December 1, 2024

Ho, Ho, Ho, Mateys,

I hope y’all had a happy Thanksgiving! As we get ready to turn the page on 2024, I’d like to look back at some of the chapter events that took place. We enjoyed a tour and workshop hosted by Gary Lowell at his shop in Greensboro, NC. We held our first ever regional get-togethers simultaneously in Wilmington, Wake Forest, and New Bern NC. We had a group tour of the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News, Va., attended by multiple chapters. We had an overnight cruise home based at Cindy Jordan’s family vacation home in Bath, NC, although the Pamlico River was uncooperative (LOL). It was still a blast, though! We had a picnic and fun run on Jordan Lake. We celebrated International Vintage Boating Day in conjunction with Wilmington Marine Center. We had another go at the overnight cruise in Bath, held in 3 segments at Cindy’s (We did manage to do some cruising this time!). We held our boat show at Blackbeards. Throw in a couple of workshops, attendance of other chapter’s shows, meetings and our upcoming Christmas party, and I’d call that a year filled with lots of opportunity for us to stay engaged with our chapter. And, oh yes, our chapter also received from ACBS recognition for best newsletter and highest growth percentage for small chapters for 2024!

Looking ahead to next year, we have lots more planned, kicking off with a tour and workshop at the Cape Fear Community College Boatbuilding Program Facility in Wilmington on January 11th, on wiring.  Details to follow but save the date. Also, PLEASE RSVP for our Christmas party on the 14th, SOON!! Also, we need volunteer hosts for next year’s regional get togethers in the Wilmington, Triangle and Eastern NC areas. Please consider hosting this fun time.

I’ll close by wishing everyone a safe, healthy and happy holiday season and look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events!

Yours in classic boating,

Alan Hills, President