Meet the Owners

Born in 1950 in Gloucester, MA, Tom Ellis graduated from St. Peter’s Boys High School in 1969 and Wentworth Institute of Technology with an associate degree in production engineering technology. From 1971 to 1985, he worked for the family construction business, Fred Ellis & Sons, Inc. The scope of the work included repairs and maintenance of existing homes, the construction of new and solar homes, as well as finish work on commercial office space. The company also bought, improved, and sold single and multi-family homes during this period.

The White Elephant Shop

In 1985, Tom bought the White Elephant Shop in Essex, MA with his friend and neighbor, Rick Grobe and worked hard to develop this retail antique business. A major fire gutted the building in 1991 and forced Tom back into the general contracting business. In less than three months, Tom had managed the reconstruction of the building from the ground up and The White Elephant Shop was back in operation. The business now includes shops in two locations in Essex and is consistently voted one of the best antique shops on the North Shore. Tom sold his interest in the White Elephant in January of 1997 to his partner so that he could focus his energies on the Schooner Thomas E. Lannon.

ERBA Sea Kayaking

In 1994, Tom and two friends started Essex River Basin Adventures (ERBA), a sea kayak outfitting company, which is also located in Essex. After three successful seasons of guided tours, lessons and sales, ERBA was said to be the largest sea kayak outfitter on the East Coast. Tom sold his interest in ERBA in 1997, though he still loves to go kayaking. Give Ozzie and Sandy at ERBA a call if you are thinking of going sea kayaking.

Personal

Tom is a member of the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce, and serves on the Gloucester Schooner Festival Committee. In 1998, he passed the Coast Guard test for his Captain's license. After serving for three years as a member of the Board of Directors at the Essex Shipbuilding Museum, he recently served in the position of President of the Essex Historical Society and Shipbuilding Museum for three years. He is passionate about the history of Essex shipbuilding and loves everything about it. (Ask him about the next vessel he wants to build). Capt. Tom has been married for twenty-nine years to Kay Ellis and is the father of two sons, Brian, 28, and Heath, 26. Tom and Kay live in West Gloucester.

President Kay Ellis

Kay (Bonaventura) Ellis grew up in Beverly and graduated from Beverly High School and the University of Massachusetts with a B.A. in Sociology. After spending ten years in the real estate industry and having two kids, Kay took a job as a housing inspector, then came on to manage Essex River Basin Adventures, the sea kayak outfitting company Tom and two friends started in 1994. Dealing with the nuts and bolts of running a tour company prepared her for putting together the behind the scenes segment of starting a schooner sailing business. Kay focuses her attention on marketing, scheduling, and organizing the day-to-day operations of running the Lannon, but you can also often see Kay working as crew.

Kay served for several years as a member of the City of Gloucester Tourism Commission. She is currently on the Executive Board of the North of Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau and is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Essex National Heritage Commission. All of these organizations work to bring visitors to the North of Boston region and to promote the area's rich history.

Brian Ellis

Their son, Brian, is 28 and the computer whiz in the family. Brian can take credit for creating the letterhead, business cards, redesigning the brochure, creating this website, and assisting in all facets of the marketing of the Lannon. When he's not using the computer, Brian likes to ski, sail, swing dance, travel, read, and spend time with his friends. Brian has had a lot of fun racing Star boats out of Sandy Bay Yacht Club in Rockport during the summers. He also enjoys crewing and telling stories on the Lannon.

Brian graduated from St. John's Prep in Danvers in May, 1998, where he was voted "most likely to be the first millionaire" by his classmates. He graduated summa cum laude in May, 2002 from Babson College, where he was a presidential scholar . At graduation, Brian received the Roger Babson award, the most prestigious award given by Babson College. It is given to the senior who has most excelled in scholarship, co-curricular activities, and leadership. Brian spent part of one summer in London, where he studied at the London School of Economics and interned at a London business. He spent his second semester Junior year in Australia, where he did some scuba diving, sailing, and (maybe) studying at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. After graduation, he spent two months in Berlin.

Brian is now living in Cambridge, where he is on staff for Campus Crusade for Christ, and is having a great time working with students from Harvard, Babson, and other Boston colleges. He doesn't get to sail on the Lannon as often as he'd like.

Heath Ellis

Heath, 26, works full-time on the Lannon. After finishing two years at St. John's Prep, Heath graduated from Gloucester High School in June of 2000. Heath completed two years at Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine where he earned an Associate's degree in Small Vessel Operations. In May, 2005 he graduated from New England Institute of Technology in Rhode Island, where he studied Marine Technology. There he received the Best in Tech award at graduation and was named to Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities.

Heath took on an active role in the construction of the Lannon. He was one of the low men on the totem pole, spending time doing whatever needed to be done: from helping get the trees off Hog Island, to oiling the wood of the schooner, to cleaning the bilge, to bunging the holes. Heath saw the entire construction process first-hand. In the winter of 2000, Heath worked alongside his father finishing off the Lannon below decks.

In his spare time, Heath likes to ski, work on his car, and spend time hanging out with his friends. Heath worked as a kayak guide for ERBA for several summers, but now is the full-time first mate on the Lannon. Heath also works part-time at the Beacon Marine Basin in East Gloucester. He hopes to get his Captain's License soon. Heath is engaged to be married to his longtime girlfriend Evie Brown. They plan to be married on the Lannon in the summer of 2008.

The newest member of the Ellis family is our chocolate lab pup Lucy. Lucy was born in October of 2006 and joined our family in early December. (Here she is on her first day at home, at 7 1/2 weeks old). Lucy is a half-sister to our pup Lannie, who died accidentally in early 2006, at just 14 months. Lucy can't wait to join us onboard the Lannon. She plans to take Lannie's place greeting our guests and sailing every day.

Here's Lucy at 6 months, helping Tom lace on the new sails, as he and Heath get the boat ready for another season.