The Blue Water Foundation is a non-profit corporation working in conjunction with the San Francisco School District and the San Francisco Police Department. The Foundation offers inner city school children the opportunity to escape from the everyday temptations to which they are exposed and provides an alternative to drugs, alcohol and gangs. Sailing can show these children a new and challenging natural world that exists only a few miles from the city streets they inhabit. The thrill of sailing, the power of the sea and task of mastering the art of sailing vessel can all act to make the sordid "highs" of drugs seem tame, indeed.

Our goal: To show these children that a world of adventure and excitement exists as close as the nearest boat and that adults, be they police, teachers, or volunteers, care enough about them to show them how to get there. If they master some skills, that world is there for the taking.

We seek to give the children the opportunity to see how the world of sailing and the sea can forever change one’s outlook on life ... and how the challenge of crewing a vessel at sea can teach one much about what matters in life ... and what matters in courage, teamwork and character.

The Foundation has several programs with the children. Each month it arranges four to six sails on the Bay with children selected by the school district from both middle schools and high schools. Usually, a police officer will accompany each school sail as part of the crew. This creates an environment in which officers and children can share the experience and work together in a setting that allows real communication.

These sails are attended by twelve to fifteen school students, their teachers, members of the police and, of course, Blue Water Foundation volunteers.

Additionally, the Foundation uses its small boats to facilitate and train sailing clubs in several of the middle and high schools, and seeks to work with the various special experiential educational programs within the school district. The programs will be enlarged in the near future to include coastal cruising and perhaps racing Golden Bear in San Francisco Bay races. The Golden Bear has competed in races throughout its career, including winning a Transpac, but now will race in the Bay with high school students as crew.

History
The Blue Water Foundation was started well over a decade ago by a group of concerned sailors who wanted to expose Bay Area young people to the joys of sailing. With the help of volunteer boats, the Foundation was able to take small groups of middle school students sailing on the Bay. The response from the students and the volunteers was so overwhelming that the excursions became regularly scheduled trips. The popularity and success of the program resulted in the incorporation of The Blue Water Foundation in August 21, 1992.