How can you improve the tourist destination in which you live on a personal level? Here is a great example. Want to see a catamaran and sailing club in Jelsa? Great for kids, great for tourists? Here is how you can help…
People dance, people fly, people cry, make love, fight wars even, and I wanna sail and share the feeling. So I thought, why not making a sailing club for catamarans in Jelsa, on island of Hvar, Croatia. I sail with Hobie cat 17, and that’s rather small boat (5 meters long, 2,5 meters wide and has a mast 9 meters high), but it’s an extremely fast boat (up to 40 km/h). And the most important, it has nothing but sails.
As I love the sea, the island of Hvar and sailing, I’ve decided to form a sailing club where people will be able to learn to sail with those kind of boats. The sailing club, except offering sailing experience, will also encourage and hold lectures, ateliers and presentations from diverse, but compatible areas: culture, education, sport, sustainable development, multimedia and wellness.
It’s base will be formed in our family vineyard, which is on the shore of the sea. There I’ve planted Mediterranean plants (olives, lavender and so on) and arranged all the field to be people friendly.
And now I’m stepping forward in search for the people that share a passion for creating stuff. Before my head explodes from ideas and desire to create things worth living for, I ‘m asking you, to help me create this project come true. And that way, you will help to make another place on the planet whose doors will stay opened for all of you.
All the contributors will be awarded with different gifts: our products (olive oil, wine, lavender oil etc.), t-shirts with Ka Boom logo, possibility to sail with us, Ka Boom postcards handwritten by me and my eight year old nephew (he doesn’t know that yet, but he will š and so on.
Bellow is following a detailed description of the project:
Who am I?
I’ve been living with passion ever sense I was born. When I loved, I loved truly, when I was hurt, I cried sincerely, and when I go, I’ll know I gave everything I had in my heart to life itself.
I am a thirty three years old professor of social sciences (sociology, philosophy, politics, economy and logic) and I used to work in bilingual school. I was teaching mentioned subjects on French, English and Croatian. Except that, I worked as a librarian, tourist guide, skipper, waiter, journalist, and even an actor/director. Bunch of stuff, all in all. And, I am proud to say that where ever I went or worked, people where happy and willing to share their time with me. I love people, and I believe we must search everywhere for a way to make people smile, because their smile will be our own fulfillment.
I was born in Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and most of my life I’ve spent in Croatia. My mother is from Bosnia (Banja Luka) and my father is from Croatia (Jelsa, island of Hvar). Therefor I am a mix of Bosnian heart (for those who don’t know; Bosnian heart is full of laughter and love) and islands persistence and will. As everybody, I also have my flaws, but I try to correct them daily.
During my lifetime, I’ve finished university (master of science), learned to speak three languages fluently (unfortunately I haven’t been using German for years, and I’m kind of rusty, but it will come back), lived in only three states (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and France), worked all over the place, managed to earn enough money to make a movie, that I believed in (it was shown on a few film festivals), had an exhibition of sculptures (that I make, when I have some free time), recently learned to play guitar, and went into sports (triathlon and sailing).
I am sincerely pushed by will to create and to fully live life, and that is what I have to offer to the world.
What am I aiming at?
As I mentioned in introduction, my origins are from island of Hvar in Croatia.
Ever sense I was a little boy I used to go to work with my brothers and our father in our fields. My brothers and I, were the rarest ones, of young people, who still worked in the filed, thank to my fathers scary look. š Even though I hated it when I was fourteen, as anybody would at that time, now I am proud of my heritage.
Today, as you already know, I’m into sailing. I love the island of Hvar and its waters. With the knowledge I’ve obtain during university, work experience and filed work as well, I want to develop a sailing club in Jelsa, island of Hvar. A club that will offer experience of sailing with catamarans and the heritage of the island of Hvar.
I want to create a sailing center where it will be provided: sailing, knowledge, history, nature, sea and life.
The club itself will hold different lectures, events, presentations, practical experience of sailing with Hobie cat, gathering of people that want to learn and share.
What will you be helping to create?
- From social point of view – you will help to create a place where people come to share and learn. A place that will provide a start point for those who want to share with others, and present themselves to others, through lectures, presentations, exhibitions etc. A place where languages and cultures will be exchanged.
- From business point of view – you will be investing in the club that will employ people: sailing instructors, tourist guides, linguists, participants of further different projects and so on.
- From development point of view – multi-hull (catamaran) sailing is rather unknown in Croatia, and you will be making it more accessible in here. And also you will be investing in development of rural region.
- From human point of view – once, you will come, you will see what you helped to create, and we will sit down, I’ll poor you a glass of wine, I’ll thank you from the bottom of my heart and we’ll enjoy the day.
What have I done regarding the project until today?
I had approximately 5000€ saved and through one year:
- I bought a boat (Hobie cat 17) and brought it to Jelsa from Slovenia.
- I’ve learned to sail with it.
- In our field/vineyard (that was uncared for, due to a lack of time), that will eventually become a sailing base: I’ve fixed most of the stone walls. That makes around 200 meters of stone walls, high between one and two meters, and wide around half of meter. I’ve shoveled all the terraces and planted new plants (in Dalmatia, on the islands, we have terraces in the fields. As the ground is not flat, people created years before terraces.)
