CHICAGO REGATTA DONATIONS SET NEW STANDARD FOR GENEROSITY BY NANCY SNYDER & SONJA VEILLEUX
The racers, cruisers, paraders, donors, sponsors and auction shoppers who participated in the 2021 Chicago Regatta presented by Wintrust increased their contributions for the fifth year. This year’s event allowed the regatta to donate the most ever to the regatta’s charitable partners, Comer Children’s Hospital, SOS Children’s Villages Illinois and the Chicago Yacht Club Foundation. The largest growth in contributions in 2021 came from our donors, including seven donors at each of the platinum and gold levels, 31 silver-level sponsors and 41 donors giving at the bronze level. “The challenge that we made to ourselves and our participants for 2021 was to ‘do even more,’ and we did!” said Bruce Danly, chairman of the 2021 event. “Outstanding is the word that comes to mind as the many complex pieces of this event came together and our community came through with more generosity and enthusiasm than ever before. We cannot thank everyone enough.” The addition for 2021 of a new Leaderboard contest exploded with donations from coast to coast as friendships around the country were connected to our local waterfront community. Congratulations to the teams that assembled the largest donations and so get their names added to the Chicago Regatta trophy: Ed and Carrie Falkenhayn’s Lake House – a power yacht, Pinnacle Foundation’s Vincitore – a racing yacht and the Women on the Water committee’s Sonar sailing team. We look forward to seeing this new regatta element grow. Nearly 80 boats registered for the day of racing, including one-design fleets, cruisers and DragonForce model sailboat racing. Competitors enjoyed warm sunshine and a moderate southeasterly breeze, offering a day of champagne sailing with clear views of the city’s shore and skyline. The DragonForce racing attracted not only a large field of competitors but also drew a crowd of spectators as beautiful late-summer conditions drew everyone to Monroe’s south patio. As the sun set the evening’s activities kicked off with the regatta’s new event, a parade of many of the club’s most elegant and impressive vessels. Parade participants added a new way for us to enjoy Chicago’s 17
Blinker ✶ Winter 2021
waterfront while making an enduring impact on the lives of children in need. “We loved the casual nature of the event and the opportunity to showcase the charities we supported,” said Kurt Lentsch, CYC’s power fleet chairman who helped organize the parade. “We’re looking forward to including more participants and raising even more funds for our beneficiaries.” Sons of Chicago Band served up lively blues led by our own Gary Feracota. The band had people on their feet dancing on a perfect late-summer evening, delightfully capping off the buffet dinner that featured a Chicagothemed menu. Throughout all the activities, our silent auction saw lively bidding on fantastic items from wine and jewelry to destination vacations. We offer our enormous gratitude to presenting sponsor Wintrust along with the continuing support and generosity of Pinnacle Yachts and Pinnacle
