HEART OF THE STORM

12/06/2024

🌊 Join the Mission: Help Heart of the Storm Set Sail! 🚢

Heart of the Storm (HOTS) is so much more than a sailing program - it’s a lifeline for teens and adults navigating the challenges of life. Through adventures on the sea, we empower young hearts to discover their strength, build confidence, and find their direction.

Our beloved vessel, Aliento, is at the heart of this mission. After five years of dedicated restoration, she’s almost ready to return to the water and transform even more lives. But we need your help to finish the journey!

💙 How You Can Help:
1️⃣ Donate: Every dollar brings us closer to completing Aliento’s restoration and funding unforgettable adventures for teens and adults.
2️⃣ Share: Even if you can’t donate, sharing our GoFundMe link makes a huge impact by spreading the word!

👉 https://gofund.me/3515d734

Together, we can provide life-changing experiences for teens and adults of all ages, helping them navigate both the seas and their inner worlds. Let’s make waves of transformation—your support matters! 🌟

Help Aliento Sail Again with Heart of the Storm – Winter Enclosure Needed! … Nielsen van Duijn needs your support for Aliento's Final Step: Your Help Needed

08/16/2022

Wood boats are a lot of work. Gracias, gracias, gracias Nielsen y for hours of labor into the decks of Aliento. Maybe she will sail this fall... let’s see how the wind blows.

04/23/2022

Robin Lee Graham sailed around the world alone starting out in 1965. I read his later published book Dove, when I was 14, and it changed my life. Recently I heard a podcast interview with Robin. At 59-north.com ⚓️⛵️🌟 check it out.

02/26/2022

More beautiful work on the teak table for Aliento!
Who wants to go on a sailing adventure?
⚓️⛵️

01/16/2022

Working on the engine cover. We use it as a counter top on Aliento’s galley.
Claudio sanded it down today, filled the cracks, snd we brought it inside to warm up.
Next it gets 3 coats of polyurethane. ⛵️ boats

11/10/2021

All beautiful things take time. finished all of the floorboards for Aliento. Stay tuned to see what they look like installed again into her galley. Getting ready for a sailing sumner 2022⛵️.

10/11/2021

Look at these beautiful floor boards for Aliento’s interior. did an amazing job with four coats of polyurethane ... lots of sanding in between.. this is a satin sheen. they are so buttery, smooth ...can’t wait to walk on them. ⛵️⚓️

09/25/2021

This is the galley flooring for Aliento. Claudio is sanding & polyurethane - ing all of the inside floors, tables & counters. Amazing work with a lot of love put in🧡. I hope I don’t slip! 😂

09/13/2021

What’s better than having one husband who works on a boat... why two husbands of course!! 😂❤️ On board Aliento today to film a bit & help find the lost bolt....finishing off the aft deck with marine plywood... then the teak decks... my favorite part of the boat... walking on 🌞sun- warmed teak decks while underway. ⛵️

07/17/2021

Last night the wheel chair arrived... delivered to our door by Carter and
The chair is for our student Savieon who lives in the Abacos.

As you recall these islands were devastated during hurricane Dorian. And then Covid hit...a lot of hardship for many people.

Jumping through lots of hoops...having a terrible time with the mold in his home...Savieon was able to stay with family in the USA until his family’s house became inhabitable.

By sheer persistence he made his way to our home for a week long visit this past spring. It’s crazy... this young man from a tiny island who we met seven years ago...sitting in our kitchen eating dinner with us.

He arrived with a broken wheel chair. It was in very bad shape. And uncomfortable.

Savieon is disabled, he can not use his legs at all. Although he can scamper around on his hands & bottom he needs the wheel chair to get around...

Hmmm... I contacted Deborah at Impossible dream and she said yes... I will send one up to Maine this week. Thank you @ for delivering it to our home.

If I had known prior to his arrival he could have gone home with the new chair...bc of timing it arrived a few weeks after Savieon went back to the Bahamas.

Now we really need to get Aliento ready to sail so that we can complete this wheelchair mission by sailing it to Savieon in the Bahamas.

Stay tuned. We will be documenting our journey.

Check out our website link in profile.

Join our fundraiser to get Savieon his wheel chair! Support the HOTS program so that we can reach many more kids in need.

Thank you we are grateful for everyone who has supported us along the way.

⛵️☀️
🇧🇸

07/04/2021

Arriving, taking off... it’s all a big journey to live on a boat. Here is Henri as we get ready for a journey motoring up a river in Florida... 2015... we are gathering up momentum for the next big journey with teenaged kids on board. Maybe I will be less worried about them falling over board... maybe...

05/23/2021

Hi from Acadia.

We hiked up the eagle lake trail to accommodate Savieon our visitor from the Bahamas.

Seven years ago we met Savieon in the Abacos where we were doing a southern HOTS program on our boat Aliento.

Savieon sailed with us to many of the out islands and had his first sailing experience.

With lots of anticipation and organization we are hosting him at our home in Maine this week.

Excited to have him here as he is filled with good ideas for our next HOTS journey when we meet up again in the Bahamas.

For now it’s Acadia hikes, canoe rides in our pond, and fun dinners together.

Excited to have Aliento back in the water this summer. ♥️⛵️♥️⛵️♥️⛵️ ⛵️❤️