BoatUS Sea Scout National Flagship Award goes to Sea Scout ship
ARLINGTON, Va. – Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) awarded its 12th Sea Scout National Flagship Award to the Arlington, Virginia based Sea Scout Ship 1942, S.S.S. Dragonlady. The Sea Scouts and their adult leader Tom Ballew, the skipper of Ship 1942, accepted the award in a ceremony held Saturday at Solomons, Maryland. Keith Christopher, national director for BSA Sea Scouts, presented the Flagship trophy on behalf of BoatUS. This is the second time Ship 1942 has received this prestigious award – it earned its first Flagship Award in 2007 and is considered the “hometown” Ship by nearby BoatUS National Headquarters staff.
Ship 1942 was founded in 1992, is sponsored by St. George’s Episcopal Church and is one of the most active Ships on the East Coast. Like all Sea Scout units, Ship 1942 uses boats, seamanship and nautical skills to develop character and leadership qualities in young people, ages 14 to 20.
The fleet ranges from day sailers and small cruising boats kept nearby on the Potomac River to five cruising sloops from 27 to 39 feet on the Chesapeake Bay at Solomons Island, MD. Activities range from formal training in boating handling, rules of the road and safety drills to boat maintenance, electronics and engine repair, with a good measure of fun thrown in. The program strives to let the youth lead the activities and make the decisions to the fullest extent possible, with support from a strong cadre of adult leaders.
To earn the Flagship recognition, the ship and its crew compiled an impressive record of accomplishments, with 68 days of on-the-water activities last year, including a 9-day summer cruise, plus hundreds of hours of community service projects and numerous other achievements.
Operated by the Boy Scouts of America, Sea Scouting has 6,500 youths, about one-third female, participating in 475 Ships nationwide. For more information about Sea Scouting, visit: www.seascout.org.
