UNDERWAYcan do whatever they want on
the boat. But they’re on the
water, and that’s healing.”
It’s a dramatic change for
patients because they’re out
there with no distractions and
no set destination. “You go
where the wind takes you,”
says Johnson, “which is sort of
what we all do in life.”
One of their more memora-
ble passengers was Helen, who
along with her sister Kathy
and several other family mem-
bers enjoyed a late-August sail
aboard Jubilee. Two months
later, Kathy called Johnson to
say that Helen had died that
morning. “She said, ‘I want you
to know that the entire family
is here in our living room, and
they’re all talking about what
an amazing sail that was with
you,’” Johnson says. “‘You pro-
vided something no one else
was able to — memories thatwill be with us forever.’”
Healing Winds takes pas-
sengers with all types of
cancer and of all ages. “They
show up with whomever they
want to bring in tow,” says
Findholt. “We help them
down to the boat, make sure
they’re comfortable, and then
we’re of for a three-hour sail.
By and large, most are not sail-
ors, and some have never been
on a sailboat before.” The
boat is sailed by at least one
licensed captain and a volun-
teer from the organization.
Launched in 2014, Healing
Winds is a nonprofit with
a board of eight and more
than 100 volunteers, many
of whom are cancer survi-
vors or close to someone
who has dealt with cancer.
Program participation has
sky rocketed in just two years.
In the first season, they took
out 115 patients and care-
givers. In 2015, that number
swelled to 187, and the 2016
season had nearly 300 guests.
For more information, visit
healingwindsvt.org.
— Dave PowlisonOver three seasons, Healing
Winds has taken more than
300 cancer patients and
their guests for three-hour
sails on Lake Champlain.40
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