Youth ranchers take on sailing, success

SAFETY HARBOR - Three ranchers from the Florida Sheriff's Youth Ranch in Safety Harbor are taking on a sailing adventure.

Jordan, Ray, and Steven have a common goal: to compete against other ranchers in a race in October, and they say they want to win.

Broken homes and bad environment made some of the children to start life on the wrong foot. The ranchers have different stories with similar endings. They made poor choices, they say, but have worked hard to change their lives.

They have been working with volunteer sailing coaches from the Sailability Outreach program once a month since March, learning sailing basics in Clearwater Beach.

This is not a free boatride but an opportunity they earn with good behavior. For some of the ranchers, sailing became a hobby.

"I lose track of time when I have time. When I am in the water, I have fun," Jordan said, adding that programs like this help him stay out of trouble.  "Trouble is easy to get into but hard to get out."

Playing football helped him stay out of trouble for a while, and at the ranch, he is now training to get ready for a triathlon in Sand Key, and to sail.

"It was really fun. It was the first time when I got out in the water," he said. "I learned a lot, I want go back."

Jordan had never been out on a boat before March. Now he hopes to win the sailing race against other ranchers from Live Oak, Bartow, Bradenton, Inglis, and Barberville at the First Annual Regatta in October.

"He is out of mal-adapted environments," program director at the ranch, Scott Halbach said. "This place is not a place where bad kids go; we are an opportunity for them. Ultimately, our goal is to make these children successful."

And 16-year-old Ray is successful. R.J. has been living for two years at the ranch because of behavioral problems, but he earned the trust of Halbach. He is now the "big brother" for many ranchers.

He says he wanted to learn to sail, but he did not have a chance to do it until he came to the ranch.

"When the chance came, I was like, sweet," he said. "I like to be out in the water and sail the boats."

R.J. is now making positive choices: he works at the ranch, and is saving money for a car.

The center is not a magic wand but Halbach says the programs reduce juvenile delinquency. It's a place where ranchers have the opportunity to improve their academic skills, get counseling, and get out of abusive environments.

"It's all about choices and structure," Halbach said. "The key to our success is the structure we provide the children from the time they get out of bed."

Working with abused children in Jacksonville has been a life-changing experience for Halbach.

"I have been through college and majored in English and I thought I will be teaching," he said.

He was a youth assistant for more than four years, and for a year, he was a cottage parent. He says the program is successful, and he does not judge it by data, but by the number of children who keep in touch with him.

"The two boys, I am really proud of," he said. "They are excellent kids. I am glad they both are in this program."

The ranchers, 10 girls and 20 boys, are busy—they work, study, pray and play. Each child has a job: clean up the cottage, do laundry, gardening, and other tasks. "Cottage parents" like Laurie Eichar and Carl Eichar keep them out of trouble and make sure they follow the rules. The center provides organized recreation for the children, including a sailing program.

The Sailability program was another opportunity for the children—it sparked an interest in them in their environment that they had never experienced before.

"The program has been a success," vice president of Sailability Tom Calhoun said. "We want more children to experience it."

Most of the kids who participate in this program have never been out on the water. They are scared of the water at first, Calhoun says. But the outreach program organized by volunteer coaches at Sailability of Greater Tampa Bay is meant to empower individuals with mental, physical disabilities, and behavioral challenges.

"The kids have a good time," he said "But we like to think of ourselves as an empowerment program that just happens to sail. The children know what they can do now. They can sail a boat."

Calhoun says the program is more than training, it empowers participants, and it builds up their confidence.

>> For more information about Sailability of Greater Tampa Bay, click here.

>> For more information about Florida Sheriff's Youth Ranch in Safety Harbor, click here.