My wife and I had a dream of one day owning a sailboat, retiring and cruising the east coast. I have been around boats all of my life but my wife had not, but she adopted my love for the water almost instantly when we met. Her knowledge of boats was weak at best but her desirer to learn was strong, she would talk to and ask anyone and everyone questions about sailing and absorbed it like a sponge. To some her questions probably seemed stupid and annoying and her persistence agitating but with every answer she got she became more and more the sailor she wanted to be and closer to our dream. We spent countless hours driving from one listing to the next and walking away many times with her saying “It just wasn’t meant to be” but never regretted a minute of it as we looked at this as part of our journey. Many told her to “just get a boat and get out there” and they were probably right but she was very stubborn and particular about the boat she wanted. The first boat we took to survey we let slip through our finger tips over a $2000.00 difference but as she told me “it just wasn’t meant to be”. I think she enjoyed the search as much as the dream of sailing. She met many people in the sailing community and some she considered friends. She suffered from a back injury she received as a young adult which eventually affected her health but this didn’t stop her from pursuing our dream. Her health progressively got worse and the medical expenses soared and I knew the likelihood of sailing would probably never happen but she continued to study, learn and research sailing. Last Year I received a large promotion with a considerable pay increase. And the day the promotion was official she wrote “The Last Twenty Four Hours have been the Happiest of her life” and she told me as we laid down that night “now we can go get our Sailboat”. The next day May 17, 2011 she didn’t wake up. So this is why I say; Live you’re Dream, don’t let it slip through your fingers! Get that boat and get out there!

Some of you may remember her as “Michele” we met a few of you in person and she became close with others through email and the BB. On her birthday (July 11) we spread her ashes at sea off of an island known as Elliott Key in Biscayne Bay +25° 27.427N -80° 10.149W.

I am still pursuing our Dream!