15 Years of CIWSA 2010-2024
Channel Islands Women’s Sailing Association (CIWSA) was founded in 2010 by a small group of women who started sailing together as a team of beginning club racers on borrowed boats!
We especially want to thank
· CIYC Staff Commodore Tom Warden for the use of his 44ft Islander for 2 years
· CIYC Staff Vice Commodore Bill Crocket for the use of his Ranger 33 for 3 years
· Past CIYC Staff Commodore Mary Foster for her support during our founding and beyond
· And Past Staff Commodore Dick Olsen who forecast that we wouldn’t survive 10 years! His reverse psychology worked - 2024 is our 15th season!
I also want to thank Steve Weiss, Tom Shideler, Gary Gallinot, and IOBG District 16 for acknowledging our service to the community and supporting us through our induction into IOBG last year.
Community outreach has always been a priority. From 2011 through 2023, CIWSA has raised more than $15,000 for youth sailing scholarships and has provided grants to more than 24 individual girls and boys. We also provided support to a local Opti sailor and a CIWSA member who competed internationally.
In 2024, we hope to award more sailing scholarships and are also planning our 3rd annual AdventureSail® Day – an experiential introduction to sailing for 9-14 year old underserved girls. AdventureSail® Day was established by Doris Colgate of the National Women’s Sailing Association more than 20 years ago and dozens of groups hold similar events throughout the country.
Our inaugural event included CIWSA and CIYC members, community volunteers, local skippers, 21 young girls, and their accompanying adults. We fed them breakfast, introduced important sailing concepts with visual aids, spent the afternoon on the water, and fed them a late lunch. The pure joy and gratitude on their faces was life-changing!
We plan to host AdventureSail® Day #3 on Saturday, June 29, 2024, and welcome volunteers and donations!
