The Next Chapter in Urban Boatworks!

Friends, UrbanTrekkers BoatWorks is ready to reopen shop at the Camden Shipyard & Maritime Museum (CS&MM) with a new after school program (3:30 - 6:00 PM) for twelve middle schoolers from our Camden ForwardSchool (CFS). We now have the materials/supplies to begin construction of two 15' Skerrys; a real beauty of a wooden sailboat designed by Chesapeake Light Craft. The program will include swimming, sailing and boat building throughout the 2009/10 school year. We have contracted with the Boys & Girls Club for a swimming module and the Cooper River Yacht Club will provide the sailing component to our students. Through this initiative the program brings together four Camden non-profit organizations who are dedicated to building community and improving the lives of our Camden youth; that's exciting for all of us. We plan to get underway the first week in October with swim lessons and begin actual boat building on Monday October 12. Throughout the school year students will learn about the maritime history and the importance the river and ship building have played in Camden's history. We will explore the significance of the city's rivers and their importance to the environment and the future of our region. We will embrace Camden, its history and its resources! Things will look like this; twelve students will be hand picked by the staff of CFS, six boys and six girls from the 6 - 8 grade. From the group of twelve, six students will work on boat building on Monday, all twelve will take part in swim lessons on Tuesday and the other six students will work in the shop on Wednesdays. Both groups of six will work progressively on the same two boats from week to week. The sailing component will take place in the spring of 2010. Two members of the CFS teaching staff will work with us throughout the year. They will oversee the swimming module in the fall and each one will take a day to be with the two boat building teams during the week. This will help the boatwrights to stay on task and schedule from week to week by insuring the students stay focused to your teaching and supervision. We learned from this summer that the tangible and intangible benefits to our kids from this program are huge...another benefit that does not go unnoticed by me is the impact you guys have on the kids. Next week I'll be sending out the boat building calendar and schedule for you to sign up for your boat shop days. Thanks to all...hoist the sails!