- I’ve made a sewer system (which will be later on connected to the base, a small structure, which will be used for lectures, presentation, keeping equipment and so on.)
- I’ve planted olive trees, grapes, lavender, and other Mediterranean plants.
- I’ve officially opened an association called Ka Boom with an aim of promotion and development of culture, sustainable development, physical activity and healthy living (Klub alternative Boom, meaning Club of alternative Boom; boom is a part of the boat. Opening of an association is rather complicated in Croatia, it took me over a month; which is actually great. Making a sewer system was way easy comparing to administration š
- I’ve a applied for Erasmus+ in Sports, and even though I missed the deadline (as it took a long time to get all the documents from administration), I’ve established communication with different organisations all around Europe wiling to participate in events yet to come.
- As the land, where a sailing base will be placed, was never officially divided between owners (grandma and her relatives), it took me a year to get all the documents. But now it’s done. (That means I’ve payed a lawyer and the court.)
All of it, with 5000€ and lots of hand work.
(the picture was taken right after all the works, so it takes time for the plants to grow)
What We Need & What You Get
We need:
- financial aide
- people with ideas that find themselves within the project and are in the search for partners
- people that can afford themselves to come and give me a hand with work in the field
- people that can help me with making an internet presentation
- people that want to create
All the investments will be spent to accomplish the following:
- bringing the water supply line to the field (we are 100 meters away from a water supply line),
- establishing electricity system with usage of solar system,
- finishing the work in the filed/ex-vineyard (meaning: finishing the stone walls – there is 30 meters left. Connecting a sewer system to the base. Making the field accessible to people.),
- making a structure where all the equipment will be held and where people will be able to participate in club activities (not a house, but a Thai shack),
- opening a sailing club,
- making a refrigerator that works using wind (I found the instructions how to make it, on the pages of university in Canada. Some awesome young people constructed it.)
- making an internet platform,
- of course, for sending different gifts and gratitude expressions to all the investors
- and hopefully, if possible, buying an additional catamaran.
What can we do for you:
- For all the investments above 10€, a postcard of a sailing club Ka Boom, handwritten by me and my eight year old nephew, as a gratitude, will be included,
- for payments of 20€ we will send small bags filed with lavender (our production),
- for payments of 30€ we will send lavender oil,
- For payments of 30€ – 50€ we will send you a handmade key ring of an olive tree with “Ka Boom” or “Jelsa” inscription (my brothers production) and lavender bags,
- for payments of 60 – 70€ we’ll send bottles of wine, lavender oil, lavender bag and a handwritten postcard,
- for payments between 80€ and 100€ we will ship packages with olive oil, lavender oil, and other products of island of Hvar (for instance dry figs).
- to those who invest 200€ we will send t-shirts with kaboom logo, together with our products products: olive oil, wine etc.
- To those who invest 500 € or more, we can offer: free guided tours of the island of Hvar or sailing experience with catamaran in Jelsa, as well as packages of our products: lavender oil, olive oil, wine and other products of the island.
- To those who invest 1000€ and more we will include their business in our internet platform and put their logo on our sails for a duration of three years.
- and when everything is done, you all will be invited for the grand opening (food, music, sailing and laughter)
- (Note: all the shipping of food to other countries will be done if we will have possibility to do so. If we won’t be able to ship you food, we’ll ship you other products from the list above.)
(all sent products will come from our our fields.)
Where the funds go if we don’t reach our entire goal:
- I will reach the goal, no matter what. I came until here using my hands, will and my time. The sum of money that I’m asking for is really nothing compared to where I’m going and if the money is only reason to stop, than there is no reason at all.
The Impact
There are diverse positive influences of your investment:
- for parents: You have kids and you wish them the best. They are often on Facebook and nothing seems much important for them. One of the ideas that will follow Ka Boom is employment or volunteering for young people, where they will be obligated, while working, to use different languages, to respect the nature and others, and gain confidence in themselves, by managing a sail boat and learning others.
- for a business-man or a business-woman: we will create a possibilities of a team building. Dependence on each other is the most explicit on the sea. And after it, confidence and joy is what it stays for all time.
- for local society and enterprises: revitalization of islands in Croatia.
- for economy in general: creating a product that brings added value to the table.
- for NGO-s: possibility to participate in our events as a partners and to use our spaces (or aide) for their own presentations.
- for an average person: you helped to create a small business, and when in need, you’ll receive all the aide, within our power, from us.
Risks & Challenges
- The biggest challenge is following your own dream. I let go of everything and now for a year and half I’m constantly working on development of this project.
- My tactics is rather simple: keep on going with opened heart and never stop. Work and be persistent. The only thing I can loose is myself, by letting go of a dream.
Challenges:
- development of a businesses in a small rural area and cooperation with others
- obtaining all the needed documents from government to be eligible for businesses
- have the strength and courage to enter in a new area of expertise
- learning how to communicate with different organisations and enterprises
- connecting with others with the intention to create events and finding people willing to participate
- finding a market
Other Ways You Can Help
- send the word out
- send me an e-mail with your thoughts about my idea. When one is walking by himself, sometimes a worm word can mean all the world.
- maybe you can come and volunteer, we’ll work on the filed, we’ll go out sailing, we’ll make better tomorrow.
Thank you for your time, for it’s the most valuable thing we have.
Contribute to this great project here.
