Adventurous & free
Courtesy photo
Todd McCurdy and Penny Potter say there is nothing quite like the feeling they get when they’re on the water.
Todd McCurdy and Penny Potter love sharing their passion for sailing with others through a series of classes offered in Balwin Park. ANNABELLE SIKES STAFF WRITER
T
odd McCurdy and Penny Potter both found passion in sailing from their fathers. Now, McCurdy, current commodore for The Sailing Club in Central Florida, and Potter, in charge of instruction and classes, pursue that passion in Baldwin Park. Potter says her love for the water is a family affair. “My dad had been in the (U.S.) Navy, and he was on a Destroyer in World War II in the Mediterranean,” she says. “He always loved the water and boats, and some of that passion transitioned on to me and my sisters.”
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BALDWIN PARK LIVING | OCTOBER 2021
In the 1970s, both Potter’s sisters, who lived in Maryland, found a sailing class where they lived and took it. They told Penny she should find one in Florida. “I took it, and I was hooked,” Potter says. Potter purchased her first sailboat less than a year after she took the class. McCurdy also fell in love with sailing quickly. His grandfather was passionate about fishing, and his father, who passed away before he was born, was a sailor. McCurdy lived in northern California and had a sailboat growing up that was bought by his parents, who taught him to sail. When the family moved to Ohio, McCurdy
SETTING SAIL The first sailing lesson of fall 2021 will take place Oct. 4. For detailed information and registration, those interested can call (407) 645-1892 or email Classes@thesailingclub.us.
stopped sailing for a while. When he moved to Florida, he found a passion in windsurfing. However, about three years ago, McCurdy was walking around Lake Baldwin with his older daughter when he saw the sailboat compound. The pair immediately signed up, took the class and loved it. They have been part of the club ever since.
THE EXPERIENCE
McCurdy said the sailing program is unique, because it is cost-effective, the instructors are all volunteers, and the program is local and
