The Gryska Family - A Sailing LegaSEA

By Catherine Purcell Gryska

Like the ebb and flow of the tides or the prevailing ocean currents, the Gryska family seems to return again and again to SEA. One might say it's in their blood. For the last thirty years, Gryskas of varying ages have been students, crew and ardent supporters of this very special program.

The first member of the Gryska family to sail with SEA was Von Gryska. In 1971, a 19-year-old Von picked up the inaugural issue of SAIL Magazine and was instantly captivated by a story entitled "Westward to the Galapagos." The article told of the sailing vessel Westward's voyage to the still largely wild islands. Westward was en route from San Diego to its new home in Woods Hole.

Von, a college student at the time, signed on for SEA's sixth voyage aboard Westward. W-6 sailed from Lisbon to Puerto Rico with port calls in the Canary Islands and Barbados.

"Back then," recalls Von, now a surgeon in the Boston area, "the organization did not offer academic credits. Its main focus was the task of training sailors and budding scientists. The R/V Westward was, in fact, a research vessel. We carried two scientists, one from NOAA, and one from the Museum of Natural History."

As it would be for several thousand students to follow, the SEA program was an inspiration to Von. His time on the Westward piqued his interest in science, and planted the seeds that would later grow into his career as a physician: "It focused me. I was changed by this experience. I came back from the program with a newly found energy for studying. It turned me on to science — biology and chemistry and everything the oceans had to offer. It made me who I am now."

The next Gryska family member to catch the "SEA bug" was Von's younger sister, Gale. By 1977, classes on Westward were fully accredited. She sailed on W-30 as a student and then on four subsequent voyages as the ship's steward. In 1980, she married SEA's founder and Westward captain, Cory Cramer. This union created the Gryska family's bond with the Cramer family, and with the extraordinary program that had become so much a part of their lives. Gale continues to serve on the SEA Board of Overseers.

Following Cory Cramer's death in 1983, the SEA Trustees commissioned a new ship to be named the Corwith Cramer. Von volunteered to serve as the ship's physician on her maiden voyage from Bilbao, Spain to Martinique in 1989. Von was the first SEA crew to make the transatlantic passage on both the Westward and the Cramer.

Other Gryska family members followed Von and Gale at SEA. Their brother Zander Gryska sailed on the Corwith Cramer on C-103, and then went on to study marine science at the University of Rhode Island. A third brother, John Gryska, served as mate on both the Westward and the Cramer. Clearly SEA has featured prominently in the young lives of these siblings.

It is not surprising that the first student of the next generation to become an SEA legacy would also bear the Gryska name. Elizabeth Gryska, Von's daughter, as a junior at Trinity College set sail aboard SEA's newest vessel, the Robert C. Seamans.

Elizabeth's SEA semester began when class S-195 departed San Diego on October 15, 2004 and continued with port stops in La Paz and Puerto Vallarta. "It was amazing to finally understand the connection my family has with the sea and understand why they have never let it go" Elizabeth said. "Imagining what it was like for them thirty years ago added a whole different dimension to my time at sea."

Elizabeth nurtured her love of sailing on Buzzards Bay, cruising out of Quissett Harbor aboard her father's sloop Flemish Cap. The 40' Flemish Cap originally belonged to Cory Cramer and his family.

"No legacy is so rich as one built and shared by an entire family," Von said. "On summer days sailing the Flemish Cap, we have always kept an eye out for yardarms on the Cramer or Westward, which can easily be seen just above the bluffs that surround Woods Hole. One glimpse of the ships' masts makes our hearts beat faster and reminds us of our remarkable experiences at SEA."