January 2019

Happy New Year, Everyone! Hard to believe it’s 2019. When I was a kid, my Dad used to project out to the year 1980 as the time when various things on our family to-do list would get done. He was effectively saying the thing in question was not going to get handled, at least not by him, in the foreseeable future. We should, instead, just think of this as one of those things to get done sometime way out in the future – like 1980 (this was happening in the 1960’s mainly.) 1980 seemed like a faraway, futuristic, never-to-be-achieved time. Then we all thought the year 2000 was going to be a big watershed moment. And now it’s 2019! Wow!

Speaking of things to get done in the current year, we have a new Board of Directors for the Club, and I’m happy to be our primary spokesman, your Commodore. (Kind of like the 1980 thing, that “Commodore” title still seems a bit futuristic and unreal, but I suppose I’ll get used to it.) I’d like this year of 2019 to be a year in which Shilshole Bay Yacht Club makes some noticeable moves forward. Specifically, I’ve set out three goals that will be my main focus this year:

– Increase Club membership, and do so by developing membership programs that can serve us beyond just 2019

– Ensure the financial viability of our Club

– Install modern systems (online vs. paper) that will improve various processes, increase efficiency, and improve communication

SBYC is an incredible group of people. In our relatively few years as members, my wife, Julie, and I have been hugely gratified by the friendships we’ve built with people who have incredible life stories to tell, including many boating adventures as well as other chapters in their lives. The people are the thing, augmented by our common love affair with the water and boating. But, to keep our club alive and moving forward, we need to bring in new members – people who share our enthusiasm for boating and living life to the fullest, who can help us sustain and grow the SBYC community. At the Board level, we will be working on new ways to tell our Club Story and attract more members to join us. But, this is a task that everyone can participate in. When you encounter good people at the dock or in your daily lives, who have a boating component in their lives (or perhaps have a strong desire to get into boating) tell them about SBYC, what you’ve gotten out of being a member, and invite them to come check us out.

While we are by no means in financial difficulty as an entity, our regular expenses have been increasing. Many annual costs – like insurance, event costs, and even our mailbox fees – have gone up, some by quite a bit. While we want to keep our club dues, race fees, and special event fees as reasonable as possible, we also need to sustain our club’s financial status and our ability to fund programs we believe are important to our core mission. We just concluded our January Board Meeting and Budget Review for the 2019 Budget. Decisions on a few budget-related proposals will be finalized at the February Board Meeting.

Hopefully, you have noticed that our website has been re-done in the last 18 months. As well, we’ve begun taking credit card payments at our monthly dinners. Kudos and huge thanks to AJ Mallory for spearheading many of these changes. There are more modern systems we can employ that will help us do things easier/faster/better, like using our website to securely host club info and allow members to update their information online. AJ Mallory, Ben Lobaugh, and I are planning a number of things in this direction. We will update in upcoming issues of the Rudderpost. If you have input or want to know more, give us a call.

LB Day and Rubie Johnson overcame a very significant challenge in 2018 by getting the IRS to reinstate our non-profit organization status (along with clearing up some tax issues as well.) Many hours of work by these two members need recognition and our thanks – it was quite an effort. Thanks to their work, we can move forward now without this issue eating up our time and attention.

Let us know what you think, about these goals and anything else that you feel needs our attention. Think about this question – “If you could make one change to how things happen at SBYC, what would that be?” When you have an answer to that one, let us know. “Us” in this case could be a board member you know well and have confidence in, or the whole Board if you’d like to communicate your thoughts to the whole group, or call/email me, as I would love to hear everyone’s thoughts and input.

Be sure to post a copy of this year’s Cruise Events where you can easily refer to it as you put your 2019 plans on your calendar. Patricia Shannon-Garvey has quite a line-up ready to go, so let’s see as many club members as possible at these fun events. And if you haven’t attended a monthly Dinner Meeting in a while, please join us at IVAR’s Salmon House on the third Tuesday of the month. AJ Mallory, our Vice Commodore, is securing some excellent speakers for those dinners – and it’s a great time to talk and catch up on the things we’re all doing.

2019! Let’s make it a fun, fantastic year for all of us at Shilshole Bay Yacht Club!

Next Dinner Meeting: Tuesday, January 15, 2019

IVAR’S Salmon House, 401 NE Northlake Way, Seattle

5:30pm – Meet and Greet

6:45pm – Dinner in the Banquet Room

Topic: “Sailing the Gulf Inter Coastal Waterway, and Regional Boat Buying Differences”

Speaker: Steve Steakley, Sailor and Author

Steve Steakley on wooden sailboat — Steve Steakley – Author and Sailor

Reminder, we have two NEW menu choices, thanks to the team at IVAR’s Salmon House (see below). Come hear about sailing on the Gulf Inter Costal Waterway and also a brief discussion of regional boat buying and selling. REMEMBER: Please use the Comments box in your RSVP on Evite to advise how many people and which dinner menu choice each would like.

