In her third year aboard Unicorn executing Sisters Under Sail programming, Rachel's leadership style gains the respect and admiration of her fellow crew members and trainees. She is a strong voice while at command, effective communicator, leads by example and a good natured lass who is eager to learn and equally as wholehearted when it comes to teaching. She has worked a variety of vessels in her seven years on the water- from 8 ft. to 180 ft., motor and sail, monohulls and cats, and a range of positions from ordinary seaman to captain. Rachel feels she has found her passion and home on tall ships.
Read more about Captain Rachel!
Dawn Santamaria
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Dawn loves to finally get out of the Sisters Under Sail office and back aboard Unicorn each summer as lead facilitator. |
Emily Gustavsen
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This is Emily's first season with Sisters Under Sail & Unicorn, and she is very excited to be a part of this great group of women. She brings experience from many different vessels, excitement to learn new things and challenge herself, and a love of sharing the knowledge she has with others. Emily grew up in southern New Jersey sailing with her family. She spent her first overnight on her dad's schooner – hard ground in the Delaware Bay – when she was 6 months old. College and subsequent jobs took Emily away from the water, until one summer while on vacation from her teaching job, Emily signed up to do a 3-week 'trainee' program on the US Brig Niagara. She ended up staying for three months and hasn't stopped sailing on Tall Ships in the four years since. The realization that she could both teach and sail seemed like a dream job, and it still is.
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Nissa Fowler  |
Sailing took Nissa from her hometown of South Sutton in the woods of New Hampshire in 2002 when she began volunteering in Europe aboard the traditionally-rigged German brig, Roald Amundsen Since then, she has sailed aboard a variety of vessels ranging from freighters to small sailing yachts. Developing her skills as a sailor has been a great adventure for her, and Nissa is always happiest while on a boat - any boat will do! While not at sea, she prefers to spend her time traveling, backpacking and experiencing the world at slow speeds.
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Megan Elizabeth Blough  |
Doesn't understand how anyone couldn't love the mystical and beautiful draw of the water! She is as playful as a puppy, but attributes the qualities of a barn cat as more her style: relaxed but ready to pounce. You can always find her aloft or in the headrig, with a cup of coffee in one hand and a can of deck oil in the other. Just don't confuse the two. She wakes up every morning (with the respectable exception of Mondays) more in love with life and the people that fill the world. She has committed her life to local and global community transformation and to the growth of herself and others! However she still finds the most important question in life as: What's your favorite food? In which she will always respond: Homemade Mac and Cheese!
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Skye Maitland  |
Since her last season aboard with Sisters Under Sail & Unicorn in 2007, Skye ventured off to the Pacific coast where she worked as an apprentice to a boat builder in Vancouver, British Columbia. During her last months out west, she also had the priviledge of working on a privately owned vessel cruising and exploring the beautiful pacific islands. She has been sailing since she was 12 years old and though she has sailed on the East and West coast's of Canada, the US and in Europe, she is very excited to get back to the waters she knows best: the Great Lakes! She is presently studying in Montreal, Quebec where she says that the ocean's breeze is only a faint whisper and she cannot wait to return to it's powerful embrace! She enjoys crafting, reading books twice, swimming like a fish and writing letters to loved ones.
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Taber Colletti
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I grew up in Hamilton, NY, a small town, land-locked save a 3-mile lake on which I grew up sailing Sun Fish and Lasers. I realized my truest passion for sailing, though, at the age of 13 when I embarked on my first tall ship adventure (on a boat-full of Canadians!). Since that summer, I have been spending every minute possible under sail: tall ships in the summer, and dinghies in the fall and spring for my university’s sailing team. To me, there is no better place than the decks (and aloft!) of a tall ship, and I hope to lend my love of sailing to everyone I encounter this summer aboard with Sisters Under Sail and Unicorn. In the mean time, I will be working towards a degree in the Fine Arts and Art History at Cornell University.
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Hannah Higgins
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Hannah is from the landlocked farming community of Pullman, WA and started sailing on tall ships in 2006. She has worked in the food service industry for eight years and has served as a deckhand and cook on several West Coast boats. She is looking forward to exploring New England and the Great Lakes this season. Hannah's favorite things about tall ships are getting to know her fellow crew members and the physical challenge of sailing a traditionally-rigged vessel. Nothing makes her happier than setting sail in a fresh breeze and feeling the boat heel. When she's not sailing, Hannah enjoys tying fancy knots, road trips, IMAX movies, and trying out new recipes. Her favorite meals to cook are pad thai, eggs Benedict, and beef tenderloin.
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Sami Santamaria
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As the youngest daughter of Dawn and Jay Santamaria, Sami Santamaria has been sailing Unicorn her entire life! She knows her way around the boat very well and is a welcomed breath of fresh air for crew and trainees. Much to her father’s joy, she loves the engine room and the galley. She is the best t-shirt seller in the tall ship fleet. You have been warned! |
