Tacoma’s tall ship, a waterfront fixture since 1978, now at risk of being deep-sixed
A 90-foot wooden sailboat that has trained aspiring Tacoma mariners on Puget Sound for more than four decades is in peril of being retired if money can’t be raised to install a new mast, a nonprofit group said Monday.
The Odyssey is the signature vessel of a local unit of the youth sailing program Sea Scouts, which has operated in Tacoma since 1923. The ship came to the group in 1978. After the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered the Odyssey’s charter season and the ship’s original mast was retired, a nonprofit was founded in December to keep the ship — and its sailing program — afloat.
“The problem is, we’re a youth group that teaches sailing to kids, and we can’t teach them sailing because, essentially, Odyssey is not a sailboat right now — it’s motoring around Puget Sound,” spokesperson Emily Molina said.
The nonprofit, Friends of Odyssey, said Monday it needs $80,000 to pay for dry dock where a new mast would be installed. According to a news release, the group needs a total of $300,000, but some funds have already been secured and a donor has pledged $160,000 if the rest of the money is raised.
People interested in contributing can donate through the nonprofit’s website or on GoFundMe.
“The catch is that the pledge is time contingent upon us raising the $80,000 by Friday August 19,” Shana Curd, president of the nonprofit and a former skipper, wrote in a statement.
The tight deadline has to do with the sale of a company tied to the donor, Molina said. She couldn’t go into further detail because the donor wished to remain private. If the money isn’t found, Molina said, the nonprofit would consider retiring the boat and begin fundraising for a new vessel to keep the sailing program alive.
“We’re just hoping for a miracle,” Molina said.
Built in the now-closed Nevins Shipyard in the Bronx by Sparkman & Stephens in 1938, the Odyssey was commandeered by the U.S. Navy during World War II and renamed the USS Saluda, according to Friends of Odyssey. Now, the ship sits mastless in the Foss Waterway.
Its sailing program teaches people ages 14 to 21 and is operated under Pacific Harbors Council through Boy Scouts of America. Friends of Odyssey said sailors are taught leadership, responsibility and life skills through tall ship sailing throughout the Puget Sound region. Molina said the kids are still learning, but half the crew in Sea Scout Ship 190 has never sailed on Odyssey.
“It would be a real loss to Tacoma and the Puget Sound sailing community if this amazing vessel can’t be saved,” Curd said.
This story was originally published August 16, 2022 at 12:13 PM.
