Surfing The Nations Opens In Wahiawa
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Del.icio.usLocal nonprofit Surfing the Nations has found a new home in Wahiawa in the space formerly occupied by Top Hat Bar, and co-founder Cindy Bauer couldn’t be happier with the change of address.
“We have always believed that if you want to change an area that’s difficult or get into an area that’s having horrible situations, you’ve got to be willing to live there,” said Bauer.“You won’t change some place by just visiting it.”
This “Peace Corps on surfboards"began nearly 12 years ago in Waikiki as a way to give at-risk youths a better chance at life through an introduction to the sport of surfing and other kinds of positive self-expression.
As it grew, so did its outreach, moving west to feed the homeless in Kalihi, Barbers Point, Waianae and other Leeward communities. The decision to head north to Central Oahu came earlier this year, when the Top Hat property at 67 S. Kamehameha Hwy. opened up along with a 15-unit apartment behind it.
“The whole reason we came here was it fit our need, and it put us in a place that we wanted to be,“Bauer explained.“The really fun part of this story was that the chairman of our board really wanted to get us a cinderblock apartment building, and my husband (Tom Bauer) always wanted something that was kind of old Hawaii, had a little history to it, a little bit of story to it. It was like this whole property was just arranged.”
These past few months volunteers have been transforming the old neighborhood tavern into living quarters for 50-plus STN members and a community center for those in need. They’ve torn up floors, ripped out dilapidated fixtures and cleaned tobacco, grease and other grime from the interior walls and windows.
“One of (the apartments) we had to completely gut,” Bauer recalled.“It had been an ice lab,and the guys who knew what to smell for said it goes into the wood, it goes into everything, so we had to take it down to nothing and come back up.”
STN is working mindfully to restore the property, she noted. Aided by historical feedback from the son of the bar’s original manager, the crew is trying to create a look that will honor the building’s historic roots. That way they could trash the unneeded and keep the priceless, including a vivid wall mural painted by a World War II veteran. They even uncovered an art deco mosaic ceiling mural - complete with a top hat - hidden by olive-green tiles.
“Even though the name will change, the location is still the same,” Bauer promised.
Though there is plenty of work still to be done, STN has already started serving its new neighborhood. Every first Monday and third Friday night at precisely 7:31 they open the doors for an Expression Session, when all ages are invited in for karaoke, poetry readings, dancing - whatever form of art that triggers a creative release.
The group also has created a positive buzz among kids and teens who’ve been coming to the free functions. Instead of bar patrons, there now are elementary school students flocking to the building for after-school activites. And on Dec.16,Leilehua High School students donated 1,600 canned goods to STN, which will go back into the community through its Feeding the Hungry program.
“It’s food that came from the Wahiawa community, and they wanted to make sure that it got back to the Wahiawa community, to those who really needed it,” said Bauer, who also serves on the town’s neighborhood board.
STN is always on the lookout for volunteers who can serve and care for the poor and/or hungry three times a week, mentor and work with at-risk youths weekly,plan and execute drug prevention and educational activities,serve the elderly and generally reach out to youths in any way.For more information, call 622-6235, e-mail .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or surf its Web site at surfingthenations.com.
“We’re really trying to connect to the community and really make a difference,” Bauer stated. “It’s kinda fun here compared to being in Honolulu, where we were a very little fish in a great big pond. Now it’s a pond where we can really see our effect.”
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