From the XO’s Perspective

Current Tabor Boy executive officer Izzie Konowicz ’26 gives her thoughts on the school ships Tabor has used for its programming over its history.

Black Duck

Black Duck was the first boat Tabor used for a reason—it provided students the access to deep water sailing without concerns about ownership and the trials of a larger boat. I have learned that it is hard enough to get into Sippican Harbor with an engine and find it hard to imagine the impossible task of returning to campus without one, like Black Duck did. While the size of Black Duck limited the number of crew who could sail her and the distance she could safely travel, she opened up a world of experience that set Tabor on a course toward the ship we sail today.

Tabor Boy I (Robin)

The first true school ship in my eyes, the first Tabor Boy took Tabor students to new heights with her greater capabilities in capacity and distance. With her ability to sail farther and draw in more Tabor students, the ship became the symbol of what a School by the Sea^® education could bring you. I imagine the crew of the ship felt empowered beyond their years to conquer the impossible and carry the pride of their school wherever the wind took them.

Tabor Boy II (Edlu II)

The second Tabor Boy brought the student body an experience that is still sought after today: the ability to race to Bermuda. With her speed and swift design, the students sailing her past the slow-cruising vessels around the East Coast likely felt untouchable. If I had the chance to sail on her, I envision it would feel as though I were an albatross flying across the water, weightless and free.

Tabor Boy III (Bestevaer)

If the past three ships created a house for Tabor’s offshore program, the current Tabor Boy made that house a home. With thousands of students having crossed her deck over the past 72 years, Tabor Boy has made her mark in the Caribbean, off the coast of Maine, and throughout Buzzards Bay. As the current XO, Tabor Boy has opened endless doors of opportunities for me to learn, experience, and teach maritime ways. Like the school itself, Tabor Boy creates a home away from home where students create the environment to live, learn, and thrive together, as they did on Black Duck more than 100 years ago.

Elizabeth Taber

As one of the few female XO’s in Tabor’s history, Elizabeth Taber holds a little spot in my heart because it brought women to the crew, even if they were separated. Elizabeth Taber offered opportunities to women that at the time were only given to men. To sail a ship is to accept that the ocean is greater than you, and that the best you can do is work with it and trim the sails to match the wind you are given. The sea is not biased in who it teaches its lessons to. I stand on the legacy of those women today.