John and Nicki in white crew necks
|
Captain Jon Brown and Chef Nicki Donaldson
Jon's love of sailing started with his first sailboat at nine years old, exploring the banks of Long Island, New York. His family's move to Maine when he was twelve only furthered his interest in the water, and upon high school graduation he joined Maine Maritime Academy where he got his degree in Yacht Management. After two summers of working at Hinkley Yachts, and two years at Portland Yachts of maine, he bought a yacht and in 1990 set sail for warmer climates. Arriving at Key West in Florida he quickly found work crewing on a 60' ex-transatlantic racing catamaran, the "Fury". Eight months of crewing in the daytime and studying at night found him getting his USCG Captain's license, and at the age of 22 he became the skipper of the "Fury". During his third year in Key West he met his future wife, Nicki, and shortly after,they set sail for the Caribbean. Upon reaching St. Martin, they found work running the yacht "johanna", a Swan 57', on which they spent five years taking guests on two week holidays up and down the island chain. From Venezuela to Cuba they sailed in an out of anchorages that soon became like their back garden. In 2000 they decided to take a break from life afloat and settled in Grenada where together they opened a yacht rigging business. Although jon gained an excellent reputation as a competent and conscientious rigger, he missed the life of sailing and therefore closed the business after three years, and happily accepted the offer of skippering "Mawali". Jon is clearly a keen sailor, and also enjoys diving and all watersports. Growing up in Maine with his father in the lobster business, Jon is a skilled fisherman and can prepare mouth-watering sashimi and bakes the most delicious lobster you'll ever have the pleasure to eat!
Nicki was born in the UK but moved to North Carolina, USA when she was 15. After graduating University with a BA in English she moved to Spain for two years before returning to England after a nine-year absense. Within the year she grabbed her backpack and took a flight to the warmer climate of Key West, Florida. Here she was the first introduced to the life of sailing at the age of 24, where she met Jon. Sailing aboard the "fury" for 18 months was enough to realise she wanted more of this life-style, and when Jon proposed sailing to the Caribbean aboard his yacht, she leapt at the chance. Upon the offer of work as chef on the yacht "johanna" Nicki happily spent the next five years sailing the Eastern Caribbean, introducing the guests to the flavours of the islands. With Captain Jon hauling in spoils of the ocean, Nicki will prepare delights from the gallery to tempt your taste-buds! Sunset traditionally brings a variety of 'sun-downers' as you relax in the cockpit. With a gregarious personality and a genuine enjoyment of meeting new people, she loves life afloat and sharing the experience of the Caribbean.
|
