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500 Sails wishes happy birthday to master navigator
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Posted on Mar 08 2022
500 Sails wishes a very happy birthday to one of its master navigators, Mario Benito, who is a senior sakman leader (boatbuilder) at 500 Sails and was instrumental in launching the free Sunday Sails program in October 2020. Sunday Sails gives the public the unique opportunity to experience sailing on a traditional canoe and even learn how to sail.
Born and raised on the island of Polowat in Chuuk, Benito is a highly respected leader who brings over 47 years of navigational experience into the fold. Having joined 500 Sails 16 months ago, Benito wanted the opportunity to realize a dream that both he and 500 Sails hope to bring to the forefront—to bring more canoes out on the water and teach the CNMI community how to sail.
“As we celebrate his birthday, we would like to pay homage to the added value his work has brought to the community. A humble man, [he is] well loved by his 500 Sails family and friends alike,” said a 500 Sails news release.
It said that since he was 4 years old, Benito had been sailing with his father, uncles, and his grandfather, Taworhu Onopey, and had trained for years under the tutelage of some of the most famous Grand Master Polowat navigators, including the late Hipour Ewoluth (Edward), Manipey Rapang, Teo Onopey, and Rainam Edward, who, in particular, had performed his Pwo ceremony in Guahan in 2016. (PR)
