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Father and Son Adventure Hooks Grady-White Fanatic

Glenn and Kathy love spending time on the water with friends. Here they’re out on their seaport blue Grady-White center console model, the Fisherman 257.

It all started with a father-son voyage with his dad at age 11. Through many boating activities since then to a recent excursion with his own son – boating with family has long been a way of life for Glenn Howe. Living in a year-round warm climate in Jacksonville, Florida means Glenn and his wife, Kathy, and their family, get to use their boat throughout the year. In 2020, they purchased their third Grady-White, providing a little entertainment for a friend that posted on social media, “Glenn just bought his 15,000th boat”.

His boating life began when Glenn’s dad was invited to join a group of fathers who were going to take a multi-day trip with their sons. They loved the adventure and from that point forward, both Glenn and his father were hooked!

Fast forward to 2017: through their years together, Glenn and Kathy owned an assortment of boats, most recently bigger cruisers, and they wanted to purchase a versatile smaller boat. After talking with Grant, their trusted boat salesman, they purchased their first Grady-White, a Fisherman 216. “We go to dinner, anchor out, swim and just cruise around. Each night we dock it by our cabin cruiser and sleep aboard the bigger boat. In the morning, we’re back on the Grady until Sunday afternoon.” While always delightful, these weekend getaways have been even more meaningful this year because of the pandemic. In fact, Glenn says the boat has been a real lifesaver, providing an opportunity to escape from the stress of work and the issues COVID-19 has presented.

You may wonder how Glenn and Kathy have come to own three Gradys since they first purchased the 216 just three years ago. Within eight months of purchasing their first Grady, they moved up in size to the Fisherman 257, then, fifteen months later, at a boat show they climbed aboard a Grady-White dual console model and they thought – “this is the boat for us”. That’s when they purchased a Freedom 255. The set-up of the dual console model really suited them. Not only is it perfect for boating with their growing family – as their son is married and has two children of his own – but they also like the added features. “I’m glad I went up two sizes from my original 216,” notes Glenn, who goes on to say, “I’ve also been really impressed with how well the Grady-White boats hold their value. I’ve traded two boats around the one-year mark and gotten very good value for each of them.”

The Grady feature that’s always been a standout to Kathy is the safety aspect. Glenn says from the waterline to the top of the gunnel she has felt absolutely safe on their Gradys! Glenn is emphatic about the fantastic ride and seaworthiness, saying it’s an incredibly dry boat, takes the chop well, and handles any condition they encounter. His answer of ‘Extremely Satisfied’ on every question of every Grady-White survey says it all!

Glenn and Kathy Howe leave the dock for another beautiful day on the water.

Having never had outboard motors before his 216, Glenn finds them easy to maintain and easy to flush. He also is particularly pleased with the over-the-top support he gets from Grady-White. “From their customer relations department and the Captain Grady app, to a company representative flying down to help get a Grady-White Club started, my experience with Grady-White has been terrific,” he says.

Speaking of that, just before the pandemic hit, Glenn started working with Grady-White to establish the First Coast Grady-White club. To date they have 30 members, and Glen hopes they’ll soon be gathering on the water and at local restaurants again.

As for those father-son trips, Glenn relived that experience with his son, Ryan, this past August when the two of them took the boat to Fernandina Beach for the day. “It was really special just spending the day together and fondly remembering that great first trip I took with my dad more than 50 years ago,” says Glenn. Thanks to that very first father-son trip, the whole Howe family looks forward to more time on the water in 2021 and beyond!

The Howe’s first Grady-White boat, a seafoam green Fisherman 216, was the start of their Grady Life experience!