Preview: The Gift of Summer, A Postcard from a Grateful Grandson
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August 25, 2022
Email this Video to a FriendThe last day of summer in Maine, Jed takes one final sail before heading home.
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Comments, Thoughts or Suggestions?You can leave a comment or question for OCH and members below. Here are the comments so far…
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25 Responses So Far to “The Gift of Summer, A Postcard from a Grateful Grandson”
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Lannis Morris says:
Jed, I’m impressed with your spunk. You are unique in many good ways. You have a support system coming from your family that is special. I’m a grandpa and my wife and I have 2 young granddaughters that love the water and outdoors like you do. Keep it up, stay adventurous and you will excel at the more weighty matters of life. I’m also sure your parents and grandparents are pretty special too.
Denis Wang says:
Great video; shows the importance of kids’ learning outdoor skills, but also giving them the opportunity to learn on their own. Nothing better than a kid (or kids of both genders) in a small boat learning about Mother Ocean. Well, perhaps even better for the kids to build their own boat then go off for their small great adventures.
Terry Smith says:
I don’t know how you keep doing it, OCH. Five minutes with Jed and I was right back at Mantoloking Yacht Club seven decades ago doing much the same in Barnegat Bay Duckboats, Sneakboxes, and Penguins.
Once again, hats off to your video crew. The shots were notably superb and told the story so well. This one’s a keeper.
Memo to self: “start off slow and then ease up.”
Bruce Finlay says:
Very nice, what a shame his family haven’t corrected him on “like” all the time. Hope he grows out of it.
Maynard Carver says:
Most kids say like a lot,mine did. They do grow out of it.
Ditto on mine. Great job Jed!
Wolfgang Doughty says:
Neat
Philip Myer says:
Where is this yacht club ?
Steve Stone says:
Hi Philip. It’s the Center Harbor Yacht Club here in Brooklin, Maine. Link is above. Wanna dial back time and be there as a kid? We all do.
Tom McFarling says:
What a way to grow up. As a kid I got to mess around in boats maybe a half-dozen, dozen times at most. 60 years on, those are some of my best memories. I love this website.
John Burgess says:
Me too. Age 8-9 I was given the freedom of a rowing dingy for a few days on Loch Craignish, Argyll, Scotland.Magic moments. Life shaping. Health and safety….maybe lacking but I learned lots.
Kenneth Jeffreys says:
Love this video so much, what a fine young man: intelligent, articulate, and appreciating old technology.
David Anderson says:
HEY! That’s how I grew up on Salt Pond, Pt Judith. A wonderful boat for kids and did we have fun!
Now for my grandkids I just bought a Beetle cat In fair shape two years ago. Did a little fixing up. Put on some shrouds and we’re all having fun again. Nothing like a Beetle cat to bang around in where you’ve got shoal waters. This video brings it all back. Thank you.
David Meissner says:
The 11 year old me is jealous. The 70 year old me is thankful that there is still the opportunity for kids to have these experiences.
Lee Ewert says:
A beautiful and enduring gift to give a young person the exposure and competence to harness to joy of sailing the ocean with such purity! Well done!!
David Flanders says:
Love this kid! Whew!
Raymond Vosper says:
ditto!
Peter Brackenbury says:
Compared to what I see around here, this video has so many rarities. A kid rowing a wooden boat, alone, to get to 12′ gaff-rigged Beetlecat for a motor-free ride around the harbour! I mean I know it’s Maine and Brooklin, but these interests and skills are so rare and even rarer for someone this old in 2022. There is so much going on in behind the scenes for this to be a focus for a month of this boy’s year. Around here I never see a scene like this. Only PWCs and tubing. Cherish what you have and thank everyone who made it possible. This child gets it and is thriving. Rich memories forever and a tread lightly mentality are precious gifts.
Ben Clapp says:
My nephew Jed!! He’s as good a guy in person as he seems in this video. (I’m the father of the steward and the “annoyed” 11 year old.) They are, indeed, incredibly fortunate.
Theodore Gentsch says:
The confidence this builds in our young is simply priceless! Thanks so much for sharing!
Anthony Botsman says:
Just ended a week or so of watching one of my two grandsons on the water here in Falmouth UK watching from my Contessa 34; there is nothing like the experience of sailing for kids facing risks taking risks calculating risks and making decisions on the fly!
My heartfelt wish is for the cousins to sail together one day
Well done Jed and family thanks for showing the way!!
Tom Keefe says:
He doesn’t know how lucky he is! Neither did we when we were kids – it’s one of the nicest gifts a parent (or grand-parent) can give a kid, to expose them to the ocean, and sailing and boat-handling and all the things that go with befriending the sea. Nice to see it continuing on with new generations!
Scott Jones says:
I love this video! What a lucky kid!
I read somewhere that luck is often the result of good decisions from the generations before you. Good decisions from Jed’s grandparents!
Christopher Lambert says:
Fantastic!
Gary McClain says:
Great video!! Wish we lived close enough!!
Sandy Mcwilliams says:
The perfect end to a summer on the water!