The Youth Nautical Education Foundation is offering 12 college scholarships to young sailors who have participated in beginner club or high school racing programs at any time.
The scholarships, each worth $2,000, were created to encourage young men and women to actively participate in sailing activities throughout their high school and college years.
High school seniors and college or university students attending classes in the 2023-24 academic year are eligible to apply. Students will be judged on three criteria, including two original essays, the applicant’s resume of sailing experience and documentation of academic accomplishments.
Essays should be no more than 250 words each. Essay topics are:
* “Now that you will be moving out of the junior sailing program, what is the best way, in your view, for those graduating to ‘give back’ to improve the junior sailing programs?”
* “What are the most important issues facing junior sailing today and what would you recommend to upcoming juniors to be ready for them?”
The foundation currently has 12 perpetual scholarships supported by endowments that make it possible to award annual scholarships in each donor’s name. They are:
* Commodore James and Patricia Anderson
* Commodore John and Marlene Boll
* Manuel J. and Nora Moroun
* Commodore James and Sandra Morrow
* Benno Steinborn
* W. W. Williams Company
* Edwin and Felicia Shaw
* Commodore Tymon C. and Sheri Totte
* Commodore Sean and Kristen Schotthoefer
* Commodore Ilja and Kelley Vreeken
* Zach Rockwell Scholarship
* Commodore Gary and Christine Gonzalez
Donors are invited to a brunch each year for the presentation of the scholarships and to meet the recipients.
YNEF scholarship applications may be found at sailingscholarships.org. Applications must be turned in to the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, 788 Lakeshore, Grosse Pointe Shores, by 5 p.m. Sunday, April 2.
The YNEF is a community outreach program dedicated to promoting national and international amateur sailing, maritime arts, education, water safety and community improvements. In addition to awarding annual college scholarships, the foundation sponsors competitive events and supports high school and community programs.
For more information, visit ynef.org or sailingscholarships.org.
New name, same mission
The Grosse Pointe Youth Nautical Education Foundation, a Grosse Pointe Yacht Club foundation, has been raising funds to support youth sailing in the community since 2009.
The foundation is known for its annual scholarships, as well as its support of junior sailing and high school sailing in the area.
“As we have tried to raise funds outside the Grosse Pointe area, we often find difficulties as our name designates a particular area, Grosse Pointe,” foundation president Jim Morrow said.
As a result, effective Jan. 1, the foundation changed its name by dropping the words “Grosse Pointe.”
Its new name is Youth Nautical Education Foundation, or YNEF, and the new website is ynef.org.
Despite the name change, its mission remains the same: to support junior sailing programs and grow participation in the sport at both the beginning and high school levels.
For 2023, YNEF is purchasing 20 new 420 sailboats, housed at the GPYC, to support high school programs and promote competitive events locally, including high schools from around the state of Michigan and the Midwest Interscholastic Sailing Association region. Delivery of the sailboats is expected in early fall.
