The Crew
Matt (aka: Daddy, Matty)
Position: Skipper, fix-it wonder boy.
Matt is a natural sailor. Being a proud Dutch boy, raised around boats and sailing, he is super confident and comfortable around all things boat-y. Come to think of it, he was also raised in the garage amongst all the tools. He was often tossed electronics to take apart, and is pretty much comfortable around anything with moving parts. I'm constantly asking "how do you even know that?", and he looks stunned, replying "I'm not sure - I just... do".
He is a red-seal Machinist and Millwright, and is working towards his carpentry ticket as well . Matt is a pretty sensitive guy, and is much more of a hugger than I am.
mfvantol@gmail.com
Frances (aka: Mama, Franky)
Position: First Mate, cook, photographer.
Frances may be short, but she is anything but short on personality and enthusiasm. Though certainly an introvert, she loves meeting new people and hearing their stories. And then going home to her comfy pants.
By day, she works as a photographer in the real estate world, and by night she reads books. All the books. She's happy to give anything a try, but really enjoys any book that has just a little bit of magic in it, and please-oh-please a happy ending.
Frances enjoys cooking and travelling and learning the history of places.
francesvantol@gmail.com
Piper (aka: Pickle, Pi)
Position: Deck Hand, artist, bookworm.
Piper is a light in our world. She is constantly finding new creative projects to fill her days. We often find her, first thing in the morning, pulling out her pencil crayons and sketch book, working away on a story or drawing. She is so talented!
Piper loves quiet time on her own to read books (many, MANY books), but also loves seeing her friends. She is one of those kids who loves going to school - mostly for the people, but also to learn something new in band. She plays the clarinet and is learning to play the saxophone.
She is in grade 9 and is crushing it!
Digory (aka: Digs, D)
Position: Cabin Boy, comic relief, junior barrister.
Digory is our dimple-cheeked goofball. If he can make you laugh with a joke or a silly face, he will. But he is such a caring little guy, too. He is our cuddler and general softie.
Digory loves to play his guitar and is always picking up a new tune. He is also an avid reader (anything adventure!) and Lego master. His creations are always really unique and well thought-out. He is also our foodie and has a really good sense of what would make something taste better.
Digory is in grade 7 and is doing awesome.
Ventilly? What's with the name?
For some reason, both Matt and I have like the name Tilly for a while. It just sounds nautical to us, and playful and timeless and just plain fun. We've thought of maybe naming a boat that one day. But it didn't seem enough.
In french, "vent" means "wind", which seemed very apropos, non? And "vent" and "tilly" together just sounded nice. It rolls off the tongue and the domain wasn't taken. Score.
It's also, in a way, similar to our last name initials: Van Tol, VT... Ventilly. We just made up a word. We're allowed, so we did. And that's that.