2003 marks a milestone for the Willows Yacht Club. This year the Willows Yacht Club celebrates their 30th anniversary. A special celebration has been planned for the Sail-By and picnic which is scheduled for June 14. A commemorative club burgee (swallow-tailed flag) has been designed and manufactured. The Reverend Krista Cameron, the pastor of St. George's Episcopal Church and the Chaplain of the Willows Yacht Club, will also bless the fleet during this celebration. All past commodores will be invited to attend as special guests of the current flag officers.

The Willows yacht Club is located in the Braddock Bay Marina in the town of Greece. Over the years the members have converted an old storage facility into their current Yacht Club building, helped mark and maintain the channel between Braddock Bay and Lake Ontario, and promotes safe boating through education. An office has been provided for the Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 4-5 within the Yacht Club building. Several members of the flotilla are also active Yacht Club members. The Willows Yacht Club has about 70 memberships which includes some 'charter' members still active in the club. Most memberships today are from power cruiser owners as Braddock Bay has become shallower since a hurricane in the early 1990s destroyed the barrier islands protecting Braddock Bay.

The Willows Yacht Club members like to describe their club as a 'traveling' club. Members routinely depart for other harbors for weekend get-aways during the summer months. It is not uncommon to see the Willows Yacht Club burgee displayed on boats in Toronto, Kingston, the Thousand Islands, Sodus Bay, St. Catherine's and Wilson harbors. The Willows Yacht Club maintains reciprocal agreements with many other Yacht Clubs both in the U.S. and Canada.

On Monday, May 26, the Willows Yacht Club and the Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 4-5 will hold a Memorial Day Ceremony which is open to the public. The Willows Yacht Club will provide refreshments at the conclusion of the ceremony.

The high point of this year's Yacht Club events will be the 15th annual trip to Cobourg Canada's Heritage Harbor, scheduled July 17 to 20. In past years, the Willows Yacht Club has had up to 37 boats making the 50 mile Lake Ontario crossing.

Other activities this year include a Poker Run in August, a barbecue in September and the dinner-dance in November. Additional information can be found at the Willows Yacht Club web site, http://braddockbay.com/Willows.htm.