Letter from Valencia- Vocational Training Center
by Ralph Roberts on 2 Jul 2007
Six young students at work in Un Mar Sin Barreras, "A Sea Without Barriers" Ralph and Penny Roberts
Each day I wander down to Port America's Cup and I ponder who will win the day’s race, the Kiwis or the Swiss; how will the various exchanges go, the pre-start, the first beat, the runs and all those sailing thoughts that make up a race.
And I walk I past three old warehouses with young people, boys and girls making sails and repairing boats. One day I thought to myself I must call in and see what they doing, the laughter and enthusiasm always catches my attention. This is what I discovered…
There is a team of 40 young students who are at risk of social exclusion and have been given the opportunity to experience new Vocational Marine Training, to empower them to find their place in the marine industry.
The Training Foundation is called Un Mar Sin Barreras, 'A Sea Without Barriers' and has as its President of Honour, His Majesty, Juan Carlos, King of Spain, himself a great sailor.
This Foundation takes a selection of 40 students between 16 and 25 years who may have disabilities, are migrants, or who were early school leavers, to equip them with social and professional skills to increase their social integration and employment opportunities.
A SEA WITHOUT BARRIERS has four centers to train and empower these young people. They are the workshop, a club that adapts the students for Marine activities, a sailing school with boats adapted for disability persons and an accessibility center.
The Workshops are housed in three old warehouses near the America's Cup Port. The course is a two year vocational marine training programme that teaches 40 young people at risk of social exclusion about boat building, maintenance, sail-making and ship model making.
The Adaptive Marine Activities Club is where students with different sensorial and physical disabilities work with experienced sailing professionals and are trained for sailing on these adapted boats. It is a time when they can meet, and integrate with able-bodied sailors to enjoy sailing together.
The Primary objective of the club is to cultivate the practice of adapting sailing boats for the disabled by offering its members a wide range of courses and marine activities.
The growing interest of Professional and Amateur sailors in 'adapted sailing' and the support given by different entities help with the integration of people with a disability into our worldwide sailing community.
This created the Adaptive Marine Activities Club 'A Sea Without Barriers'
The objective of the sailing school is to promote the integration between able-bodied people and people with disabilities and the VIP blind through sailing.
The School offers a wide range of activities, from beginners in sailing to competing in sailing regattas up and down the coast.
The Accessibility Center conducts studies in and shares knowledge on how they adapt sailing boats to the needs of people with a disability including the blind.
At the moment, the foundation has two modified sailing boats type GOS 16, only made in Spain and these boats have been further adapted by the foundation. It also has a Sonar, the sailing boat especially used for the Paralympics.
'Sirenita'
The foundation has also acquired a 50 year old Golondrina design Tourist boat
called 'Sirenita' meaning 'little mermaid 'it had been left, forgotten to sink in the Valencia harbour . The foundation team have given the boat an 'Extreme Makeover' which included a new flat deck, and have made alterations on board to include 8 places for people in wheelchairs, a toilet, and have installed a telescopic ramp and crane to get on and off.
The students have completed the hull in the makeover repairs to the boat. There is still a lot of work to be done installing safety rails, painting and commissioning the motor,etc.
The students are supervised and taught by specialized teachers. One day a week, instead of working at the workshop, they receive complementary classes in computing, how to find a job, public speaking and psychology etc, but it doesn't stop there.
As they say 'the sea has no limits.'
The students have started their final project of the year: The construction of a twelve metre long sailing boat that will be fully adapted to the needs of people with blindness or other disability. They will not be able to finish this project in such a short time.
Hopefully, in January 2008 another 40 young people will get the chance to complete this project.
Thanks to the 32nd America´s Cup being sailed in Valencia, marine related jobs have already given six of this year’s intake full time work.
I hear the horns of the big boats in the harbour signaling that NZL92 ETNZ and SUI 100 Alinghi are going to do battle. I must away, but I have enjoyed these special moments with these now dedicated young people from Valencia, Ghana and Morocco.
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