Meet the Crew
Harry has been "messing about in boats" for most of his life. He carries a U. S. Coast Guard 50-ton Master's license with Sail, Towing and Off-shore Ocean endorsements. His Dad also was an avid boater and Harry grew up spending summers at his grandparents place on Lake George in upper New York State.
He was introduced to sailing at the age of nine by his Uncle George, a resident of Mt. Desert Island in Maine. He sharpened his skills at summer camp in the Adirondack Mountains where he became the sailing instructor and also crewed on a racing Star Class boat. His first sailboat was a Catalina 22 which he and his family sailed on Oneida Lake in NY, Barnegat Bay in NJ and Lake Erie in OH. He also spent many days aboard his Dad's 34 foot Hatteras cruiser. Chartering with friends on Chesapeake Bay allowed him to keep his hand in sailing while "between boats".
When he and his wife, Bella, decided they wanted to go cruising as a full-time lifestyle they started chartering a wide variety of boats in areas from coastal Maine to the BVI in order to gain experience on them so they could make a more informed decision when they bought their "ideal" floating home. It also allowed them to sharpen their skills and experience a wide variety of sailing conditions.
Sadly, fate has a way of altering one's well-laid plans, and after a valiant 17 month struggle against colorectal cancer, Bella passed away in early September of 2005.
But just as sadness sometimes enters one's life, so, too, can joy intervene. Barbara, a wonderful gal with at least one Gulf Stream crossing under her belt, joined the crew during the summer of 2006 and spent the last season learning the ropes. Now, after two seasons on board, not only has she learned to be a wonderful hostess to our guests, she has also become a more-than-able First Mate!
By the way, the name of our website is taken from the transom of our oceangoing home. "La Nostra" is Italian and is one of those words which is difficult to translate. Roughly it means "ours" - in the all-encompassing sense. Spread out your arms in such a way as to include all that which is around you and say "ours" and you'll sort of get the feeling. We felt this was an appropriate name for her. In 2003 the house was sold and we divested ourselves of all but a chosen few of our belongings in preparation for moving aboard on a full-time basis, and when that time comes La Nostra will, indeed, be ours, and she will represent all that we are, in a physical sense, in the world.
