Before dinner, Ellie Sears, a senior at Traip Academy, will share her experience sailing on a historic tall ship in the Virgin Islands through the World Ocean School’s Winter Ambassador Program last December. She received a scholarship from the School, with additional support from the Club and Piscataqua Youth Sailing Association. A Kittery resident and instructor at Agamenticus Yacht Club, Ellie is a National Honor Society member, active in FBLA, and certified as a US Sailing Small Boat Level 1 instructor, CPR provider, and US Powerboat instructor.
Ellie applied to the Program to deepen her ocean and sailing knowledge as she prepares to attend Maine Maritime Academy, where she plans to major in Oceanography and Small Vessel Operations, with a minor in Sail Training. She hopes to pursue a maritime career. This scholarship reflects the Club’s renewed commitment to supporting local students entering marine professions.
Our after-dinner speaker is Larry Mayer, Professor and Director of the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping at the University of New Hampshire. He will discuss UNH’s ocean mapping initiatives and WWII shipwreck research.
Larry earned an honors degree in geology from the University of Rhode Island (1973) and a Ph.D. in Marine Geophysics from Scripps Institution of Oceanography (1979). His career has included work in deep-sea mapping, climate history, Chirp Sonar development, and ocean sediment research, along with faculty roles at Dalhousie University and the University of New Brunswick. In 2000, he founded UNH’s Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping and co-directs the NOAA/UNH Joint Hydrographic Center.
His research focuses on advanced seafloor mapping, autonomous systems, 3-D visualization, and Arctic Law of the Sea applications. Registration is open to members until March 1; the Atlantic Grill will serve a barbeque buffet.