Sail MV
Mission: To protect and perpetuate our Island’s maritime heritage, culture, skills, and the sea that surrounds us.
Read Updates Below
2023 Expansion Grant
Maritime Education Expansion | Award: $300,000
2025
In 2025, Sail Martha’s Vineyard reached a major milestone in expanding access to maritime education and adaptive sailing, thanks to MV Youth’s extraordinary support. Your three-year investment of $300,000—funding the landing craft, Hansa sailing dinghies, and Hartley 10 dinghies—has transformed our programs and the lives of hundreds of Island residents. The highlight of this year was the acquisition and commissioning of Providence, our new aluminum landing craft, which solved a critical access challenge for SailMobility, our adaptive sailing program. Providence now provides safe, dignified transport for sailors with physical disabilities from Vineyard Haven’s town landing to our dock at Sailing Camp Park. It has also become a platform for inclusive outings, hosting participants from Island Elderly Housing and the Vineyard Independence Partnership for joyful trips around the Lagoon. The Hansa dinghies, funded through MV outh, continued to empower sailors with physical and cognitive challenges. This summer, SailMobility became fully operational, supported by an electric lift and the landing craft, enabling anyone who wants to sail to get on the water safely. Participation grew significantly, with our partners Island Autism and Camp Jabberwocky enjoying a full season of sailing on the lagoon. Feedback from families and partner organizations has been overwhelmingly positive and proves the value of this program to our community as a whole. Meanwhile, the Hartley 10 dinghies remain essential for our youth sailing program, which saw record engagement in 2025: 460 program spaces filled, with more than two-thirds going to Island children. These boats provide a safe, versatile platform for beginners and intermediates, helping over 150 young sailors develop confidence and skills. MVYouth’s commitment has not only provided equipment—it has opened doors, broken barriers, and created opportunities for independence, inclusion, and growth. Thank you for helping us make sailing accessible for all and for strengthening the maritime heritage of Martha’s Vineyard.
2024
2024 was a year of new arrivals for Sail MV. The second year of MVYouth's support financed our fleet of new Hansa accessibility craft, which we welcomed to the waters of the Lagoon in early July. These, along with all our other craft, create a unique program providing free water sports training to island residents, regardless of their abilities. Over 300 island residents took to the water with Sail MV this summer, and our scholarships provided families with over $120,000 in camp programs, allowing their children to enjoy everything the Lagoon has to offer. SailMobility has been part of Sail MV’s summer operations since 2019, but this year the fleet of Hansa 2.3s and 303s has been game-changing for the island's only adaptive sailing program. These boats accommodate students with a range of physical and intellectual disabilities, allowing them to helm small sailing craft for the first time, experiencing the wind and spray in their faces. Seeing these young people and their families taking to the water together in craft specifically designed to make these experiences possible has been truly revolutionary for our programs.
2023
In 2023, over 380 children took to the waters of the Lagoon in Sail MV’s summer programs. Sail Martha’s Vineyard has always taken extraordinary pride in being the primary maritime education organization on the island, and the heart of our mission is the summer sailing camp. Since 2018, Sail MV has provided over $620,000 worth of scholarships to island families, allowing children to learn how to be safe while sailing and windsurfing on the waters of the Vineyard. This year was the first of our three years of support from MVYouth. In mid-June we welcomed the arrival of our new fleet of 12 Hartley 10 sailing dinghies. These craft revolutionized the way we get our beginner students onto the water. Long gone are the bathtubs of old. Hartley 10s are custom designed for young, first-time students to have the best possible platform for their first sailing experience. The initial trepidation of helming a dinghy for the first time is rapidly replaced with smiles and cries of joy as skills are learned and goals are achieved. 384 Children took part in the Sail MV summer sailing program. $166,000 of scholarships were provided to island families allowing their children to take to the water for free. SailMobility provided over 50 hours of sessions to Island Autism and Camp Jabberwocky. The Sail MV summer internship provided 3 island students with on-the-job experience.