ORGANIZATION

The Southport Sailing Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that was founded to promote the sport of sailing, both regionally and nationally. A primary mission of the Foundation is to help prepare sailors, primarily youth and young adult sailors, for national and international sailing competitions at all levels of our sport. Other goals include introducing people to the joys of sailing and promoting respect for all aspects of the sport. The Foundation was started several years ago in Connecticut by a group of sailors who grew up racing on Long Island Sound. Some were cruising sailors who also enjoyed local racing; others were successful in national and international competition including intercollegiate sailing, the Olympics and the America’s Cup. All shared a passion for sailing and a desire to give back to the sport by helping others.

The harbor in Southport, Connecticut is a beautiful, quiet spot that is home to many junior sailors and a rich tradition of sailboat racing.

With their enthusiasm in mind, this group decided to organize a foundation to support young sailors who wanted to take the next step in their sailing careers. This organization became the Southport Sailing Foundation, and the group of sailors now make up its Board of Directors.

The original idea was to raise a lot of money and award it as grants to sailors who were campaigning for the Olympics or other high-profile sailing events. But after a few years of trying to figure out how best to do this, the Board realized two things. First, there were several other Foundations in the U.S. that were already doing exactly the same thing (and doing a good job). And second, giving money to a few individual campaigns might not have as large an impact as the Board wanted.
So in early 2007 the Foundation changed direction. The Board still planned to give grants to sailors, but their new focus would be the development of a web site designed specifically for aspiring youth and young adult sailors who were looking to take the next step in their sailing careers. The website would provide three major advantages.

• First, it would fill a huge void because there was nothing like it. Sailors would finally have one place where they could find all the information they needed for managing a successful campaign.

• Second, it would be available to all sailors, not just those who were yacht club members or had good connections.

• And third, it would provide a lot of ‘bang for the buck’! Instead of simply giving away cash for short-term needs, the Board decided to invest funds in a tool that would empower sailors to organize more successful campaigns themselves. The potential impact on US sailors was huge.

The website you are now viewing is the result of an 18-month effort to put together a resource that would be valuable for campaigning sailors. It required fundraising, strategic planning and the creation and programming of a fairly complex site.
The Board plans to continue evaluating and improving this website, while at the same time awarding grants and working on other projects that are consistent with its mission.