From the Helm
April 28, 2023
by Cyd Archer
Hi, and thank you for reading this month’s edition of the Beacon!
My name is Cyd Archer, and I am Vice President of the Chicago Yacht Club Foundation. It’s my pleasure to write this month’s “From the Helm” and tell you a little about me and about the Foundation.
I grew up sailing in Southwest Michigan. After moving to Chicago and working for a few big companies, I pivoted to real estate. I joined the CYC in my 20s and continued racing here. After leadership roles at the club, I got involved with the Chicago Yacht Club Foundation Board in 2012 and have served as Chair of the Lead HER Ship Tall Ship Program for young women for the last seven years, and, as I mentioned, am now Vice President of the Foundation and so proud of all we do. The work we do is so important to help kids see another world by exposing them to the lake and new opportunities to learn, grow, and succeed.
Speaking of the Foundation, with warmer weather on the horizon, we have already launched 2023 programming starting with our After School STEM Training for middle school kids from Union League Boys and Girls Clubs in Pilsen. The kids are taught the principles of buoyancy and then build their own boats out of clay to test their knowledge and skills. Club volunteers, who are certified in US Sailing’s STEM Training, teach the classes. This program runs through May and serves several different Boys and Girls Clubs from Pilsen and other areas west and south of the city.
Other new programs the Foundation will be launching this summer are featured in this edition of the Beacon. “Judd’s Sailing Camp,” introduces sailing to children with disabilities. And, in conjunction with the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust, we’ll be sponsoring nine half-day STEM Cruises for Chicagoland children on board the 77’ tall ship Inland Seas in Chicago.
It’s going to be a busy summer for the Chicago Yacht Club Foundation. We could not be happier to get Chicagoland children out on the water, help them to experience what we all know and love, and hopefully set them on a new path to growth and opportunity.