Article by Australian Sailing.
For Emily Vivian there is nothing better than being out on the water. The Humpybong Yacht Club (HBYC) dinghy instructor has dedicated the last three years to pursuing a career that allows her to do just that – be on the water.
As an instructor, Emily has been able to not only live out her own sailing passion, but develop and implement educational programs that grow the sport as a passion of others.
Being one of the leading dinghy instructors at HBYC, Emily has been instrumental in the rollout, delivery and growth of the Discover Sailing programs at HYBC.
Emily’s dedication to expanding class offerings has seen HYBC become one of Queensland’s leading Discover Sailing Centres.
In pursuing her belief that sailing is truly a sport for all, Emily employed the help of ASL translators to engage deaf female students to get involved with the Humpybong Women and Girls Regatta.
Emilly facilitated these programs and initiatives all while mentoring five assistant instructors.
It is for these incredible efforts and devotion that Emily was named the 2024 Instructor of the Year at the Australian Sailing Awards in November.
Speaking at the awards night in Sydney, Emily was honoured to receive such an acknowledgement.
“It means a lot to receive this award,” said Emily. “It is a recognition of all my hard work and all the effort my team has put into developing me as an instructor over the last few years.”
Emily said that the greatest award though, is being able to do a job that she truly loves.
“I love teaching and I love working with heaps of different people – from kids, to adults, to people who need more assistance,” said Emily.
“To get the opportunity to do just that and someone wants to pay me to do it – that is very cool.”
Emily encourages anyone who may be thinking about obtaining their instructor qualifications to take the leap and go for it.
“People will be there to help you; the sailing community is super welcoming and heaps of people will answer your questions,” she said. “So I think give it a try and you will fall in love with it”.
For more information about becoming a sailing instructor, click here.
