From Sandy C.

Butch,

"Just a short note from sunny Florida. I don't know if Jerry sent you a note about our new boat or not, so I'll assume you know nothing about it. We will pick up a new 40' Catalina Mark II from the dealer in Palmetto on Monday. "Rum Daze" will take her maiden voyage from Palmetto (about 100 miles north of here) to Cape Coral at a leisurely pace. I could go on and on about the boat and our plans for sailing the Caribbean, however, that's not why I'm writing.

In the process of looking for advanced sailing classes and looking for sailing clubs down here, we discovered that there are no clubs like Tradewinds anywhere in the southern part of Florida (at least). Which caused me to comment to Jerry about how spoiled we got taking classes and sailing through Tradewinds.

I have to say that you make it economical and pleasant to not only learn how to sail, but to continue to sail a variety of boats in an extremely affordable way.

Also, sailing all the different boats enabled us to decide exactly what we did and did not want on our own boat. I want to tell all the members how great they have it and that they should appreciate all you do at minimal cost to them. Of course, buying a new sailboat and all the accessories that go along with that purchase makes me appreciate how much things cost and what a great deal the club really is. It recently became reinforced to me that you operate the business more for the members (unselfishly) than for yourself.

Although I probably sound like a paid advertisement for Tradewinds, I just wanted you to know that you are appreciated more than ever and although I do NOT miss San Francisco temperatures (I really like the tropical weather down here), I do miss the club and you guys."

Happy Holidays,
Sandy