High spirits on the high seas for adventurous students
'Some of them have never been on a boat before. They've only seen pictures of them,' said primary department leader Denise Jenkins.
'It's a really special way … to expose them to something different.'
This isn't just any yacht, it's a 14-metre Farr modified for people with disabilities, and can fit up to four wheelchairs, thanks to the Making Waves Foundation.
For some of the seven students from Officer Specialist School, which teaches students with mild to severe intellectual and associated disabilities, this would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The Making Waves Foundation was launched by David Pescud in 1994 after he led the first crew of people with disabilities to complete the Sydney to Hobart race.
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From there, the foundation aimed to make sailing accessible to people with disabilities or experiencing disadvantage and now operates in three states – Victoria, NSW and Queensland. In 2003, a crew of sailors with disabilities set the record for the fastest monohull circumnavigation of Australia.
In the 2024-25 financial year, more than 800 students from 18 school groups across Melbourne, including Melton Specialist School and Southern Autistic School, were given a taste of sailing.
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