Sailing With Semester at Sea
Before Geordy Waters ever set foot on his Fall 1990 Semester at Sea voyage, the idea of joining first found him as he casually scanned a school newspaper.
At the time, Geordy was a junior at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. He didn’t know much about Semester at Sea at the time, but when he saw an ad for the program, he brought it home and talked it over with his father, who had served in the Navy. His father encouraged him to give it a shot.
That decision became one Geordy would carry with him for the rest of his life. He sailed with two other students from SMU whom he did not know well at the time. Today, more than 35 years later, they are two of his best friends.
“Some of my greatest friends to this day are from that voyage.” — Geordy Waters
Like so many voyagers, Geordy describes his time with Semester at Sea as transformative. The experience opened his eyes to the world, gave him “the travel bug,” and shaped how he thinks about people, relationships, and possibilities.
After the Voyage
Today, Geordy lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and works in real estate. Along his career path, he found that the lessons learned on SAS about how to connect with people from across cultures and geographical borders have served him well.
“It taught me how to open up and meet more people. I learned there’s so much more out there in the world, and that you shouldn’t pigeonhole yourself to only what you grew up with.” — Geordy Waters
This lens has also shaped the way Geordy and his family have traveled together. Since his voyage, he has made it a priority to take his children far beyond familiar sites, visiting places such as Australia, South Africa, Dubai, and Europe together.
Now, his family’s Semester at Sea connection is continuing into a new generation, as Geordy’s daughter has placed her deposit to join the Spring 2027 Voyage.
A Lasting Connection
His lasting connection to the SAS program is also part of why Geordy stepped up during Semester at Sea’s record-breaking Day of Giving 2026. As alumni and friends came together in support of the program, Geordy became the winner of the SAS Ambassador Challenge, helping spread the word and encouraging others to give back through this instrumental day of program giving.
For Geordy, the motivation to encourage others to give back to SAS was personal. One of his Fall 1990 shipmates was connected to the matching gift effort, and Geordy wanted to “do his part” to support the people and the program that still mean so much to him.
“One of my shipmates gave a major matching gift, and I really found that to be special,” Geordy said. “I wanted to do what I could to help them.”
He also wanted to honor the program that continues to shape his life decades later. For Geordy, the long-lasting impacts he has felt are why he believes alumni should keep reflecting on what the voyage meant to them, long after the voyage ends, and continue finding ways to stay connected.
“There’s a special place in your heart that you have for the program, and you have to hold on to it and remember it. Don’t let go of it.” — Geordy Waters
More than 35 years after he first discovered Semester at Sea in a school newspaper, Geordy’s connection to the program is still active, growing, and being passed on to a new generation. His story is one of friendship, family, and gratitude – and of one alum who answered the call to help make sure future voyagers can discover the same life-altering experience.
