[Congressional Bills 117th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. Res. 793 Agreed to Senate (ATS)] <DOC> 117th CONGRESS 2d Session S. RES. 793 Commending Tall Ships America for advancing character-building experiences at sea and representing the tall ships and sail training community of the United States in national and international forums. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 22, 2022 Mr. Reed (for himself and Mr. Whitehouse) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to _______________________________________________________________________ RESOLUTION Commending Tall Ships America for advancing character-building experiences at sea and representing the tall ships and sail training community of the United States in national and international forums. Whereas the American Sail Training Association (doing business as Tall Ships America), located in Rhode Island, is an educational non-profit corporation whose declared mission is ``to encourage character-building through sail training, promote sail training to the North American public, and support education under sail''; Whereas, since its founding in 1973, Tall Ships America has promoted and supported character-building experiences aboard traditional sail training vessels and supported a fleet of more than 120 tall ships and sail training vessels, including barques, barquentines, brigs, brigantines, schooners, sloops, and full-rigged ships, which fly the flag of the United States and bring life-changing adventures to thousands of young trainees each year; Whereas April 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of Tall Ships America, which-- (1) continues to ably represent the United States as a founding member of Sail Training International, the recognized international body for the promotion of sail training since the 1950s; and (2) as a member of the International Council of Sail Training International, actively promotes international fellowship of the sea through governance and events; Whereas Tall Ships America has established a program of scholarship and grant funding to support onboard experiences for young people and the professional training and development of sailing ship crew members; Whereas Tall Ships America promotes safe and ethical practices and supports the business efficiency of its member vessels and programs; Whereas Tall Ships America has entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Maritime Administration in support of maritime workforce development; Whereas Tall Ships America collaborates extensively with the Coast Guard with respect to-- (1) the regulation of sail training vessels; (2) Marine Events of National Significance, including the Tall Ships Challenge series; (3) the premier sail training vessel of the United States, namely the square-rigged Coast Guard Cutter Barque Eagle ; and (4) professional mariner training and development, including through participation in the Annual Conference on Sail Training and Tall Ships; Whereas Tall Ships America has a long history of arranging and supporting tall ship races, rallies, and maritime festivals dating as far back as 1976; Whereas, since 2001, Tall Ships America has organized 78 Tall Ships Challenge races and maritime festivals that have-- (1) involved sail training ships, trainees, and crews from around the world on all the coasts of the United States; (2) advanced the mission of Tall Ships America; (3) helped sustain the economic vitality of member vessels of Tall Ships America; and (4) attracted more than 26,000,000 visitors and $3,000,000,000 in economic impact to maritime communities; and Whereas Tall Ships America has hosted the Annual Conference on Sail Training and Tall Ships for 49 years in cities throughout the United States and Canada, including the Safety Under Sail Forum and the Education Under Sail Forum, to enhance professionalism, historical skills of seamanship, impactful approaches for education at sea, best-practices of organizational collaboration, and cutting-edge non-profit and business practices: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate-- (1) commends Tall Ships America for-- (A) advancing character-building experiences at sea and on inland waterways aboard traditional sail training vessels; (B) acting as the national sail training association of the United States; and (C) representing the tall ships and sail training community of the United States in national and international forums, including in Sail Training International; (2) commends Tall Ships America and its member vessels and programs for providing workforce training and development opportunities for the maritime industry in the finest traditions of the sea; and (3) encourages the people of the United States and the world to join in celebration of the first 50 years of the Adventure and Education Under Sail program of Tall Ships America, which provides character-building, educational, and work experiences for people of all nations. <all>