HOW IT ALL BEGAN

Surfing The Nations (STN) was birthed when Tom and Cindy Bauer were asked to take over a three acre parcel of land and put it to good use. The land was in Kalihi Valley, just outside of Honolulu and they were told they could color outside of the box. This fit them perfectly as it had always been their style. From Tom’s earlier work in Mozambique, Africa until today, he has been known as a visionary who lives an adventure. He is always ready to do what others say is impossible. Sometime before moving to the Kalihi property in 1997 Tom became aware that he was to do more with the sport of surfing. The concept of integrating surfing and humanitarian work began with Tom‘s vision as he founded Surfing The Nations. As a young boy who loved surfing, he found himself caught in the characterization of the surf culture as one marked by drugs, partying and self-centeredness. After fully grasping the concept that surfing and giving back can actually go hand-in-hand, Tom committed his life to mobilizing surfers to serve and to be leaders of positive change in our community.

MORE THAN A VISION

Surfing The Nations began reaching out to the youth in the Kalihi area with the hope that they could make a difference. The word went out to surfers and non-surfers and they began arriving to be a part of the new work that was beginning. Many of them laid down their personal lives to see Surfing The Nations become a reality. Niklas and Stefan Eriksson, Andrea Luraghi, Denise Ritchie, Charlie and Sara Valnes are among those who went the extra mile. The year 1998 brought two major components of STN into play with the start of the Feeding The Hungry program and the first international trip to Bali, Indonesia. Today both are still major parts of the humanitarian work of Surfing The Nations. At first most people thought the idea of Surfing The Nations was ridiculous. As stories started to spread of the affect that these elements had on people and that lives were being transformed, any doubts quickly turned to support.

STN operated from the Kalihi property for ten years. It was there that the internship program began, as well as surfing outreach trips to over 30 nations around the world. X Factory concerts for youth and a music studio became the hallmark of the Surfing The Nations. This gave young people in the community a venue to share their music and talents. As many as 300 X Factory fans would attend these monthly concerts.

THE MOVE OUT OF KALIHI

At the end of 2006 the Kalihi Valley the property was sold and Surfing The Nations had to leave Kalihi and find a new home. There were some doubts about the survival of the ministry. Grateful for all that had been accomplished and with the remaining 20 full time workers believing to keep the organization alive, the organization moved to a new location. Many aspects of the ministry would change with the move of STN into the single family homes in a residential community of Honolulu. No longer could the needy come to our door. Rather than that, multiple new locations to serve more people on O’ahu were established. Feeding The Hungry food distribution would begin in lower Kalihi, Waikiki, Barber’s Point (Kalaeloa) and under the H-1 viaduct at Lagoon Drive. Distribution of food to 500-600 people was occurring prior to the move. Today the distribution has grown to more than 3,000 people a week.

NEW HEADQUARTERS – WAHIAWA

In September 2008 notice was given to Surfing The Nations that one of the houses STN rented was in foreclosure. At this time there was nothing else to rent in the area and everything seemed quite hopeless. STN had been looking for property to purchase since leaving Kalihi, but nothing had come together. Was this the time to buy? We were advised to wait another year, so we continued our search and patiently waited for the right opportunity. As the search continued Jimmy Yamada, Chairman of the Board for Surfing The Nations at that time, was presented with a property in Wahiawa. The property included an old neighborhood bar and a 15 unit apartment building that was not up for sale at that time. Thus began the acquisition of the Wahiawa property, the new headquarter of Surfing The Nations. STN staff and interns have moved into the apartments and the “Bar” has become the meeting hall, training room, event center and gathering place.

WAHIAWA IS AWESOME

Surfing The Nations is committed to making a difference in Wahiawa and excited to work with the youth and families of the neighborhood. Many said we were crazy to move to ‘Ohai Street (the address of the apartment building) as the area is known for drugs, alcohol, violence and sex; but to bring about change you must be willing to live where change is needed. At any given time Surfing The Nations has 30-40 full time staff involved with in the ministry. Hundreds of interns have completed the internship, and international remote teams have been established in more than ten nations. Neighboring outreach trips have also been made to five of the main Hawaiian Islands. Seeds have been planted on each of these islands. Surf and skate contests are run internationally and locally in Hawai’i. The poor, hungry and homeless are fed and the at-risk youths lives are being touched and situations are being positively changed daily. We are Surfing The Nations.