Surfers Celebrate Earth and Family
Written by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel
The family is one of nature’s masterpieces
– George Santayana, philosopher
The Surfrider Foundation Huntington/Seal Beach Chapter and co-sponsor Kohl’s hosted the annual Ohana (Family) Day celebration Saturday, April 11, at the Seal Beach Pier.
Friends and neighbors turned out in force to join in the festivities.
SurfWriter Girls Patti Kishel and Sunny Magdaug love this fun-filled beach day that brings everyone together to relax and learn about our earth – especially the ocean.
The Algalita marine research organization was on hand with executive director Liesl Thomas explaining the damaging effect that plastic pollution has on the sea ecosystem.
This year’s Ohana Day celebration included environmental education programs and lots of hands-on activities and demonstrations.
There were surfing lessons from M&M Surfing School.
kayaking and paddle boarding.
And beach cleanups led by Surfrider volunteers… with bags and bags of trash sorted for recycling.
Even this poor little stuffed dog was found and rescued from the trash.
Butts Out campaign coordinators Norma and Alex Sellers used some of the discarded cigarette butts they gathered to make a satirical display showcasing how toxic the beach can be when it’s littered with cigarette butts.
There were raffle prizes, giveaways and information provided by sponsors.
Music by Tupua with Polynesian dancers.
By the end of the day everyone felt a real sense of community, which is what Ohana Day is all about.
The spirit of ohana, which originated in ancient Polynesia, is the belief that “we are all connected to each other and to the earth itself.”
Just as the shoots of the taro plant come from a common bulb (oha), the Polynesians felt that we are all one family (ohana) and must work together and honor the land and sea that nurture us all.
Please post your comment below. Comments will appear the next day.
Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel hold the exclusive rights to this copyrighted material. Publications wishing to reprint it may contact them at surfwriter.girls@gmail.com Individuals and non-profit groups are welcome to post it on social media sites as long as credit is given.