Becoming a companion sailor through the Challenged Sailor Organization means so much to Neil Senturia, an entrepreneur who shares the gratitude and lessons learned from volunteering:

I started racing sailboats in college in Boston. After stints in New York (not much water on the lower East Side at NYU) and then Los Angeles (could not afford the Marina Del Rey program), I finally got to San Diego and began again in 1987.

I have owned more boats than cars, and I have been blessed with great partners who can really sail (one raced in the America’s Cup a few times).

When my friends say they like to sail, what they mean is they like to leave the dock for an hour, drink for an hour and then return in an hour. A quiet cruise with conversation and calm.

Racing on the other hand soothes my inner insanity and need to compete and can often involve periodic interludes of loud conversation without a lot of calm.

But people can evolve. And that brings me to my latest epiphany.

I have become the “companion sailor” in a two-person sailboat (a Martin 16), specifically designed for adaptive sailing, where the person at the helm, the one driving the boat, is a challenged sailor, someone with a “disability.” Welcome to the Challenged Sailor Organization (CS).

“Through the nonprofit CS sailing program, many participants who have lost control over multiple aspects of their lives are able to rebuild their self-confidence through the organization’s sailing activities.”

Yes. Indeed.

The CS program was started by Mike and Sylvia Bate-Swall more than 10 years ago. Long before that, they had taken a blind friend sailing on their 39-foot sloop, Kiwi. She loved it and asked Sylvia to be her “eyes” while she sailed. Sylvia could not say no (apparently, she rarely says no to anything), and the rest is history.

So first I needed to be trained. Meet Jane Dunn. Rigorous, detailed and charming. Her training is not about tacking or gybing. It is about how to care for your customer, your boat partner, the sailor in front, at the helm. Safety and security and responsibility for another person who has some kind of limitation.

Most importantly, bring the joy. She told me about taking a wheelchair sailor out into the bay for the first time. The woman asked, “Where can I sail?” Dunn’s answer, “Anywhere you want.”

After proving I could leave the dock without hitting the million-dollar yacht across the way, I got my first partner. Eric Brand. Brand has had multiple sclerosis for more than 20 years. He needs a wheelchair to get down the ramp. He needs some assistance to get into the boat. After that, stand back.

Brand is a fabulous sailor. And since I was not the one steering, we had time for some conversation. The only thing missing from this cruise was the wine cooler.

Brand was a public defender in Los Angeles for many years, had a wife and children. You know, normal stuff. Then MS. But as the day wore on a bit, we talked about the hard things, the stuff that comes with being challenged and I almost flipped out of the boat when he said “I learned to accept.”

From another participant, Teresa, “I don’t feel disabled when I sail.”

How’s that grab you. Simple, powerful, human.

Look, I know there are lots of organizations that support the many worthy causes that try to improve other lives, to provide opportunities that add value to individuals as they meet the daily challenges. There is no shortage of organizations needing volunteers.

But as if often the case, the volunteer gets more out of the experience than the recipient. I was overwhelmed with feelings of gratitude for what I had – and then a reinforced commitment to do more for others.

It was a simple day on the water. A couple of hours cruising around (we did do a bit of racing another boat), and then the finality of it all. He docked the boat. I helped Brand get into his wheelchair, I pushed him up the ramp, we had a Gatorade together – and then I got in my car and went home.

There is no algorithm for counting your blessings. Just do it, out loud. Rule No. 812: Ahoy, matey!

For more information, visit www.challengedsailors.org.