Quest went home today.

In December 2002 a supertyphoon wreaked devastation all over the island. Amid the rubble the remains of a canoe house sat squarely on Quest crushing her spirit and soul. The broken pieces went up to Nimitz Hill where they sat under a tarp and ragged canopy while Manny and the rest of the crew worked to find the right wood and carve it into the replacement pieces needed to make Quest whole again.

Quest moved down to Paseo Park where she sat under a tarp waiting the long months away while modern boats powered past on their way to fishing grounds on the open ocean. Every weekend a tarp was spread and the crew worked carving the bits and pieces of wood needed to bring her to life again. Then, when threatened by weather and possible vandals she moved into the "cage", a locked covered area where we could work on her. Finally Quest sailed again but still she waited in the cage.

While she waited the crew worked to build her a new home. It was slow work, hot and sweaty, delayed by lack of funding and bureaucracy, lack off materials and lack of dedicated time to build the traditional home of a seagoing canoe, a proa from the old days.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of many and the unceasing pushing of a few the canoe house was finished and dedicated. Today Quest finally sits in her new home by the bay, the waters where Chamorros sailed their canoes for thousands of years before the Europeans found them and imposed a new way of life upon them. Tonight she dreams the old dreams undisturbed by the modern cars and boats that pass her, the fishermen who fish with modern gear and speak in languages she could not recognize. She is home and it feels good for us to know it.

Thanks to the crew who worked so hard to get her home. Thanks to Manny who is our teacher and navigator. Thanks to Larry who pushed and paid for so much of our materials and food and drink needed to keep the crew at it. Thanks to Gordon whose sweat and perseverance has made the task possible. Thanks to Anthony, Daniel, Bruce, Al, Ward, Steve, Ron, Tom, and all the others who came out to make this happen. And a special thanks to the Puluwat community who brought their expertise and muscle to the raising of Sahyan Tasi Fache Mwan. Quest is home and where she belongs.