The Club has lost its longest-standing member, with the passing of Life Member Don Baxter last Thursday, January 16, 2025. Don now joins his beloved Alicia, who died on March 31, 2024. Don was a founding member of our club, one of the original 52 debenture holders who financed the beginning of the Sailing Club. Their membership indicates 1973 as the year that they joined, becoming membership number R-0008. They have been there since the very beginning, and Don’s daughter says that Don still had film footage of the first nails being hammered and bringing all the materials to the island to build the docks. Don has always kept us supplied with photos from those days and has been a repository of historical information about the Club and its history. He gifted to the Club the Jack Langdon Trophy, as well as our framed list of founding members, and he recently refurbished the Steve Thomas Memorial Bench on the Club property. He and Alicia were the originators of the Jack and Jill Race, which used to be run annually for a trophy which Alicia donated. You can refer to the Club History page here to see some of the photos from building the first docks ‘way back then (the page is a bit clumsy and old, but you can click on the numbers in the story to see the photos): https://www.saltspringsailing.ca/History/float_building.html
Don Baxter was a lovely, gentle man, a skilled Master Mariner who cared deeply about the coast and about our Club and its history. Don and Alicia were highlighted in a 2019 article by Sue Dumont, written as part of our Founders Series, accessible at this link: https://www.saltspringsailing.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/captain-don-baxter-mm- profile-2019.pdf.
In his honour, the flag at the Club is being flown at half mast. We send our deep sympathy and condolences to his family and friends.