Costa Rica Surfer Paulina Summers Interview
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On Saturday November 21st, the community from Dominical helped teach over 20 kids from Dominicalito and Uvita how to surf and to protect their beaches from plastic pollution. Sunset Surf Dominical and Todo Sano Surf School donated boards and their instructors. Food was donated by Eco Feria Dominical, Cafe Mono Congo, Sumbio World Ice Cream, and Spicy Life Hot Sauce. Other local businesses like Pineapple Kayak Tours, Mango y Salsa, and CR Surf, helped out by teaching the kids and cleaning the beach.
It was a beautiful morning with light winds and perfect sized waves for the kids to get surf lessons in Costa Rica, about knee high on average. The kids first were taught on the beach how to paddle and stand up, and then were led out by volunteers with surf experience. The volunteers were kids as young as 10 to those almost 50 years old. A rotation was set up so that each child could catch a wave to the inside without other children or boards blocking them.
Costa Verdes provided up-cycled bags and gloves for the beach cleanup. The group collected over 200 pounds of garbage, including a 100 meter section of thick plastic insulation for power lines. The most common items found were cigarette butts and plastic bottle tops – and single shoes.
The guitarist JamiSun came out to perform a live set and entertain the group. Sol Han volunteered his photography skills and Dasha Bradshaw took video and drone footage of the event.
The organizer of the event, Pepe Lopez, explained the goals of the event. “These kids come from a very poor community and some of their parents are just not around so it takes a community to give these kids something to smile about. Teaching them to surf makes them love the ocean and want to stay healthy.” Jordy from Sunset Surf added that “Some of these I want to hire as surf instructors when they are older so it is great that they learning to surf now.” If you are interested in supporting this initiative then please contact us today.