About us
Teaching Holland to sail since 1982
MBJA is a volunteer-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Every dollar goes back into boats, coaches, and kids.
Our mission
Provide the highest-quality sailing instruction to the Holland community.
We believe sailing is one of the best classrooms there is. A sailor has to read conditions, make decisions under pressure, and take responsibility for a boat and a crew. Those lessons carry into school, work, and everything after.
Our program is open to everyone, regardless of experience or whether a family belongs to a club. Beginners as young as five start in a protected corner of the bay; a decade later, some of those same sailors are racing in college.
We are a dependable resource for the sailing community — a place to learn safely, to compete seriously, and to keep coming back.
Our history
Two borrowed sailboats and a shared idea.
Back in 1982, a group of local sailors imagined an organization that would promote junior sailing and open the water to both Macatawa Bay Yacht Club members and kids from around Holland. That vision — plus a couple of borrowed sailboats — became the Macatawa Bay Junior Association. There wasn't even an instructor boat at the start, yet the organization held its course and grew.
Over the past forty-plus years, MBJA has given countless participants the thrill of sailing on open water. For many of them it became far more than a summer activity — it became a way of life.
You don't have to look far for proof of what junior sailing can do. Board chairman Roger Gamache has served on the board from 1984–97 and again from 2010 to today, driving the growth of our high school and college race teams and the rebuild of our sail and powerboat inventory. Both of his daughters came up through the program — Danielle went on to sail at SUNY Maritime Academy and was named All-American in 2009 — and the next generation of the family is now in our learn-to-sail and race programs.
- 1982
Founded by local sailors with two borrowed boats and no instructor boat.
- 1984
Roger Gamache joins the board, beginning decades of volunteer leadership.
- 2009
MBJA alumna Danielle Gamache earns collegiate All-American honors.
- 2023
MBJA hosts the 15-team MCSA Fall Championships in November.
Our results
Sailors who go far — and sailors who just love the water.
MBJA alumni have earned collegiate All-American honors, sailed with the U.S. Optimist Dinghy International Travel Team, and built careers in the marine industry.
Just as important: hundreds of kids who learned to swim, rig, capsize, recover, and respect big water. That's the outcome we measure ourselves by.
What's next
MBJA's bright future.
Thanks to a dedicated volunteer board and generous donors, we've made major improvements to our fleet, facilities, and programs — and we're not finished. The goal is simple: bring the joy of sailing to more people who want to learn.
Learn-to-sail is only part of what we do. We run high school and college sailing in the spring and fall, racing-focused summer camps that feed Team Macatawa, and club and regional regattas all summer. We host two fleet collegiate races each year, and in November 2023 we hosted the 15-team Midwest Collegiate Sailing Association Fall Championships.
Our ever-growing fleet includes Optimist dinghies, SailCubes, Club 420s, Lasers, and J/22s, plus inflatable coach boats that keep instruction close and safety closer.
Governance
Board of Directors
MBJA is guided by a volunteer board of parents, alumni, and community members.
- Sherry Bonadies
- Kelly Cramton Garvelink
- Roger Gamache
- Susan LaFontaine
- Lou Moran
- Michael Norris
- Lou Nykamp
- Mitch Padnos