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Surfrider Foundation Celebrates 25 Years
 Vol. 2, Issue 43, October 23-29, 2009
By Norb Garrett
Dana Point Times
San Clemente-based foundation stays true to its roots
The ultra modern California Science Center in Los Angeles seemingly is worlds away from the quiet beaches of Malibu, even though the two locations are separated a mere 25 miles as a crow flies. But on Friday evening, October 9, as more than 300 guests including rock stars and Hollywood types gathered to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Surfrider Foundation, it was fitting to note the humble roots of an organization that today has global reach, 50,000 members in the United States and notable “victories” such as the Save Trestles campaign.
“The reason that we came into being 25 years ago is still true today,” said Jim Moriarty, Chief Executive Officer of Surfrider Foundation. “The acknowledgement of tension on the coast—whether its development or something else—and then acting on it, is still the same exact thing we’re doing today. We just do it using a lot of tools that people couldn’t even visualize back then with the Internet.”
The organization’s roots can be traced directly to three surfers who in 1984 sought to challenge a realignment of the outflow from the lagoon at First Point Malibu which would have impacted the surf break. The three surfers organized, outlined a goal and a plan, acted on it and ended up preserving First Point Malibu. From that point on, Surfrider Foundation’s charter and mission—“a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s oceans, waves and beaches for all people, through conservation, activism, research and education,”—has helped shape an organization that now has 35 full-time employees headquarted in new offices in San Clemente (it moved to San Clemente from Huntington Beach in 1992) and has touched hundreds of thousands of lives through its many chapters and programs.
“The phrase that makes the most sense to me regarding where Surfrider is today and where we’re going is ‘Wikepedia for the Coast,’” said Moriarty, who has been with Surfrider for over four years and is the foundation’s sixth CEO. “What I mean by that, is Surfrider is grassroots. You know, the 4,000 people that showed up for Trestles—that was crowd-sourced activism. We put this cause out there, people showed up and made their mark. Everything we do all over the world—we’re in 20 countries now and have 73 chapters in the U.S.—we never planted a single one of them. They all sprung up organically.”
A good example of Surfrider’s grassroots tradition and proof of its chapters-first strategy, can be found here locally with the South Orange County chapter. Formed three years ago by merging both San Clemente and Dana Point chapters, the South Orange County chapter has more than 2,000 members. The group came together after a failed campaign against the Headlands project in Dana Point, and through the stewardship of its chairman, Rick Erkeneff, has become the second largest chapter in the world behind only San Diego County. Erkeneff, who works alongside his wife Denise, was part of the failed effort against the Headlands, but found involvement in Surfrider is much more than just efforts against single projects.
“I saw that the organization was doing a lot of great things in our own back yard, such as beach cleanups, educational programs and much more,” said Erkeneff, who is a self-described “guy who has his feet in the sand six days a week.” Since recasting the organization under one larger regional umbrella, the group has performed hundreds of beach cleanups and recently kicked off a new Youth Service Program, under Denise Erkeneff’s direction, that is helping form Surfrider clubs on school campuses. That program is starting with local schools including Dana Hills High School, JSerra Catholic High School and schools in San Clemente, Laguna Beach and Mission Viejo which will form the foundation for a network of schools.
“We have been working in various capacities to launch the program to school groups, such as surf teams, community service, environmental groups and clubs,” said Denise Erkeneff. “All in all, we’re in process to launch what we believe will be a more formal network of high school affiliate, official Surfrider Foundation clubs in our region.”
Grassroots efforts such as those undertaken by the South Orange County chapter’s volunteer staff underscore Surfrider’s mission, said Moriarty.
“If you distill Surfrider Foundation down to its very essence, you’d get something pretty close to the entire Erkeneff family—it’s not just Rick, it’s his wife Denise, it’s Lulu—the grom who’s finding her way in beach lifestyle,” said Moriarty, himself a married father of two children. “They represent what we’re about in the sense that if you go to Florida, or Maine or Biarritz, France, and you follow the messaging, what you’ll end up with is someone a lot like the Erkeneffs.”
Moriarty believes that the Erkeneff’s efforts—and those of all of the chapter members and volunteers—is reflected in his “Wikipedia for the Coast,” label. Rather than focus on the technological reference to the catch phrase, Moriarty feels that Surfrider provides a way for people like Rick Erkeneff, a graphic designer by trade, a way to “plug in with his skill set and expertise on behalf of something that’s larger than him, which is our vision.”
Further evidence of Surfrider’s need for grassroots activism is the “Save Trestles” campaign, which sprung up from the direct efforts of surfers Jerry Collamer and Ed Schlegel, who teamed up 11 years ago to form the roots of the opposition to the planned toll road extension near Lower Trestles. The roots of that campaign—Collamer was a former big-city advertising executive who conceived the buzz term “Save Trestles—Stop the Toll Road,”—would eventually become a key program in Surfrider’s efforts.
