• Message from the Commodore
  
• Nauti-Friday @ The Homestretch (recap)
• Annual General Meeting (recap)
• Opening Day Events
  
• 2025 Land & Cruise Events
• Can I Still Renew?
• Reminders...Take Action Now
• Message from the Communications Desk
• SYC Social Media Links
  

Greetings, everyone!

My, how time flies. It's already April and the Opening Day of Boating Season is less than a month away! But, more on that later...

 We have a 2025 Budget for the Club and can now "officially" spend money on SYC events, cruises, and pay for our operating expenses! The budget was approved unanimously…perhaps the first time ever!?!...at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) on March 22. Thank you, everyone, who was present or voted by Proxy for helping us take this important step in running the Club. For more information on the AGM, please see the "AGM Recap" article found elsewhere in this Borderlines.

 I am pleased to report that our new website (administered by Club Express) is slowly gaining traction with SYC Members. A former member recently used it to renew their Membership online via the website and said, "It's great!".

 However, I understand many of our current Members have not yet established their personal accounts on the website. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of doing that if you/we are to take full advantage of the services and opportunities it offers: Registering to attend land events and cruises; paying Annual Dues and other activities for which there are $$ charges (e.g., event/cruise guest fees, the Crab Feed, Commodore's Ball); participating in member forums, and more…just to name a few. Please establish your accounts TODAY by following the instructions you received in your Welcome Letter awhile back. It will make things much easier for you and those managing Club activities.

 As noted earlier, the local boating season is upon us. Opening Day is just around the corner, so watch for communications about the morning Flag Ceremony, the "Sail Past", and the ever-popular Opening Day Luncheon (free to Members) at the Silver Reef Casino.

Finally, we desperately need people to respond to an appeal made at the AGM by our Fleet Captain, Jason Sloan. Members need to:

• Register right away for any cruises you plan to go on (or think you may go on). You can always cancel later if necessary.
• Volunteer to serve as a cruise host/cohost on one or more of the cruises and
• Make your own reservations (soon) at marinas you plan to visit on the cruises. They (most) are not holding slips aside for yacht clubs.

Email:mel.kolstad@hotmail.com

• Club officers were introduced
• Volunteers needed for a Nominating Committee (to secure people for next year's (2026) Board positions)
• Officers briefed the programs underway or planned in each of their areas of responsibility
• Members are encouraged to login, establish accounts, and use the new Website to full advantage
• Club finances (income/expenses/savings) were presented, discussed, and are in sound shape
• The 2025 Budget was presented, discussed and unanimously approved (see photo below); donations to select Canadian and US maritime-related projects and education programs are included
• Club cruises were presented; hoping to see good participation in the Opening Day Commodore's "Sail Past"; hosts/cohosts are needed for some cruises; cruise "buttons" will be earned for each cruise attended (prizes awarded for most buttons earned, as of the Commodore's Ball); members are encouraged to promote the Club when out cruising; the "Luau Cruise" at Port Browning will be a "semi-DIY" event (food provided by the marina, but we do the grilling); and, the Luau bocce ball tournament is ON!!!
• Our Christmas Party (Dec. 13) will be held at the Birch Bay Village Club House in order to accommodate more members and have a "ready to use" facility at our disposal. Thank you Colleen Woodall-Lindner and Rick Lindner for securing the site and volunteering to help host/cohost the event.
• Dick Hardman (Judge Advocate) reported wife Colleen (former Rear Commodore) is progressing following her stroke. She is fully aware of what is going on around her, is doing well physically, gets about with a walker, but has aphasia. He expressed his and Colleen's appreciation for all the support Club members have given them. Dick also reported the docks at their Silva Bay/Gabriola Island residence (which is on the sales market) are being rebuilt. Members should contact him at his local (Blaine) phone/email, in advance, to see if the docks are available when desired
• Maritime safety educational opportunities were discussed: The Shearwater University ("Where Best Practices in Education meet Best Practices in Maritime") offers classroom and on-the-water programs; Lisa Lee learned, first-hand, the importance of being ready to handle an emergency when, at last year's Pig Roast, a mooring chain broke while she was napping alone onboard and the boat nearly drifted onto the rocks...but, because of knowledge and quick action on her part, disaster was averted; Lisa is exploring how and if Shearwater University is a good fit to provide SYC members with "emergency boating practices"; Geoff Stevenson also offered to help with a boating safety program; and, Lisa will look into the possibilities of the Bellingham Power Squadron and/or the Coast Guard/Coast Guard Auxiliary providing SYC members with safety and emergency training.

