Testimonials

Happy New Year to all! We hope this holiday season has brought you joy and relaxation, and that you are looking forward to the year ahead. We’d like to thank each person and family that supported The HYC Foundation’s mission through our annual appeal. It is your generosity that enables us to provide continued access to our swimming and sailing program.

We took the time recently to speak with some of our Foundation scholarship recipients about how the swimming and sailing program at HYC has impacted them. We were struck by the unique experiences of each program participant and by one commonality: the importance of the HYC community. Below we have compiled some of what they had to say…

On What They Have Learned

“I’m definitely growing, finding out more things, and I have a burst of happiness when I can do something I couldn’t do two weeks ago.”

“Little things that were cloudy for me have been unclouded.”

“The importance of rigging with a tension gauge and learning the importance and precision of [using that tool].”

“Roll tacks. The coaches started explaining it in a different way that really connected with me well.”

On Participating in Regattas

“Edgartown and Vineyard aren’t just important sailing-wise but it’s important as a program because that’s where I’ve built my bonds with the rest of the team. You become close-knit with the team.”

“I learned a lot from sailing with [my skipper], like pre-start homework, strategies, all of that stuff.”

“Regattas were interesting: I’ve never been to a large-scale regatta, and it was really nice to see my own progress over the summer and see my hard work pay off. Even when I didn’t, I could identify areas for growth and improvement.”

On the Most Important Part of Summer at HYC

“All of the people started to feel like family – it’s a really tight knit group.”

“The combination of we want to be the best, go to the most regattas, and be at the top of the fleet, but we also want to be together. It’s very uplifting.”

“You become family. They understand you and everyone’s got each other’s back.”

“I think the instructors were really helpful. I could rely on them and my teammates to help me out if I really needed it. The community is amazing.” 

“Can’t wait for next year!”