“At first Surfrider was too distracted by the Headlands project,” said Collamer, who moved to San Clemente 11 years ago from Hermosa Beach but first started coming to San Clemente as an 8-year-old with his family for vacations. “It was pretty much just us and the Sierra Club. Surfrider played a huge part, but it came a little later, and as it turns out, it came just at the right time.”
Save Trestles is just one of many “victories” Surfrider boasts on its Web site. They are too many to list—but range globally. Moriarty admits that the Trestles effort is far from over—and that Surfrider’s team of full-time professionals ranging from legal experts to environmental and communications specialists—is vigilant in their maintenance of oversight.
“About a third of our efforts are top down or policy oriented,” said Moriarty. “We’ve been engaged with the new administration multiple times on alternative energy on coastlines—wave energy projects, tidal energy projects. The balance is focused on grassroots, or bottom up efforts. Our real essence is the grassroots activism. My impression is that Trestles was a metaphor that activism still matters, and still has muscle.”
Bob Hurley, owner of the global surf brand Hurley, said Surfrider has played a key role in helping the lifestyle of surfing grow responsibly. “Surfers have always had a healthy respect for the purity of the ocean,” said Hurley. “Not until Surfrider was able to organize us into a singular voice, were we able to make progress on keeping our water clean.”
As Surfrider continues to grow and evolve while tackling new initiatives both locally and globally, Moriarty feels that its mission will always remain the same.
“The core of who we are is the activist, the volunteer,” he said. “The person who has complained about Doheny one too many times and says, ‘OK, I’m going to do a beach cleanup. I’m going to do something.’ Even if it’s not under the Surfrider banner. We don’t exist to grow our brand, we exist for the protection and enjoyment of ocean, waves and beaches.”
ON THE WEB: www.surfrider.org, www.surfrider.org/southorangecounty
 Surfrider Foundation Gala Celebrates 25 Years
The Surfrider 25th Anniversary Gala on October 9 at the California Science Center Wallis Annenberg building was an event that offered something for everyone. The star-studded event set the stage for a night of food, fun, art and music that aptly celebrated 25 years of the Surfrider Foundation.
As guests arrived, the celebrities were directed to the red carpet entrance where they were greeted with the flashing of cameras and interviews by television entertainment reporters.
En route to the main event area called the Big Lab—a 32,000 square foot, indoor-outdoor space featuring a bamboo garden and 9,000 gallon water feature at its center—guests passed by a separate room dedicated to a benefit art auction. The standing-room only auction featured one-of-a-kind original works of art including mixed media collage, paintings and sculpture. Paddles were flying as the auctioneer got down to business, coaxing the bids higher and higher as competition for each piece heated up.
As the auction wound down, the crowd began meandering into the Big Lab for the main event. Three separate catering areas were scattered throughout the venue serving Chinese cuisine, Indian curries and a wide variety of pasta dishes. A well-stocked open bar provided beverages. The water “pool” was filled with empty plastic bottles—symbolizing the island of plastic polluting the Pacific Ocean—that for $5 a try, could be netted and checked inside their caps for prizes including a couple new guitars.
On stage, “Keeper of the Coast” awards were presented to actor David Chokachi (Baywatch) and bands Incubus and Pearl Jam for having made significant contributions toward helping Surfrider fulfill its mission. Awards were presented by professional surfers Jodie Nelson (San Clemente), Brad Gerlach, and E! Network’s Sal Masakela. The evening was hosted by Mark Hoppus of the band Blink 182. Surfrider Foundation Chairman of the Board C.J. Olivares and CEO Jim Moriarty also addressed the crowd.
The main attraction was a concert stage, expertly lit and amped up (pun intended) with a booming sound system and a cover band the likes of most have never seen, or heard, before. The band, Camp Freddy, is made up of established musicians—Billy Morrison (the Cult), Dave Navarro (Jane’s Addiction), Matt Sorum (Guns N Roses/Velvet Revolver), Scott Weiland (Stone Temple Pilots/Velvet Revolver), Donovan Leitch (son of folk artist Donovan) and Chris Cheney (Jane’s Addiction). The tradition of the band is to play covers of some of the best rock songs of all time along with guest vocalists and musicians. The night’s special guest vocalists included Perry Ferrell (Jane’s Addiction), Evan Seinfeld (Biohazard), Deryck Whibley (Sum 41), and Mark McGrath (Sugar Ray).
The evening highlighted an appreciation for the longevity and work that the Surfrider Foundation has been providing in the fight to preserve our waves, oceans and beaches for the last 25 years. It served as a reminder of Surfrider’s many milestones such as the fight to save Trestles from the toll road, among many others, and a celebration of the dedicated staff and volunteers that helped—and continue to help—make it all happen. —Andrea Swayne
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Way to go Rick,Denise, Lulu and Emma. When are you coming to NJ? Keep up the good work.