Coast Guard teaches boating safety at Nathan Benderson Park

When enrolling in summer camp, most kids are looking for fun and adventure, not especially lessons in safety. 

However, from July 24-28, Nathan Benderson Park campers received a taste of all three. The park partnered with the Spirit of America Foundation to host a weeklong Spirit of America Camp for kids ages 10 to 14. 

The boating safety program was called “No Child Left on the Dock” and is partially funded through a grant from the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund administered by the U. S. Coast Guard Office of Auxiliary and Boating Safety. 

Campers learn in a classroom and on the water how to safely sail, paddle and powerboat. 

On July 26, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Auxiliary held a demonstration for campers with a rescue helicopter and a response boat. 

Campers met active duty members MK1 Brittany Roscioli and BM3 Alaina Stonestreet, who both serve at the Cortez station. Stonestreet captains the 29-foot response boat, while Roscioli maintains and fixes it as needed. The pair man a 45-foot boat as well.  

“I’m an engineer, so I work on the engines and anything fuel related, and on our bigger boats, hydraulics,” Roscioli said. 

Campers learned about the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, too, a volunteer organization that does not require Coast Guard experience. 

Division Staff Officer Jonathon Laronge said many members do have military backgrounds, but as long as volunteers are willing to learn, they’re all welcome. They will, however, be held to the same high standards as the ex-military members. 

“People don't know what the auxiliary is. That’s part of the issue that we’re facing,” Flotilla 84 Commander Walter Finkelstein said. “The auxiliary is here to save your life. We put on classes to help people learn how to properly operate their boats. It’s boating classes, navigation, meteorology, all of that is being taught at our flotillas.”