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Hall of Fame 2020, Jean and Donald Bergman

 

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Jean and Don Bergman met in the mid-1970s at Sheridan Shore Yacht Club in Wilmette, Illinois.   Each had been involved in the sport of sailing for many years before:  Jean as Director of Winnetka Yacht Club’s Junior Fleet sailing program and Don’s exposure from his father’s involvement as a founder of Sheridan Shore Yacht Club.

They married in 1976 and established their home in Winnetka, Illinois.  They were very active in Winnetka Yacht Club activities, being key players in the “Super Sail Regatta” and club planning.  Sailing off the beach was very popular and the Bergmans were leaders in this formation.  Jean was Chair of the 1985 Sunfish Womens North American Championship sailed on Lake Michigan off Winnetka.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2020, Jean and Donald Bergman

Hall of Fame 2020, Seymour Padnos

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Many different stories are told describing what brought people to the sport of sailing.  Here’s another.  Seymour Padnos’ father traded a wood planer to Jesiek Brothers shipyard in exchange for a wooden boat from a fleet being constructed by Jesiek’s.  Seymour and his brother joined Macatawa Bay Yacht Club in 1938 to begin their sailing careers.  After World War II they bought a Tripp 33 designed Medalist from Peter Grimm of Chicago.  This began Seymour’s uninterrupted involvement in sail racing that lasted for over 76 years.

Seymour recognized that sailing was an activity which was clean, safe and worthy of life-long involvement.  He led local development of youth sail training at Bay Haven (now Bayshore Yacht Club), facilitating the construction of a fleet of wooden Optimist dinghies in 1959.  He freely gave his time serving the Lake Michigan Yacht Association, eventually serving as Commodore of the sail fleet.  Continuing service to the sport, he was nominated as Rear Commodore of Macatawa Bay Yacht Club, continuing on to Commodore in 1970.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2020, Seymour Padnos

Hall of Fame 2020, Thomas Atkins

 

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The state of Ohio lost the talents of Tom Atkins in 1987 when he elected to move to Sheboygan, Wisconsin.  He had started a Junior sailing program at Toledo Country Club, helped initiate the University of Toledo Sailing Club, and established a sailing program for the Aquatics Department at the University of Pittsburgh.

In Sheboygan in 1989 he established his own marketing business, using his skills successfully and applying those skills to create, improve and manage sailing programs.  Sheboygan Yacht Club’s Commodore asked Tom to Chair a committee to start a Junior sailing program. This entailed setting a budget, financing, fundraising, sponsorship, site location, and establishment of a 501(c)(3) Foundation.  Initially, the Foundation acquired a fleet of ten Optimist Dinghies.  The organization matured into the Sheboygan Youth Sailing Club, which now has fleets of J/24s, Lightnings, 420s, Lasers, a high school sailing team, and adult sailing lessons, now serving several hundred people per season.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2020, Thomas Atkins

Hall of Fame 2019, Jerry O'Neill

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Jerry O’Neill has had an outstanding sail racing career.  He has competed in 48 Chicago to Mackinac Sail Races as of 2019.  Of those races he has won Overall four times and has accomplished twelve first in Section wins.  In his 50 plus years of racing on Lake Michigan he has won the National Offshore One-Design-Chicago Regatta, The Verve Cup Regatta and Boat of the Year.  He has been victorious in many other LMSRF Area 3 races through the years.

Jerry has developed two generations of O’Neill’s as crew members and has mentored and developed many other persons into very capable crew members.

He is respected as a safety conscious skipper and an expert in his seamanship and possesses impeccable sportsmanship.

He reports that he is looking forward to competing for many more years, be the Good Lord willing.

December 11, 2019

Jerry O’Neill was nominated by the Board of Directors of Chicago Yacht Club to the Lake Michigan Sailing Hall of Fame. 

Hall of Fame 2019, Joseph "Joey" Harris

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Few of the inductees to the Lake Michigan Sailing Hall of Fame have had the opportunities to expose so many young people to sailing as Joseph "Joey" Harris.  He was Director of Sailing for Columbia Yacht Club from 1993 to 2001, Head Sailing Coach at California Maritime Academy in 2001, Director of Sailing at St. Francis Yacht Club in 2002 and 2003, Director of Sailing at Grosse Pointe Yacht Club from 2003 to 2005, Director of Sailing for the City of Lake Forest from 2005 to 2009 and became the Manager of Sailing for the Chicago Park District in 2009 continuing through this date.

These opportunities had an inauspicious beginning.  Joey’s mother, a Chicago school teacher, decided to teach summer school when Joey was about 10 years of age.  To keep him on the good road, she enrolled him in the Columbia Yacht Club’s junior sailing program. Although trying hard, in the final race of the season Joey placed last.  Beginning that fall he read every book about sailing he could find. In the following season’s championship he beat all other students.  This action began his sailing career.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2019, Joseph "Joey" Harris

Hall of Fame 2019, Richard "Dick" Rodseth

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Richard “Dick” Rodseth, like so many others, began his sailing career as a young boy in the Chicagoland area as a crew member.  As he matured he retained the knowledge of each adventure aboard which was preparing him for one of the most successful sail racing programs on Lakes Michigan and Huron.  He was also preparing himself for a very successful business career.

His success in business allowed him to enter the stage of sailboat ownership.   He bought Bangalor and raced it a few years.   He moved on to various sailboats which were named Vagary.  His last vessel was a Peterson 43 which he purchased and was delivered with only the hull, a deck and bulkheads. Dick finished this Vagary to his own specifications, helped by digging a hole big enough to hold the vessel so he could walk from yard surface onto the deck of the boat.

