My Watermark is Buck Lake, Ontario.

Growing up in Kingston, Ontario, I had many opportunities to explore the waterways of Lake Ontario, and the Thousand Islands. My parents taught my sisters and I how to swim at a very young age, and our summers were spent swimming, sailing, waterskiing, boating, and canoeing.

One of my fondest water memories was the first time I went sailing on Lake Ontario. It was on my uncle's Hobie 18 catamaran and I was probably around 10 at the time. He took my two cousins and I out after dinner one warm, windy summer evening. There were whitecaps, so more than enough breeze for a first-timer. What struck me most about this experience was the absence of any motor or buzzing engine, and how fast we were moving. I was hooked.

I went on to enrol in sailing school at KYC, and ended up teaching sailing. I try to get on the water when I can through sailing and windsurfing, and I think sailing has an opportunity to promote itself as a greener alternative to gas-powered boating. The challenge of course is making the sport accessible, inclusive, and affordable.