The National Sailing Center & Hall of Fame announced that actor Morgan Freeman will be the chairman of the Honorary Advisory Board, filling the position left vacant by Walter Cronkite.
“I am honored to be part of the National Sailing Center & Hall of Fame as we create a home for American sailing,” said Freeman. “I know how important it was to Walter. My love for sailing started at an early age and there is nothing like being carried away by the wind and waves.”
Freeman has had a passion for sailing ever since his first sail in 1967 aboard a Lightning class dinghy on a reservoir near Stowe, Vt. He soon moved up to larger boats and began ocean sailing.
“If you live a life of make-believe, your life isn’t worth anything until you do something that does challenge your reality,” Freeman wrote. “And to me, sailing the open ocean is a real challenge, because it’s life or death. There’s no quarter.”
The Hall of Fame Inaugural Induction will take place Oct. 23 at the San Diego Yacht Club and is dedicated to Walter Cronkite, the first chairman of the Honorary Advisory Board.
