regatta and celebration are all about. After the fabulous meal and luscious desserts, we all took time to dance. After a few dances, the gorgeous “ Winds of Hospeace “ trophy was awarded to Mike Schenk. His individual fund raising efforts brought $1,300 to the Regatta efforts for Hospeace House. More dancing followed, and the day was over. But the desire to start the 3rd annual Hospeace House Regatta was strong. Many people filled out and returned the cards that were placed on the tables. We can’t wait to have everyone back next year. Ideas for how you can be involved are other places in this newsletter. Fair Winds! Hosted by: Canandaigua Yacht Club Hospeace House is a 4-bed residence located in the beautiful Bristol Hills just north of the small community of Naples, New York. The setting is one of peace and tranquility for those facing the end of life.
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