NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — The nonprofit Virginia Maritime Heritage Foundation is putting a 126-foot wooden ship up for sale.
Foundation board president Tom Ackiss says the money required to sail and maintain the schooner Virginia outpaced the amount brought in by fundraising and sailing education programs.
Executive director Will King says the foundation has about $1 million in debt — the same amount it costs to keep the ship operating.
The Virginian-Pilot (http://bit.ly/1qDOgDw) reports that the ship is in Newport, Rhode Island, on its last program with students and will return to Norfolk in mid-August to be put up for sale.
The ship debuted in 2005 as a floating goodwill ambassador to attract tourism and business investment for the state. It is a replica of a 1917 pilot schooner.
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Online:
http://www.schoonervirginia.org
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Information from: The Virginian-Pilot, http://pilotonline.com
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