Family and friends will gather in Tauranga today to farewell a man who was loved and respected by many.

Stuart Pedersen died on October 14 after his 47-foot yacht ‘Essence' sank off the coast of Northland.

Stuart's wife Pamela and fellow club member Bruce Goodwin, and Pamela's brother-in-law Steve were also on board.

They survived the sinking, but suffered injuries, with Pamela admitted into an intensive care unit. She has since been released from hospital.

The yacht sank about 37km off the coast of Cape Brett after running into trouble during some bad weather.

Stuart has been one of the leading members of the Tauranga Yacht and Power Boat Club, a tornado sailor and chair of the Bay of Plenty Sailing Academy Trust.

Stuart first began sailing at age 10 at Whakatane and Lake Rotoiti in a P Class – way back in the early 70s.

This led to a lifelong passion for sailing of all kinds, including trailer yachts, keelboats, windsurfers, skiffs and multihulls.

He completed a circumnavigation of the globe with his family on their 47 foot keelboat from 2000-2007, getting as far north as his father's homeland, Denmark.

The family then settled in Tauranga, where he established a junior windsurfing fleet at the Tauranga Yacht and Power Boat Club in 2009 which has spawned a number of national champions.

Read more about Stuart here.

A funeral for Stuart is being held at Legacy on Pyes Pa Road at 2.30pm.

People wanting to attend are advised to carpool, as parking is limited.