Board Candidate Statements for 2025 Election

Published 2:41pm on 4 Oct 2025

OWSA Members will vote for Vice-Commodore, Education Director and Operations Director. There is only one candidate for each position.

Office: Vice-Commodore

Leticia Christopherson

I am applying for the OWSA Vice Commodore position because I believe in this organization and want to be part in making it better.

I joined OWSA January 2023 not knowing anything about sailing. Like many of you, once I started sailing I was hooked. OWSA has allowed my passion to grow faster than I thought it was possible. My confidence and leadership skills have grown exponentially these past few years. 

From making amazing friendships, helping as a guppy and tech coordinator, to becoming a skipper on Salud and Calypte, plus receiving my ASA 103 104 in Greece by another OWSA member recently, I know I am ready for the next challenge.

I am excited to apply for the Vice Commodore position because I am proud of this organization. I have learned and accomplished a lot in my 3 years. My hope is to have others join this organization and find the same joy it brings me.

Office: Education Director

Lily Raabe

I am applying for the Education Director role because OWSA has already transformed my life. Before June 2024, I had never sailed and assumed the sport was inaccessible. Through OWSA I have found not only the skills to join a racing team and cruise the Windward Islands, but also the confidence to recently purchase my own boat. Most importantly, I have discovered a community of friends and mentors who genuinely support one another on and off the water. I want to give back by contributing my professional experience in nonprofit program and curriculum design - creating learning pathways and networks that can directly strengthen OWSAs educational programs. I am also passionate about women's leadership and social equity - I believe OWSA can play a powerful role in welcoming diverse voices into sailing. Serving as Education Director will allow me to give back to this community, deepen my own sailing journey, and help create opportunities for others to thrive on the water.

Office: Operations Director

Kathy Clevenger

Thank you for the opportunity to be considered for re-election as Operations Director. Ive had the pleasure of serving in this role for the 2024-2025 term and previously as Tech Coordinator from 2022 to 2023. This year, I also co-coordinated the BOAST program.

The Operations team is responsible for managing our core systems, including Google Workspace, Sailing Club Manager, and QuickBooks, as well as overseeing the website, newsletter, email communications, and social media. While my professional background is in engineering rather than software, I truly enjoy learning new tools and solving problems as they arise.

Although Operations supports the entire OWSA community, I believe our most important role is enabling our more than 20 volunteers to deliver high-quality programs and services. As an all-volunteer organization, we succeed by helping each other through training, troubleshooting, and clear communication.

I have also focused on strengthening organizational continuity and preserving institutional knowledge. When I first joined the board, I noticed a gap in our documented history. Since then, I have worked to create and update procedures and policies to support future leaders and maintain consistency from year to year.

My primary sailing experience began in 2019, when I completed ASA 101 and 103 courses. Since then, Ive been a member of Island Sailing Club and participated in OWSAs BOAST program. Ive also had the opportunity to sail internationally on two cruises, in the British Virgin Islands and Sardinia.

I would be honored to continue supporting OWSA and its mission in this role.