Commodore Adam R. Howard, a US. Navy service-connected disabled veteran, knew the moment he saw the Dutch boat modeled on Princess Beatrix's own Royal Yacht in 2021, that he had to buy it. The boat was owned by fellow Navy veteran Tony Dziadzul, who served in Desert Storm, and it was in rough shape. Valor, which started its life in 1979 as Antje in the Netherlands, would ultimately require a six-figure investment in restoration and upgrades, but it was well worth the effort, not only because of the beauty of her lines, the richness of its history as everything from a trophy-winning wooden boat on Lake Michigan to a rumrunner in the Florida Keys to a shrimp boat, but because Howard had a very specific plan for the vessel. Valor would not be restored to be some rich guy's private yacht, but rather to be a source of joy and healing for his fellow veterans, their families, and the disabled community at large, stationed right here in Howard's home of Provincetown as the vessel for Project Valor Sailing.
Commodore Adam R. Howard, a US. Navy service-connected disabled veteran, knew the moment he saw the Dutch boat modeled on Princess Beatrix's own Royal Yacht in 2021, that he had to buy it. The boat was owned by fellow Navy veteran Tony Dziadzul, who served in Desert Storm, and it was in rough shape. Valor, which started its life in 1979 as Antje in the Netherlands, would ultimately require a six-figure investment in restoration and upgrades, but it was well worth the effort, not only because of the beauty of her lines, the richness of its history as everything from a trophy-winning wooden boat on Lake Michigan to a rumrunner in the Florida Keys to a shrimp boat, but because Howard had a very specific plan for the vessel. Valor would not be restored to be some rich guy's private yacht, but rather to be a source of joy and healing for his fellow veterans, their families, and the disabled community at large, stationed right here in Howard's home of Provincetown as the vessel for Project Valor Sailing.