After twenty years of power and sail boating with thousands of miles under the keel in inland and ocean waters, Steve has developed a passion for sharing his experiences with the boating community. Along the way he earned his 50 ton inland masters captains license. However, it was the progression of buying five sailboats that refined his research skills that he shares to help others find their boat. Steve is the author of “From Dreaming the Dream to Sailing Away: Buying the Perfect Boat.”

~Tonight’s Featured Menu~

~Starter~

Mixed Greens Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

~Entrée~

Cedar Plank Roasted Sockeye Salmon – Local berry salsa, cornbread pudding, seasonal vegetable

Blackened Salmon Caesar Salad – Spicy rubbed Coho Salmon served our traditional Caesar Salad

Chicken Marsala – Yukon Gold mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetables

Ivar’s World Famous Fish ‘n Chips – Original recipe since 1938! Alaska True Cod, coleslaw

Potato Gnocchi – Potato gnocchi, sweet green peas, mirepoix vegetables, mushrooms, shallots, white wine, lemon cream sauce

Coffee, Decaf, Hot Tea

Special dietary needs can be accommodated; please let me know on your Evite RSVP.

Main course selections are due by 9:00pm on Friday, January 11th. Look for your Evite invitation in your email, then hit reply and use the comments field to tell me how many in your party and their dinner selections. Cancellations must be made by 9:00pm January 11th.

Note that the deadline for reservations is also the deadline for cancelling a previous reservation; otherwise you will be charged for the meal.

Dinner is $35 per person. If you charge your meal (credit card), we will add $1 per meal. Please purchase your drinks from the staff in the banquet room. The receipts count towards our room rental minimums.

WHEN YOU RECEIVE THE EVITE INVITATION TO THE DINNER, PLEASE REPLY AND USE THE “COMMENTS” FIELD TO TELL US HOW MANY IN YOUR PARTY AND WHAT MEALS EACH OF YOU WOULD LIKE!

Water slaps the hull as Teresa and Sharon, hair waving crazily behind them, look at each other with giddy expressions. These two amazing ladies are sailors with disabilities and I have never seen such big smiles plastered across their faces. They love sailing, being free of their disabilities ashore, freed to conquer the wind and waves.

I want to take a moment and share the impact you, as a member of Shilshole Bay Yacht Club, have on the lives of these sailors. Your partnership allows more than two hundred people with disabilities to get out on the water each year. Sailors like Sharon, who are unable to walk unaided, experience a sense of freedom and control over their surroundings. Sailors like Faron, confined to a wheel chair, unable even to move his fingers, can captain a boat using just his breath to manage the lines. Footloose is showing people with disabilities that their disability does not define them. SBYC is enabling this through generous donations of time and money.

Teresa and Sharon are long time Footloose sailors. They show up early and stay late – soaking up as much time on the water as they can. They are veterans and that was an exciting day- Windworks brought a Catalina Capri 22 to an event for Footloose to test run!

Footloose is nearing 30 years of operation. In the early days Bob, Footloose’s founder, acquired a pair of Columbia 21 sailboats. With their large cockpits and stable platform, they were ideal boats – but even back then they were old, remaining from the early 1970s. Over the intervening 28 years, the boats have provided experiences for hundreds of sailors each year. Now over 40 years old, the Columbias have had a full life and their old bones are creaky; they are ready for retirement.

In 2017 I pitched a vision to the Footloose board of replacing the Columbias. The board was excited and began planning. In the beginning of 2018 we began fundraising. To date, SBYC members have helped raise the bulk of funds needed to secure the new boats.

Chris and Joe Bozick raised $18,000 through the Shoreline Rotary and area clubs
Ken McKenzie, Tom Madden, and Dick Eagle donated $7,000 from their Catalina club
The SBYC TransPuget Race donated $1,100, and encouraged over $600 in additional domains during the award ceremony!
Shilshole Bay Yacht Club donated an additional $1,000 as a holiday gift
Numerous club members (wishing to remain anonymous) donated over $1,000 combined

Your extremely generous support will allow Footloose to purchase at least one Catalina Capri 22, ensuring the future continued service of this amazing organization!

You are invited to the Footloose Midwinter Potluck! It is a casual event to celebrate the year. Please join us! Let Ben or Ken know if you can make it.

January 19 @ 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Emmanuel Episcopal Church
44400 86th Avenue SE
Mercer Island.

Feb 8-10	Wintery Wenatchee	Mar 1-3	Bell Harbor Cruise
Apr 19-21	Yellow Fest	May 17-19	Burger Burn
June 14-16	June Dinner Dance	July 2-3-4	Poulsbo Fireworks Raft Up
July 31-Aug 1	Summer Rendezvous	Aug 30-Sept 1	Purple Passion Cruise
Sept 27-29	Salmon Bake

Commodore’s Corner by Roger Newby.

Dinner Meeting by AJ Mallory.