Cody Englander
Staff Writer
Patrick Kelly may be one of the youngest sailing directors the Chautauqua Institution has seen, but he is hardly a new face at Chautauqua.
He’s had a lifelong passion for sailing ever since taking classes here as a child. This passion would drive him to two New York State High School Sailing Championships, and during this time, he began working at Chautauqua Institution. Outside of spending one year at the Lakewood Yacht club as an instructor, his summers were spent on Chautauqua Lake with his family.
After working six years as a sailing instructor for Chautauqua Institution, Kelly assumed the role of director — a role held by his father, Kirk, from 2016 to 2021.
The John R. Turney Sailing Center is heading into its 20th year of operations. When asked about changes and breathing new life into this role, the 23-year-old said, “I’m hiring a few international sailing instructors this year,” citing his experience attending University of Dublin and meeting sailing instructors while abroad.
Kelly looks to establish a consistency during his time in the director’s chair. Creating a formula to how the center runs is one of his main goals heading into the season. Kelly worked under two previous directors and sailed under another, each having their different ways of running the program. He looks to streamline the directorial process, making it easier for instructors to return to a similar program on a summer-to-summer basis.
Kelly notes teaching classes as one of the best parts of the job, hoping to give back to the John R. Turney Sailing Center. While most of his staff came in the week before opening, they’ve been “cruising at light speed” to prepare for the 2025 Summer Assembly.
