StreetWaves

Light casts away darkness, and the StreetWaves experience is that bright light of life that nurtures the souls of its participants.

                     - Maui Goodbeer, Streetwaves founder

It is both a privilege and a pleasure to introduce my forth interviewee Maui Goodbeer the executive director of StreetWaves.

StreetWaves is an awe inspiring charity working in Florida to help disadvantaged youths, living in difficult socioeconomic circumstances through surfing.

Although Maui and I have only corresponded through email you can feel his energy and passion for the organization and I challenge you not to be inspired after reading about all that he does. 

As part of the surfing tribe we are our own community and when we have the opportunity to help one another it is imperative that we do so. 

Please help Maui and Streetwaves with their fundraiser which can be found at:

www.streetwaves.org 

on facebook at facebook.com/streetwaves 

and twitter at streetwavesorg.

crowdrise.com/streetwaves 

1.  As an accomplished surfer being new at it probably seems a long time ago but can you tell us how you first got into surfing and how long it took to feel like you were competent?

MG: First off, I only consider myself an accomplished surfer based on what I have experienced from surfing since the day I began. It’s a relationship that is different every day. It ebbs and flows and grows. At this point in my journey, it’s kind of like considering myself an accomplished walker, eater, or talker. It’s no longer something that I do, it’s truly a part of my survival. If I go too long without surfing, I get an uneasy feeling of disconnection within. As my surfing has evolved over the years, on a conscious level I would say that this love affair is more about connection to Source Energy than it is about surfing anymore really. Nonetheless, I was first introduced to surfing when I was 10 years old. I grew up with a single mom and we had teenagers that were surfers in our apartment complex that had their own apartment.  I thought they were really cool and they started taking me surfing. My mother was unaware that I was surfing so I had to leave school and sneak off to surf, as I did with many things at that age I guess. What I found through surfing is that I felt confident long before I felt competent. It was in the later years that I felt competent because I gained a sense of proficiency when I started traveling to surf because I was riding different types of waves in different regions learning different things about the vastness of the ocean and my connection to it. My overall competence came from learning more about myself through my relationship with the ocean.

2.If you were to give advice to aspiring or beginner surfers what would that be?

MG: SURF, SURF, SURF….as much as you possibly can. PADDLE OUT…

Don’t get discouraged and never give up. Have fun, be safe and respect the majesty of the Ocean and local surfers. Trust in yourself and allow your relationship with the Ocean to nurture your progress.

3. For the benefit of the surfers across the pond, could you please tell us the story of your organization StreetWaves and how it came to be?

MG: I started StreetWaves to honor a promise that I made at my younger brother’s funeral. My younger brother was brutally murdered by a 16-year-old gang member in Southern California in 2003 and at his funeral I made a promise to personally help inner city children. I had no clue how I would do this but after surfing the small gentle waves in the warm South Florida beach breaks I was inspired to teach children from under-resourced communities here. Exactly 5 years after the anniversary of my brother and my joint birthday of August 31, I founded the non-profit youth outreach organization StreetWaves. I am excited to say that…. “It is working!”

4. What are some of the biggest issues facing disadvantaged inner city youths and how does surfing help resolve those issues?

MG: I would say that the biggest challenges our children face are all of the negative influences experienced on the street level. The communities are full of negative vibrations and negative influences such as drug abuse, prostitution, gang affiliation, violence, etc. Surfing creates a pathway back to nature that connects all who paddle out with a life force and a connection to source energy. The fundamental concept of getting youth off of the streets, or more literally leaving the community that is negatively influencing the youth and having an interrupt in daily patterning, is crucial to self actualization. StreetWaves is that light at the end of the tunnel, a safe haven. More importantly when we facilitate a regular surfing experience on the beach, the children are no longer seeking that light, they are a part of that light in those moments on the beach in the surf. Light casts away darkness, and the StreetWaves experience is that bright light of life that nurtures the souls of its participants. This light is then taken back into the community and illuminates its surroundings and can become contagious to others and liberating to the light bearer. We find that resources are scarce in the inner city and the opportunities are not always available for growth and expansion so we raise funds to support providing these opportunities for children to be exposed to something that can alter their neuro pathways and give them a sense of belonging to something greater than what they are familiar with. As the Executive Director it is my job to provide the funding for our organization. Basically I have to bring the funding into our organization and these children are depending on me to do so. I will take this time to share with you our upcoming StreetWaves summer surf camp fundraiser. 

Please follow this link to be apart of what we are doing this summer and every summer for under-resourced youth in our community. Crowdrise.com/streetwaves here you can start a team and help us bring about change in the lives of our planets children. Often times we Americans have a tendency to forget or are even unaware that charity doesn't just leave our shores it also supports our country. One of our most generous donors ever was a gentleman from Australia who realized that the US is more accustomed to sending aid than receiving it.

5. Real Women have Curves and Surfboards explores surfing themes from a female perspective, what have been the challenges facing girls from inner city backgrounds and how do you think surfing has benefited them in particular?

