On Watch

The Executive Director of The Sailing Museum in Newport, Rhode Island (also home to the National Sailing Hall of Fame), Heather Ruhsam loves sailing for the sake of sailing. “I grew up along the East Coast, with most of my childhood spent in Litchfield County, Connecticut and St. John, USVI,” says Heather, who lives in Newport, Rhode Island. “I was fortunate to have parents who enjoyed sailing and made it a part of our life. I have…

An accomplished offshore racer and navigator, Ed Cesare has completed five of the World’s Great 600-Milers. “I started sailing aboard our family’s Rhodes 19 along with brother Ben [our intrepid Publisher],” says Ed, who grew up in Norwalk, Connecticut. “The four of us would overnight with a boom tent and air mattresses on the cockpit sole. Later, my parents traded the Rhodes for a Menemsha 24 – sort of a Friendship Sloop copy. This boat had a…

A longtime member of Beverly Yacht Club in his hometown of Marion, Massachusetts, R. Gregg Nourjian is a PHRF New England Commodore Emeritus and an enthusiastic supporter of Courageous Sailing who relishes introducing young people to the joys of sailing. “My parents, Wendy (Peirson) Nourjian and Bruce Nourjian, met racing 110s against each other and spent their honeymoon on a 40-foot sailboat,” says Gregg, who grew up in Stowe, Vermont and spent summers in Marion. “I was…

A three-time J/24 World Champion who’s won titles in numerous other one-design classes, Brad Read has served as Executive Director at Sail Newport in Newport, Rhode Island for nearly a quarter century. “Sailing on the family cruiser-racer as a young sailor allowed me to see the sport from various angles,” Brad recalls. “Gunkholing in the harbors of southeastern New England allowed our parents to teach us the proper way to anchor and raft to other boats, basic…

The Senior Vice President of Curatorial Affairs and Senior Director of Museum Galleries at Mystic Seaport Museum in Mystic, Connecticut, Christina Connett Brophy, PhD is a lifelong sailor who loves riding the breeze on both water and land. “I was sailing before I was born,” says Christina. “My parents started the R/V Geronimo maritime research and sailing program for St. George’s School in Middletown, Rhode Island in the early 1970s. My brother and I grew up on…

The Assistant Sailing Coach at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, Alicia Blumenthal loves helping others become better sailors. “I grew up on the South Shore of Long Island in Bellport, New York and was 5 when I began sailing,” says Ali, who lives in Stonington. “My parents put me in classes through the Bellport Bay Sailing Foundation. They thought sailing would be a good skill for me to have, but couldn’t have guessed…

One of the first graduates of Oakcliff Sailing’s Sapling program, Madeline Gill is a Sail Designer at North Sails in Charleston, South Carolina, an accomplished racer with success in multiple classes, and a fervent advocate for equality in sailing. “I grew up in Norwalk, Connecticut and started sailing at Cedar Point Yacht Club when I was six, as crew for my dad on a Vanguard 15,” says Madeline. “I have so many fond memories of junior sailing…

The Program Manager at Clean Ocean Access (COA) in Middletown, Rhode Island, Egidia Vergano is committed to helping others reduce waste and pursue sustainability, and she loves her work. “I grew up in Attleboro, Massachusetts, not near but not too far from the ocean,” says Egidia, who lives in Exeter, RI. “Starting at age seven, my family began spending one week every summer in Provincetown. It was there that my love of the ocean was ignited. I…

Writer, TV producer, director and videographer Greg Gilmartin is a certified US Sailing Regional Race Officer, a Mudhead to the core, and an inveterate POTRAF. “I was born in Brooklyn, New York, lived in Sheepshead Bay next to Coney Island and spent more time on the beach than on the water,” Greg recalls. “Moved to South Hempstead on Long Island then college at Oneonta State, where I got into radio announcing. Baseball, football and golf were the…

A passionate sailor, a gifted sailing coach and a talented artist, Haley Brown relishes sharing her knowledge with others, whether it’s achieving success on the racecourse or creating a painting. “I grew up on the shoreline in Branford, Connecticut, and skippered my first Opti at six,” says Haley, who lives in New Haven. “My parents aren’t sailors, but they enrolled me in Opti lessons at the club we belonged to. I had a hand-me-down Opti and Phantom…