Mauli Ola Foundation ‘experience’ comes to Long Beach

A group of professional surfers from California and Hawaii, including former world champion Sunny Garcia, came to Long Beach on Aug. 26 as part of the Mauli Ola Foundation’s Shaka Tour and Surf Experience Day, which took place at National Boulevard beach.

California-based Mauli Ola Foundation is a nonprofit organization “dedicated to providing hope and confidence” to individuals living with cystic fibrosis and other genetic diseases, and uses surfing and other ocean-based activities as natural therapies.

The annual event was hosted by Skudin Surf — owned by Long Beach residents and pro big-wave surfers Will and Cliff Skudin — and was the last stop on a national, month-long tour that included stops in Texas, Florida, the Carolinas, Virginia Beach and New Jersey.

“We do this every year, for the last six years,” said pro surfer Jason "Mags" Magallanes, a Mauli Ola volunteer who has been helping kids with genetic conditions surf for more than 10 years. “We take these kids surfing and introduce them to a natural therapy, and they get exercise in the process because when they’re in a hospital bed, obviously they’re not obtaining any exercise. So, this gives them the freedom to come out, hang out with professional surfers, get natural treatment and get introduced to surfing.”

About 15 families, with children ages 5 to 15, traveled from around the tri-state area, for the event. Most of the kids have cystic fibrosis, Magallanes said, an inherited disorder that causes severe damage to the lungs and digestive system.

“Will and Cliff always give us support,” he said. “They’re legends around here and I’ve surfed some pretty big waves with them.”

The surf outings, Magallanes said, have resonated with kids and parents alike.
Jen Hauta traveled from New Jersey with her daughter, Sydney, 7, and said that there is a sense of community among parents and organizers at the events.

“She really, really enjoys it — it gives her a nice break from her regular treatments,” Hauta said. “It gets her out there and she enjoys her time and it’s kind of like a big family atmosphere. She became close with Sunny and keeps in touch with him throughout the year and wants him to know everything that’s going on.”

“My daughter was hospitalized for the first time in May, and this helped her,” she added. “To be able to come out and see these people who really care about what they’re doing, and care about the kids and helping them get this natural healing is really good.”

Garcia became the ASP WCT World Champion in 2000, and holds six Triple Crown of Surfing titles. In 2010, he was inducted into the Surfer's Walk of Fame in Huntington Beach. Garcia, Magallanes, and other pro surfers not only work with the kids in the water, but they also visit local children’s hospitals on the tour.

“This is the least we can do to give back to them,” Magallanes said. “It’s hard — they have to take like 30 to 40 pills a day to maintain immunity in their system — and it puts everything in perspective. What these kids are going through, it’s pretty brutal, it’s a brutal disease.”