COVID-19 Update

Hello Everyone!

I hope this letter finds all of you, and your families, well. This year has been a challenging one for us all. It feels like years since we met in February to discuss our new plans for the club. Some of our groups had just started organizing into teams and starting specialized practices... and then things all went sideways.

All of the plans we had for 2020 are now pushed to 2021. No more 3 practices a week. No OC harbor tours. We had many people in Charleston working toward a trip to France to paddle in the 12th IDBF Club Crew World Championships in August, but that too has been cancelled.

Normally, this time of year, I would be on the water 5 or 6 days a week. But as of now, I’ve only been on the water once since February. (Yes, the rowing club is shut down, too!) I don’t even know what the tides are doing anymore…

And now, with Charleston County leading the state in new COVID cases and hospitalizations up, the CPC Board finds itself just hoping to be able to start practicing again in the fall.

Unfortunately, the events of this year have also caused difficulties for the Charleston Paddle Club. With the shutdown coming at the start of the season, we find that our membership numbers are down considerably. Understandable, since we are not on the water, but we do survive on membership dues. And, even when operations are shut down, we still have operating expenses.

I now find that I must ask something of all of you. Please consider helping the club meet our operating expenses for 2020. While we do have a small reserve balance, we hope to maintain this through 2021, if possible, to enable us to pay insurance and make early race fee payments (at the reduced rates) at the start of next year.

Though we aren’t paddling now, we do hope to be able to resume practices later this year. If you haven’t already, please consider paying your dues. If you aren’t able to pay in full, any payment amount you can make now would be a great help.

Another way you can help… Please donate to Charleston Paddle Club when making Amazon purchases. For every purchase made on Amazon Smile, Amazon will donate 0.5% of the purchase to the non-profit of your choice. Please choose the Charleston Paddle Club as your giving partner.

Any help that you are able to offer would be greatly appreciated.

We do hope to be back on the water later this year. And, it will be wonderful to get back together with my paddle family! Stay safe and stay sane!

Regards,

Jackie