In November 2025, I had the incredible honor of attending The Honours gala in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, hosted by the Superyacht Life Foundation. I was recognized with the prestigious Bowsprit Award — celebrating our collective effort to pioneer a global circular economy for retired Grand Prix and superyacht sails. This accolade belongs to our entire community — our architects, sailmakers, engineers, and everyone who believes that retired sails deserve a second life.
The Honours gala is one of the most prestigious events in the superyacht and sailing world. The room was filled with some of the most brilliant, passionate people in the industry — architects, sailmakers, engineers, designers — all gathered to celebrate the work that makes this community extraordinary.
When they called my name for the Bowsprit Award, I was overwhelmed. Not just with gratitude, but with the weight of what it means. This award doesn’t belong to me. It belongs to every single person who believed in this idea — that retired sails don’t have to end up in a landfill. That they can become shelter. That they can protect people.
I started Sail to Shelter because I couldn’t stop asking a question nobody seemed to have an answer to: what happens to these sails when they’re done racing? The answer, most of the time, was nothing good. That broke my heart. It still does.
Standing in that room in Fort Lauderdale, holding that award, I thought about the families in Maui. The volunteers in Ukraine. The sailors who trusted us with their most prized possessions. This is for all of them.
We are just getting started.
The next best thing you can do with your sails.
Sail to Shelter is a non-profit, tax-exempt charitable organization (tax identification number 88-2826788) under Section 501 (c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law. © 2022 Sail to Shelter