• 9:00 AM - Flag Ceremony and Blessing of the Fleet - Blaine Marina, Gate 2
• 10:15 AM - Commodore's Sail Past - Following the Flag Ceremony, hop on your (or another's boat) for the Commodore's Sail Past in the harbor to honor 2025 Commodore Mel Kolstad. If your boat is moored in Blaine Harbor or at Semiahmoo, please consider participating in the Sail Past, but if it is unavailable, try to "man the rails" aboard another member's boat. It is a great way to connect with others and carry on this fine tradition.
• 12:30 PM - Opening Day Luncheon - After the Sail Past, drive on down to the Silver Reef Hotel-Casino-Spa (4876 Haxton Way, Ferndale, WA). The Luncheon is free to Members and the Silver Reef always serves up a fantastic meal. (NOTE - The guest charge for this event is US$50/guest, payable in advance through your Website account or at the door. Be sure to RSVP your guest(s) by the deadline given below.) Enter the hotel lobby and turn left to find Tower Rooms A and B.

• Flag Ceremony & Blessing of the Fleet: RSVP to Rear Commodore Bryan Jones at godskids8@gmail.com (by May 1, Thurs.)
• Commodore's Sail Past (in the harbor): RSVP to Fleet Captain Jason Sloan at sloan103@live.com (by May 1, Thurs.)
• Luncheon: RSVP to Rear Commodore Bryan Jones at godskids8@gmail.com (by April 21, Monday)

• Make slip reservations at marinas as soon as you can
• Mention you are with the Semiahmoo Yacht Club
• Let Jason Sloan (fleetcaptain@semiahmooyachtclub.org) know you made your slip reservation(s) and how many are coming on each cruise

Reminders...Take Action Now!

• Make your marina slip reservations as soon as possible for any SYC cruises you plan to go on. When you make a reservation, tell them you are with the Semiahmoo Yacht Club so they can group us together. Also, let Fleet Captain Jason Sloan (fleetcaptain@semiahmooyachtclub.org) know that you made a slip reservation for the  "name"   Cruise and how many people will be there.

• "Member Incentive Program" to bring in new members (while the Initiation Fee is waived...and beyond...is underway. The more new members you sponsor, the more valuable prize you earn...up to a free 2026 Membership! For more information, contact Vice Commodore Susan Barlock at skbarlock@icloud.com
• April 25-27 - "Ice Breaker Cruise (Fossil Bay, Sucia Is.) - contact Fleet Captain Jason Sloan at fleetcaptain@semiahmooyachtclub.org
• April 30 - "Digging in the Dirt - Ladies Night Out" @ Van Wingerden Garden Center - RSVP Patti Rutter at zanjal@aol.com
  
• May 3 - Opening Day of Boating Season (see article; RSVP's due for the Flag Raising (by May 1), the Sail Past (by May 1), and the  Luncheon (by April 21)

• When the SYC switched to Club Express to establish our new Website and provide us with enhanced tools to process membership needs, it also gave us a different platform for communicating with SYC members. Yours truly is gradually getting used to the new platform. The transition from the old platform (Mailchimp) to the new one is not always intuitive. Occasionally, I have to "reinvent the wheel" and build some things from scratch that used to be a "cut/paste". In the meantime, apologies for sometimes having to send redundant emails from BOTH platforms...to ensure timely information delivery to all SYC members. Eventually, the Mailchimp platform and its "mass mailing list" will be retired and we will use the Club Express platform exclusively. Just be aware that when that happens some folks might drop off the mailings if they are not "Active" members.
• We are entering the boating season. So, not only do we have those events to talk about, we also have all the land events. A lot is going on, so there are more emailing requirements and more information for each issue of Borderlines.