Offshore Sailing School Supports Causes Through Sailing

Sailing for a Cause Benefits American Heart Association and Children’s Hospital

FORT MYERS, FLORIDA (January 12, 2015) − On January 11, 2015, 30 members of Ft. Myers based, Impact Initiative (II), Circle of Red and Red Tie Society, joined Offshore Sailing School for a sailing adventure fundraiser. Steve and Doris Colgate, both II members are also American Heart Association Circle of Red and Red Tie Society members. “Helping those with heart diseases and finding cures for cancer, especially in children, are very important to us,” states Doris Colgate, CEO and President of Offshore Sailing School.

The Sunday afternoon Sailing for a Cause event in the Gulf of Mexico off the shores of Ft. Myers Beach, Florida, focused on raising money for the American Heart Association and the Golisano Children’s Hospital now under construction.

Participants included Christin Collins, Senior Director of Development, Lee Memorial Health System (LMHS) Foundation, who founded Impact Initiative, and Brittany Cohill, 2015 chair of the Go Red for Women luncheon, a major southwest Florida fundraiser for AHA.

“Sailing was a bucket list dream for me,” said II member Rita Keltner, a theme that many expressed as they got off the boats. Weather conditions were perfect for the charity fundraising event and all who participated said they’d love to do it again.

An after-sail party at Mantanzas Inn on Ft. Myers Beach, provided a platform for participants to see photos taken by Doris Colgate that afternoon and share their thoughts with Steve and Doris Colgate and Monica Seif, Southwest Florida Go Red for Women Director.

Offshore Sailing School provided five Colgate 26 sailboats and its Jeanneau 439 cruising boat, all six boats with Offshore Sailing School instructors aboard who encouraged each participant to steer and trim the sails.

II members paid $75, guests $100, and all funds collected were shared by AHA and the Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.

Founded in 1964 by Olympian and America’s Cup Steve Colgate, Offshore Sailing School is headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida with five sailing vacation campuses in Florida and the Caribbean, and two commuter locations in New York Harbor. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2014, Offshore Sailing School has taught more than 130,000 adults and their families to sail or improve their sailing skills. For more information call 888-454-7015, email Sail@OffshoreSailing.com.

Contact: 
Beth Oliver, Director of Marketing
239-985-7516, boliver@OffshoreSailing.com