A fiberglass canoe washed up on a friend's property a couple years ago. He
stuck it over on the side and forgot about it. I would like to fix it up
for my sons to use.

It has two holes in it that were very crudely patched with some sort of
caulk. It was also painted; much of which is flaking off.
I would like to put a layer of fiberglass over the holes, and then a layer
of fiberglass over the whole bottom to stiffen it and reinforce the hole
repairs.

That will require removing all the paint. The original fiberglass is pretty
thin, so I am reluctant to sand the paint off, but I am afraid that chemical
stripper will not be kind to the fiberglass.

Suggestions?

My older son doesn't have much to do this summer and is willing to do this
project, so labor is not an issue.