Vessel in need of a new home after owner’s death

DANA POINT – A small 14 foot boat once owned by a longtime Dana Point liveaboard and active boater now sits in the backyard of a Capistrano Beach home awaiting its new owner. Rita Hughes agreed to allow her good friend, Don Eckrote to work on the vessel in her home in 2011. Eckrote died in 2012 after a lengthy bout with cancer. He was 55. Hughes is now left with a few options: Dispose of the vessel, donate it, or gift it to a passionate boater. “It needs work but I don’t’ want to trash it,” Hughes said. “It’s structurally sound but needs cosmetic work.” Eckrote and his wife, Judy, lived aboard a boat in Dana Boat Harbor for more than 20 years. The Dana West Yacht Club member was bitten by the boating bug at a young age when his parents purchased a Grand Banks slipped in Long Beach. Throughout his lifetime, the Certified Public Accountant owned a Columbia sailboat and power boats. “He always enjoyed working on boats,” said Hughes who is also a member of Dana West YC. The 14-foot boat formerly owned by a fellow yacht club member, once paraded through the harbor during Fourth of July festivities. Eckrote learned that...