On a sweltering Saturday morning, four young sailors rolled up their sleeves and carefully pulled a dozen Optimist sailboats down from storage racks at the Upper Keys Sailing Club. The volunteers were making sure the small, single-handed sailing dinghies were properly equipped and ready to set sail for the summer 2024 sailing season.
The one-week sessions started on June 10 and run through Aug. 9. This year there are some changes to the program.
“I’m really excited, I’m really looking forward to the new management,” said 14-year-old Sofia Figueredo, a youth sailing volunteer.
This summer, the Mark Sorensen Youth Sailing Program (MSYSP) has an entire new board of directors. Many board members are parents of young sailors, including new sailing director John Brehm. Brehm has been involved with the youth sailing program for the last seven years. His daughters, Alex and Piper, are MSYSP sailors.
“We’re trying to make it more parent-led,” Brehm said.
Brehm and his new board members have retooled the program. This year, instead of starting sailors off at 6 years old, they must be between the ages of 8 and 18 to participate; each session will have a maximum of 30 sailors.
“We’re looking at about 10 kids per coach and each coach will have a volunteer,” Brehm said. “They’re here to learn sailing and that’s what we’re looking to do.”
Additional safety measures have been included in this summer’s program. Staff will be lifeguard-certified, and that includes CPR and rescue swimming.
“That’s something we’ve implemented this year; we’re really safety-oriented,” Brehm said.
Brehm’s daughter, Coral Shores High School incoming sophomore Alex Brehm, is looking forward to volunteering at the sailing program this summer. The 15-year-old hopes one day to become a sailing coach.
“I just like the new challenges it brings and all of the learning experiences you get out of it. Like every day is something new,” said Alex. “You have different wind conditions, different speeds, different boats. There’s always something new to try.”
Scholarships for the summer sessions are available thanks to a grant from the Monroe County Human Services advisory board. More information on the scholarships is available from John Brehm at msyspdirector@gmail.com.
Registration for the summer sailing program is at marksorensenyouthsailing.com. All summer sessions take place at the Upper Keys Sailing Club, located at 100 Ocean Bay Drive. Discounts are available for youth sailors booking more than one weekly session.