MG: The challenges that we have identified among our female surfers have been numerous. We have found over the years that cultural norms are often held closer to the heart of the female participant than the male, i.e. resistance to change, stepping outside of comfort zones, cultural identity and support, fear, fashion, and hair follicles. As funny as this story might seem it was quite amazing to see the spirit of one female surfer who had the courage and creativity to go against all of her normal inclinations to participate just after getting her “hair did.” After arriving on the beach for the very first time ever with a group of male and female participants that were bussed in from one of our local community centers that serves a very dangerous and under-resourced community, this particular female student was so eager to get into the ocean and try surfing that she tied a plastic shopping bag on her newly pressed hair and paddled out. To my surprise the shopping bag never fell off the entire day. I know how powerful the ocean is, and on any given wave that bag could easily be ripped off of her head, but her intention and nature worked together to create a beautiful connection. Today she is often seen paddling out to surf. 

The biggest challenge I would say that we have seen is the male influence that women have in the inner city communities. We have had female participants that have been involved in prostitution who have gotten away from the lifestyle if only for a short time and then fallen back into this lifestyle due to the male influence and economical reasons. We have one female student in particular who was recently charged with murder and this came after she got a new “boyfriend” who was also charged with crimes as well. So we are eager to bring young ladies to the beach and share this new culture and positively influence the young women in these communities. We also try to attract young couples and families to the beach and encourage surf dates.

6. Can you tell us a success story of someone you've encountered whose life was changed for the better after taking up surfing?  

MG: I would have to say that everyone I have ever met who I knew before and after they took up surfing has the success story of a life changed for the better. We have many, many children whose lives have positively changed through surfing. I will tell you the story of Calvin. Calvin is a young man who was introduced to surfing after a partner organization brought him to a field trip surf day with StreetWaves. I have personally watched this young man blossom into a totally stoked surfer that literally surfs daily and catches the bus from the inner city to surf instead of getting into the usual trouble he was a part of. He watches and reads surf reports, travels to surf, goes to the US Surf Expo annually and has a passion for surfing and teaching others that runs deep within him. He developed a surf nickname of “Cali” after years of surfing and is a truly changed man that came from a life of neglect, abuse, and instability in the foster care system. Out of privacy and respect for our youth participants I am not able to share much more about most of our students but I will say that over the past 5 years we have literally seen hundreds of lives not just changed but transformed through surfing.

7. Can you think of a time during your surfing/life where you became stuck and how you overcame that plateau?

   MG: Surfing is a process and when you look at it as the process of connecting to source energy you can equate it to dancing. The more we dance the better we get at it. I honestly have never felt stuck because to me there really is no goal other than to simply keep surfing without expectations. However, there have been times where I have stumbled over the feet of this gorgeous dance partner that I have called the Surf and she has let me know that she was not pleased. For example, while surfing in Costa Rica I was held down in overhead surf after doing something that I knew better than to do. I took off on an early set wave after having surfed for hours. After at least 5 pounding reef scrubs, I washed up on shore and was resuscitated by a few surfers and beach goers. I learned the first lesson in rehabilitation. The ocean will never change to accommodate you so you have to change to accommodate and acclimate to the ocean. Surfing is a rhythm that requires patience and timing and to be in that rhythm is magical and to be out of that rhythm is like dancing with two left shoes on. Surfing is truly a privilege and not a right. You have every right to surf but it’s a privilege to have the experience of being able to surf safely, and with passion. I overcame all fear of the ocean after this experience and my energy shifted to a place of loving respect for her grand energy. What I tell others that do feel a sense of slow progression is to pay close attention to the 3 main elements of the dance we call surfing: the spiritual, mental and physical. I relate the spiritual connection with timing, the mental with wave selection and technique, and the physical with ability.

8. It seems that you have a lot of responsibility in your life as both executive director of StreetWaves, surf instructor, advocator, mentor, friend etc, how do you balance all these sides of yourself and stay energized and committed?

MG: I am driven by a source greater than myself and I truly believe that I can do all things. At the end of the day, all it takes is believing in myself and source energy and not letting circumstances derail that belief.

9. What is your vision for the future and how do you plan to accomplish this?

MG. My long-term vision for StreetWaves is to have chapters along the coastline of this country and abroad near communities where under-resourced children live. We have recently partnered with the University of Miami to start a UM StreetWaves chapter. Our plan of action is to partner with Universities and students around the globe that have the desire to start chapters along the coastline of this planet. We are a part of a growing consciousness that is in sync with the rest of the world. We are constantly raising money to continue to provide these services with global expansion in our hearts. If you would like to share in this mission please share this link to our online summer surf camp fundraiser crowdrise.com/streetwaves here you can set up a team and raise much needed funds to continue this work.

10. If the world was ending tomorrow what would you do in your last 24 hours on earth?

MG: Honestly, I would board our sailboat and sail away with friends, family and loved loves, because the earth may come to an end but the ocean lives forever in my heart. Plus, since I have been chasing waves for so long, it will be kind of nice to let the waves chase me for a while.  You can follow our journey at our website at streetwaves.org on facebook at facebook.com/streetwaves and twitter at streetwavesorg. Thank you so much for sharing our good news and caring enough to reach out to me. Maui

Thank You Maui!