Pam Ray Feature Article Spin Sheet February 2016 by Beth Crabtree
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Pam Ray is an entrepreneur and advocate for STEM education and the marine community. She serves as the chair of the Eastport Yacht Club Foundation, where she leads efforts to address economic challenges through programs focused on STEM, youth sailing scholarships, and the maritime industry. Pam grew up boating in upstate New York and now sails out of Annapolis with her husband aboard their boat Dream Builder, which they use to host STEM students and participate in charity events. In her professional work, Pam specializes in government relations and advocates for the importance of STEM skills in marine trades and preparing youth for future careers.
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Pam Ray Feature Article Spin Sheet February 2016 by Beth Crabtree
- 1. 34 February 2016 spinsheet.com Bay People M eet Pam Ray, an innovative entrepreneur with a passion for Bay-based recreation and a heart for community service. Pam brings energy and enthusiasm to her work life, volunteer commitments, and her boating and sail- ing pursuits. Shes combined all of those interests through her work as chair of the Eastport Yacht Club Foundation (EYCF). A native of upstate New York, Pam grew up powerboating, waterskiing, and fishing on the Finger Lakes. I come from a boating family, she says. Ive been a boat user or owner since I was very young. I recall the unpleasant task of sanding and painting our small cabin cruiser as a child, but more vividly I recall the joy of being on the lake and jumping off the boat to swim and play. Pam is currently serving in her second term as EYCF chair and is a two-time past chair of the Marine and Maritime Career Fair. As chair, shes led a team of action-oriented board members and volunteers working to implement local programs that address economic chal- lenges, focusing on Science, Technol- ogy, Engineering and Math (STEM) education, youth sailing scholarships, the maritime trades, and the marine industry. My work as an advocate for the marine and maritime community started with my volunteer work for the EYCF, Pam explains. After graduating from Syracuse Uni- versity Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Pam relocated to the D.C. area and began a successful 30- year career on Capitol Hill. President of her own company since 1996, Pam specializes in federal, state, and local government relations, congressional advocacy, and STEM education and job markets. In 2011 the connection between STEM and sailing came in her profes- sional work as a government relations columnist writing on the changing economy and job markets. Pam focused on the need for local collaboration in preparing students for the future workforce. She came across an article in SpinSheet about a program in An- napolis that taught STEM through sailing and was inspired professionally and personally by the hands-on learning intended to prepare our youth for the future. The next year she volunteered for the Annapolis-based Marine and Mari- time Career Fair, that partners with EYCF, Anne Arundel County Public Schools, and the National Sailing Hall of Fame. I witnessed first-hand how local schools, nonprofits, and busi- nesses could work together to fill a criti- cal need in the marine and maritime fields, she remembers. Introducing students and parents to marine and maritime career paths in our own region also raises awareness that our kids can live and work in the communities, regions, and states where theyve grown up. At the same time, I was learning how STEM education and skills were becoming relevant beyond the profes- sions that require advanced college degrees like engineering or marine biology, Pam continues. The marine trades, as with most trades, require technical and skills training that incorporate technology, math, or sci- ence, broadening the need for STEM focused learning and experiences for all students. Later in 2012, Pam joined Pam Ray ## Pam married Dick McSeveney aboard their Catalina 350 Dream Builder. ## Pam and STEM students aboard Dream Builder August 2015
- 2. spinsheet.com February 2016 35Follow us! START MAKING MEMORIES... START SAILING. 804-776-9211 | 97 Marina Dr. Deltaville, VA | school@nortonyachts.com 410-280-8692 www.ChesapeakeBoatingClub.com Two Awesome Locations! Annapolis & Baltimore Go BoatinG Without oWninG! take away the Expense and hassle and Just Get on the Water! ## Pam and her husband Dick with Team Charlotte aboard Dream Builder in the 2015 Leukemia Cup. For more information on this months Marine and Maritime Career Fair, turn to page 17. the board of directors for EYCF. Just two years later she chaired the Marine and Maritime Career Fair and was also elected chair of the EYCF Board of Directors. When shes not volunteering at EYCF or on the water, Pam gives back to her community in other ways. When my kids were younger, I en- gaged in a number of Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) programs, Pam recalls. They included sailing the Skip- jack, fishing on the Bay, and participat- ing in Grasses for the Masses where we set up a plastic pond in our living room and grew plants that we planted in Bay waters in the spring (what a mess that was!). About four years ago I was inspired to start a Meadow Garden knowing that our water drains into the Bay. Its all native plants eliminat- ing the need for pesticides, excessive watering, and the expense of buying annuals, and I share the abundant new growth each season with friends in both Arlington and Annapolis. Pam and her husband Dick McSev- eney, residents of Northern Virginia, sail out of Annapolis aboard their Catalina 350, Dream Builder, which they often use for entertaining friends and family, hosting STEM students, or participating in charity regattas. The couple also owns three kayaks, and Pam feels fortunate to often sail on other peoples J/70s and J/80s. Trips to visit family in Florida and summer vis- its to the Finger Lakes regularly bring opportunities for powerboating. In 2015 Pam facilitated, with the support of the EYC executive board, the first Boston-based Sailing Heals program in Annapolis. Through the generous donations of volunteer cap- tains and boat owners, Sailing Heals provides cancer patients and their caregivers with on-the-water experi- ences. Pam and Dick are also active with their local food bank and rang a bell on Main Street in Annapolis for the Salvation Army the last holiday season. #