On a hazy summer’s morning I happened to see the topsail schooner Unicorn leave the gas dock at Liberty Landing marina on the Hudson River.   The Unicorn is a particularly lovely topsail schooner converted from a  North Sea fishing vessel.  As I admired the well balanced and robust lines of the Unicorn, I noticed that everyone aboard appeared to be female.  I didn’t know then that Dawn Santamaria, one of the owners of the Unicorn, had founded “Sisters Under Sail,”  a program to introduce girls to tall ship sailing.  Last Saturday, Dawn Santamaria, was honored with the 2011 Leadership In Women’s Sailing Award at the National Women’s Sailing Association Conference, in Marblehead, MA.  Congratulations to Ms. Santamaria.   See also our post from last August, “Sisters Under Sail” – Schooner Unicorn at Tall Ships Chicago .

Sisters Under Sail Founder, Dawn Santamaria, is awarded Leadership in Women’s Sailing Award by the National Women’s Sailing Association!