Emergency Relief Needed

SFS is not administering immediate earthquake relief. If you would like to lend support to an effective, reputable organization that is on the ground in Haiti today please visit the following websites and consider making a monetary donation:

Monies donated to SFS will be used to pursue our mission of supporting subsistence fishermen through long-term relief programs to empower Haitians to become self-sufficient. To make a donation to SFS, please use the 'donate' link below.

Contribute

We gladly accept contributions of sails, scrap sail material, repair kits (needles, thread, etc.), and monetary donations.

To make a monetary donation please use the button below:

Contributions, both in-kind and monetary, are tax-deductible.

We will usually pick-up sail donations in the South Florida area. If located outside the South Florida area, please contact us for shipping instructions or to see if there is a volunteer sail collector in your area.

Contact us by e-mail (sailsforsustenance at gmail.com) if you would like to make a donation. Please include the following information, when applicable:

Name, address, phone number, yacht club affiliation, and type of donation. If you are donating sails, please indicate what size boat they originate from, and what type of sail (main, jib, etc.)

Our Mission…

SFS is dedicated to recycling sails donated in the U.S. by providing them to subsistence fishermen of Haiti. SFS partners with trusted community organizations in each village to ensure reliable, equitable sail distribution.

Our History

In 2006 Michael Carcaise and Michael Laas were university students preparing to embark on a trip to Haiti to gather data for an engineering project when they conceived of an organization to mobilize the U.S. sailing community to support subsistence fishermen of Haiti.

The first load of 14 sails was sent to the remote village of Abricots and consisted of, among others, Laser II, Sonar, and Hobie catamaran sails.

Since that time, SFS has sent more than 100 sails to the villages of Abricots, Grand Sable, Testas, Bon Bon, and Dame Marie. Read more about these villages and our partners here. The donated sails require far less maintenance than those they replace, and allow fishermen to more easily reach speeds critical to trawling for certain fish species.

The Team

Michael Carcaise

Co-Founder

A former officer of the University of Miami Sailing Team, Michael lives and works in Coral Gables as a risk manager for two medical malpractice insurance companies. After his college career, Michael crewed in the BBYRA series on Tom Seghi’s Henderson 30 and Melges 24. Follow Michael on Twitter and Facebook

Michael Laas

Co-Founder

Grew up in Japan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Puerto Rico and the United States. Graduated from the University of Miami (UM) with an MS in Civil / Environmental Engineering, now works at one of Miami’s top civil engineering firms. Michael began sailing at UM, and was president of the University of Miami’s sailing club, he has continued sailing through the BBYRA racing circuit in Miami.

James Remeika

Field Director

Currently a student and Co-Captain of the Sailing Team at the University of Miami. In his role with SFS, James draws upon his experience in political campaign field operations. James currently sails FJs and 420s around the Southeast US, and tries to crew on bigger boats in Miami as much as possible on the weekends.

Brad Maier

Technical Director

Having graduated from the University of Miami in 2006, Brad is an entrepreneur and Internet consultant based in Chicago. Brad, a former collegiate track athlete, sailed for the University of Miami from 2004 to 2006.