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Teach a kid to build a boat
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2008 students and volunteers proudly stand beside "Guppy" ©Rod Bauer
The Spaulding Wooden Boat Center in Sausalito is a lot of things: a museum, a boatyard, and a sailing mecca. But mostly, it is a community. The center is staffed almost entirely by volunteers, doing everything from preserving artifacts to tours to taking people out sailing.
Of particular interest this time of year are the youth programs. Parents are starting to look into programs for the spring and summer and the Spaulding Wooden Boat Center has a great option: a youth boatbuilding program. As Center Director Mark Welther says, "it's about teaching woodworking, sailing and most importantly, life skills." The program is divided into three sections: 1) basic woodworking skills, 2) actually build a wooden boat, and 3) learn to sail.
In basic woodworking skills, the students spend time at the boat yard learning shop safety and basic woodworking skills; they are given a toolbox to bring home for further skill development. In the second section, they build a boat together! The boat wasn't done in time in 2008 for the third section, learning to sail, so they learned in one of the Center's other wooden boats.
In 2008, the program's first year, the participants were all kids in the Big Brothers Big Sisters and 4H programs. These young men and women (ages 12 to 18) completed the boat and splashed it in December. They now have lifetime passes to take the boat out sailing and many are participating again this year as teachers/mentors for the new crop of students.
The 2009 program is going to add focus to the science involved: why a boat floats, how tides and currents work, and how a boat sails into the wind. The sessions start in April and runs through November. With the knowledge gained last year and the input of "seasoned veterans", the boat should be finished in time to have the sailing lessons be onboard the boat they just built. With two of these identical boats, the students will be able to do what all sailors crave: race each other!
The program is funded mostly by grants (there is a nominal tuition with both full and half scholarships are available) and almost entirely by volunteers. There are limited spots available for students but a lot for volunteers. If you are interested in having a child learn to build and sail a wooden boat, you can sign up at their web site. If you have skills that can help and are interested in volunteering, please contact volunteer coordinator Susan Lewin.
The Spaulding Wooden Boat Center is located at Foot of Gate Five Road, Sausalito, CA 94965. You can learn more at their web site or follow them on twitter. But the best thing to do would be to visit their facility to see and smell the joy of building and restoring wooden boats.
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