Congratulations to the 2019 honoree, Pat Dieselman
BoatUS/NWSA Leadership in Women’s Sailing Award
The National Women’s Sailing Association (NWSA) honored Pat Dieselman of Ipswich, Massachusetts, with the 2019 BoatUS/NWSA Leadership in Women’s Sailing Award. The honor recognizes an individual with a record of achievement in inspiring, educating, and enriching the lives of women through sailing. The award was presented by NWSA President Debbie Huntsman at the 18th Women’s Sailing Conference.
“Pat Dieselman exemplifies leadership in sailing, serving as a mentor, teacher and role model, working to get more women sailing and sailing their own vessels,” said Huntsman who presented the award at the 18th Women’s Sailing Conference. “Through her own experiences as an adult woman entering the sport, she saw learning to sail had challenges. Acting on that recognition, Pat has worked to encourage and educate women in the art of sailing.”
At the Women’s Sailing Conference, Dieselman has been a workshop leader as well as a member of the Conference committee. She is also CYC’s Race Committee co-chair and past chair of the club’s Sailing Committee. She was the first female chair of the Blue Water Sailing Club’s race committee and past commodore. Additionally, she’s co-chair of the AdventureSail event for young girls at risk held at Courageous Sailing Center in Charlestown.
Dieselman did not grow up in a sailing family. Dieselman’s husband introduced her, first on a J-29, then on a cruising boat, on which they explored New England. Bareboat charter trips with the Blue Water Sailing Club to Turkey, Croatia, Greece, France and the British Virgin Islands followed. When Dieselman recognized that most of the women in the club had never taken their boats out without their husbands, she initiated weeklong cruises for just the women, empowering them to take the helm. Twenty-three years later, those cruises are still going strong. “When the cruise is over, I always enjoy hearing women say, ‘I guess I know more than I thought’,” said Dieselman.