Dick relocated himself, family and business to West Michigan in 1983 and joined Muskegon Yacht Club.  There he introduced many young people  to the sport of sailing and racing.   Some of those persons became regulars in his crew.  He was intense about his sail racing, never stopping until Vagary crossed the finish line or the time limit was reached.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2019, Richard "Dick" Rodseth

Hall of Fame 2018, Gary C. Comer

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Gary Comer was born December 10, 1927, into a family of very modest means residing on the south side of Chicago near Jackson Park Harbor.  As young people will do, he explored his area and found the waterfront of Lake Michigan and the harbor.  He hung around the Jackson Park Harbor, offering his help to anyone desiring assistance in cleaning or moving their boat.  Edgar “Bud” Tohlman, owner of the 46’ sailboat Taltona, asked Gary to be of help to him one day and that led to Gary and Bud sailing together for 20 years.  Bud wanted Gary to learn how to sail and gave him a small sailing dinghy.  Gary proved to have natural talent and excelled in sailing the dinghy.

While doing his dinghy sailing, Gary saw that the Star Class sailing fleet was active and interesting.  He found the means to buy a Star and began a very successful career racing Star boats.  All the Stars were moored in the water in the harbor.  Gary went to the Chicago Park District (CPD), who controlled and issued permits to moor, to seek permission to install a small boat hoist immediately north of the harbor parking lot.  This area was full of weeds and scrub bushes which when cleared could hold about 12 Star boats on their trailers.  Gary convinced the CPD to allow this.  This became the first “dry sailing storage lot” which set the stage for the CPD to open such areas in all harbors.  This improvement led the Star Class to become the largest one design class sailing on the Great Lakes.

While this was occurring, Gary was honing his racing skills, winning the Great Lakes Star Championship in 1953 and 1954.  He won the Tulip Tune Up in 1955.  Finally, with a good boat and new sails, in 1959 Gary won the Star North American Championship, placed 2nd in the Star World Championship, and won the Bronze Medal in the Star Class in the Pan American Games. 

Read more: Hall of Fame 2018, Gary C. Comer

Hall of Fame 2018, David Rearick

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Since David Rearick was a 12-year-old boy, a major part of his life has revolved around sailing.  Once he experienced the joy of being around water, he immersed himself in learning how boats harness the wind and waves.  He had big dreams and got involved in local races, setting courses, encouraging others, and creating opportunities for people to learn and to race.  His focus expanded from races hosted by Michigan City Yacht Club, Michigan City, Indiana, to those held across the Great Lakes, encompassing crewed and solo opportunities.

Dave has sailed Sunfish, Hobie Cats, Lasers, J/24s, Open 50s, Class 40s as well open pulling boats, large schooners and many other sailing vessels.   Dave is most often associated with the well-known boat Geronimo, and more recently, with the J/V 67 Defiance.

A continual leaner, he became a good project manager, whose approach helped streamline race management, boat management and racing campaigns.  When he lost his good friend Mike Silverthorne during the 2002 Lake Michigan Solo Scramble, he advocated for stronger communication and safety standards for solo races.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2018, David Rearick

Hall of Fame 2017, John Hoskins

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John Hoskins’ contributions to local sailing clubs seems tireless, serving in many different positions and always trying to improve members’ participation, while emphasizing fun sailing and making new friends to encourage new sailors to participate. He has served as Sail Racing Chair and Commodore of Anchorage Yacht Club, of Lake Forest, Illinois, and is a lifetime member and is a past President of the Great Lakes Singlehanded Society. He has been a US Sailing certified Sailing Instructor and Sailing Instructor for Instructors.

With just a few other members of the Anchorage Yacht Club, John helped with the development of a racing program that has increased participation and learning for the entire fleet. Within the time span of six years, between 2008 and 2014, this effort increased the weekly participation from an average of ten boats to an average of more than thirty boats on the starting line each week. He helped the club implement a set of Saturday distance races called “Solo/Double” each season to provide opportunity for shorthanded sailors to race with the club. Due to their popularity and the attraction of distance racing, in 2013 the club added an additional section for full crewed boats and now these races are called “All-or-One” to include solo, double-handed and fully crewed boats. In 2013, John collaborated with a sister club to create “Big Fleet Races” which provided more opportunities for racing and friendships amongst sailors in Waukegan Harbor.   John has offered many suggestions on race course setup and sailing instructions to enable ease of race management and racer participation.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2017, John Hoskins

Hall of Fame 2016, Jere Sullivan


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Jere Sullivan’s heritage propelled him into a life oriented around water.  His grandfather captained a three-masted schooner, Moonlight, which won a race against another schooner, Porter, in 1880.  The race went from Buffalo, New York, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, averaging 15 knots across the course.  His grandfather established the Gartland Steamship Company in Chicago, Illinois.  Jere was brought to the bridge of the owned vessels at a very young age, installing the desire to be active on the water for his entire life.  His family migrated from Milwaukee to Cleveland, Ohio, where Jere started his sailing career.  He sailed in Comets, Stars and R Boats out of Cleveland Yachting Club.  In 1965 and 1966 he won the Yacht Racing Union of the Great Lakes’ Richardson Cup championship, sailing for the Inter-Lake Yachting Association.

Read more: Hall of Fame 2016, Jere Sullivan

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