Our last social outing for 2022 was Sailability Manly. Participants and staff met at Headway ADP in the morning before jumping on a hired bus from Activus to make the hour and a half trip to Manly. Nervously excited, the Participants were fitted with a life jacket and put on some sunscreen, especially Doug, who put enough sunscreen on himself that made all present sun safe. As we were the last group for the day, we were able to spend more time Sailing from Manly Yacht Club, around Manly Cove and North Harbour. Participants were anxious about the boat and the waves but the volunteers eased their concerns. They assisted everyone in and out of the boats, some using a manual sling hoist that transported participants from chair to boat easily. The sailabiity people were consumate professionals. After participants had their turn sailing, we all enjoyed a walk around Manly beach to find a nice place to sit down and have lunch while a couple of staff and participants went for a walk to the local café for a coffee. Lee and Sharon were the bravest ones to dip their feet in the cold water. Feedback from the day: all participants thoroughly enjoyed the experience and all said they would love to attend this outing again. Peter would also love to become a volunteer with them in the future. Ron, who did not end up sailing on the day, really enjoyed the day out, spending time with his fellow participants and enjoying the scenery. There were plenty of smiles and thumbs up from participants. Mark has never done something like this and said the experience was “absolutely awesome”.
Article by Jessie Grippaudo – Operations Support Officer.