Hands, Heart, and Mahogany: Restoring Dat So La Lee
By Rob Carrillo, Co-Owner of Dat So La Lee - November 15th, 2025
Rob and Dat So La Lee at the Spaulding Marine Center, circa Oct 2025.
Boats have been part of my life for as long as I can remember. As a young man, I worked for a sailboat charter company, learning the rhythms of the water and the mechanics of keeping vessels in shape. I earned some of my first income running a small-boat maintenance and restoration business, where I discovered that patience and skill could turn weathered wood into something beautiful again. I also had the chance to design and refine race boats for sailing competitions, a fast-paced world that demanded both precision and creativity.
Those early lessons carried me into a career in union-run trades. I entered as an apprentice and worked my way up to project manager and company owner in offshore underwater construction diving. It was demanding work, but it showed me the power of the trades to provide living wages, lifelong career paths, and pride in craftsmanship. That journey is why Spaulding Marine Center’s mission resonates so deeply with me. Spaulding is not just preserving wooden boats; it’s ensuring that young people today have the same opportunities that I had: learn a trade, earn a living, and build a future.
When I brought my 1929 Chris-Craft Commuter, Dat So La Lee, to Spaulding, I wasn’t just looking for a restoration shop. I was hoping to find a certain kind of place, a place of community. Spaulding is rare in that it welcomes owners into the work. I wasn’t a bystander. I was sanding, varnishing, prepping, and fitting alongside apprentices and master shipwrights. For me, that meant rediscovering and sharing the skills I learned decades ago while also picking up updated techniques and approaches that I’d never tried. That exchange between generations, between tradesmen and apprentices, between steward and shipwright, is what keeps this craft alive.
Restoring a wooden boat is never about shortcuts. Rather, it’s about providing the materials, the talent, the technique—time and time again—with patience and dedication. It’s about honoring both the minuscule details and the grand design. Spaulding instills those values in every person who walks through its doors, boldly stewarding not just boats but also the legacy of the craft itself.
What also sets Spaulding apart is its dedication to the apprentice program. Many of the students are young people trying to find their way, stepping into the shop unsure of what they can do. Watching them develop confidence and pride, seeing them treat Dat So La Lee’s mahogany planks with the same care that master shipwrights did a century ago, was inspiring. They’re not just learning how to fix boats; they’re building futures and keeping a tradition alive.
In a world where so many products are disposable, wooden boats remind us of what endures when we invest in quality and simplicity. Dat So La Lee has survived nearly a century because generations of stewards cared enough to keep her alive. My recent experience at Spaulding gave me the rare chance to be part of that lineage and to see the next generation learning to carry it forward.
“Trades gave me a pathway: from apprentice to project manager, from worker to steward. Spaulding gives that same opportunity to today’s apprentices, while keeping alive the skills and legacy that wooden boats demand.”
Every time I see Dat So La Lee catch the sunlight, I’m reminded that stewardship isn’t just about boats, it’s about people, skills, and traditions that are worth carrying forward. To learn more about her story, visit her page here.
