By Diona Young
Table of contents
When I was growing up, Memorial Day weekend meant going to my grandparents’ house. My grandpa was a Vietnam War veteran, and one of the things I remember these long weekends was helping him put the American flag out each morning.
At the time, I probably didn’t understand the weight behind those moments. It felt like a small ritual. Looking back, I realize it was something more: respect, remembrance, and pride in service.
For many enthusiasts, Memorial Day weekend is the premier boating occasion, serving as the unofficial beginning of the summer season. But underneath all of that, it’s a day meant to honor those who lost their lives serving in the military and to recognize the lasting impact service has on families and communities.
Why Veterans Often Feel at Home on the Water
Learning to sail or operate a boat safely takes focus, communication, patience, and the ability to stay calm when things don’t go according to plan. Those are skills many veterans already know well.
People in the boating and sailing communities have noticed something interesting over the years. Veterans often become highly engaged students. They appreciate standards, structured learning, and practical skills. Some go on to become instructors, mentors, and leaders within the community.
There’s also something harder to explain but easy to recognize. Time on the water has a way of narrowing your focus. The noise quiets down. Your attention shifts to wind, weather, navigation, or simply being present.
That experience can be meaningful for anyone, but especially for people looking for challenge, connection, or a new purpose.
The American Sailing & American Boating Veterans Program
The American Sailing and American Boating Veterans Program was created to help make on the water education more accessible for active duty military members and veterans.
The initiative was designed with a simple goal in mind: make it easier for veterans and active duty service members to take that first step into sailing education and join a community on the water.
Since the program began, 1,910 veterans have earned certifications through it. Today, 123 schools participate by offering these discounts and helping veterans take their first steps into boating and sailing education.
Behind those numbers are people who decided to try something new. People who signed up for a course, learned unfamiliar skills, gained confidence, and became part of a community.
Veterans interested in participating can explore schools offering the program here:
Veterans Program Participating Schools
More information about the program is available here:
American Sailing & American Boating Veterans Program
The schools involved deserve recognition. Making education more accessible may seem like a small gesture, but small gestures often create bigger opportunities.
Organizations Supporting Veterans Through Sailing and Boating
American Sailing and American Boating aren’t alone in using time on the water as a way to build connection, confidence, and community.
Warrior Sailing
This nonprofit provides sailing opportunities and maritime education specifically for wounded, ill, and injured veterans. Programs focus on skill building, camaraderie, and continued connection through sailing.
Veterans Sailing Association
This organization helps veterans access sailing education and certifications while building confidence and community along the way.
Freedom Waters Foundation
The Freedom Waters Foundation focuses on therapeutic boating experiences for veterans, children with special needs, and individuals facing illness or hardship. Their programs create opportunities to enjoy time on the water, connect with others, and experience the simple healing effect many people find in boating.
Boat4Vets through US Vet Connect
Boat4Vets offers veterans opportunities to spend time on the water through recreational boating experiences designed to build community, encourage wellness, and create memorable experiences outside everyday routines.
Programs like these remind us that boating and sailing aren’t only recreational activities. They can also become spaces for learning, mentorship, healing, challenge, and belonging.
Looking Beyond Memorial Day
Memorial Day asks us to remember sacrifice. But maybe it also asks us to think about how support continues long after service ends.
For some veterans, stepping aboard a boat becomes more than learning a new skill or earning a certification. It becomes another challenge to tackle, another adventure to pursue, and sometimes, another community waiting to welcome them.
When I think back to helping my grandfather raise the flag each Memorial Day, I realize those moments were never only about remembering the past. They were also about carrying respect forward.
Programs that help veterans find education, community, and confidence on the water are one small way that tradition continues.
About the Author
Diona Young took her ASA 101 in Grenada with LTD Sailing in 2024. Since then, she has earned her ASA 103, 104, 111, and 114 certifications and continued to build real experience on the water. She has bareboat chartered in destinations around the world, including Greece, Sicily, Tahiti, Belize, and beyond. When she’s not sailing, Diona works in sailing education and community, helping other sailors find their own confident first step onto the water.
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